The Big Day...Surgery Day

We arrived at Peyton Manning Children's Hospital at 6:30am. Cayden was taken back to the OR at 7:30. He was happy and funny and the nurses were fighting over who gets to carry him. He was growling at them and laughing...we watched them once again walk our youngest baby to an operating room. Our family was waiting in the waiting room for us...all of my parents, Christopher's parents, my sister and brother-in-law, and Melinda. We had Phil from our church come and pray for Cayden and we had a few friends pop in and out throughout the day. Surgery began at 8:10am. It took 7 hours. It went surprisingly fast. They updated us every step of the way. I had one real meltdown after she made us aware that he was on by-pass, by far the scariest thing I have ever had to go through! The nurse came and got us and took us to the family lounge in the PICU, in just a few minutes we would be reunited with our precious bug. Walking into the PICU is always nerve-racking...you never know what you will see. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised at how well Cayden looked. He was still on the vent and unconscious but his color was good and he wasn't very swollen. It took him a few hours to come off the ventilator and the next 24 hours were very scary in terms of his respiratory function...it was very scary for this momma! He developed Subcutaneous Emphysema, which is air trapped in the shoulders and neck. His stats were a little unstable and he chest tube lost its suction so he was on constant wall suction...all this equals to lots of pain for our little boy :( Friday morning the surgeon came in and removed his chest tube...after a 1 hour nap he was a new baby! His stats improved. He smiled for the first time, started babbling, and playing with some toys. This was also the first time I got to hold him...it is like having a newborn all over again. Holding him, talking to him, looking at him in utter disbelief that God has blessed you with such a gift. The rest of the weekend was more recuperation and getting him back to eating regularly. Monday we did a chest x-ray, labs, and an ECHO...all look well and he was discharged! We are home now and things are a bit rough especially at night time but we are just taking it one day at a time...we are so thankful for God seeing us though this and protecting our baby. We are thankful the MANY friends and family who have helped us and continue to help us down this road of surgery and recovery. Like I said before...we are VERY blessed and are continuing to ask God to lead us down His path one day at a time!

Preparation for the big day...

Planning for your baby to have an intense invasive surgery is like having to plan a wedding. It is emotional, stressful, and the closer you get to the "big day" the more you need to get done and the harder it is to get it done! Over the last few weeks, I have been planning, cooking, and freezing meals. Arranging care, transportation, and schedules for Chase & Cooper. Cleaning the house, organizing closets, cleaning out the garage, and laundry. These things all need done but it also helped keep my mind on whats to come. I needed everything done and taken care of so that I could focus on my boys when we get home...focus on Cayden's care and recovery. Also, focusing on time with my big bugs as we are away from them for quite a while. In the midst of all the preparation, there is praying. Praying for strength, patience, and truly begging God to make everything okay. Along with praying, there is texting, phone calls, emails, dinners with friends and family all who are comforting and supporting us...offering meals...more meals than I ever thought we would be blessed with...it had truly made us re-realize how blessed we are!
Tuesday, October 18th, brought on our pre-op appointment. I took my boys over to Betzy and Andy's house...the Goller's are some of our very best friends in this world. They took our boys Tuesday all-day, had a sleepover, and watched them all day on Wednesday so that family could all be at the hospital. Their beautiful children: Gabe, Sam, and Gwen are best friends with our boys and I knew that they would be loved on, cared for, and even disciplined if needed. I knew the boys would have a blast and would look at it as one big play date. I am sure if you are a parent you can understand the need for this reassurance but if you can't let me tell you there is NOTHING more terrifying than being at the hospital with one baby and worrying about your other babies at home. Thankfully because of the Goller's we didn't have to worry for a second and for that we will ALWAYS be grateful!
This pre-op appointment was four hours of EKGS, X-rays, bloodwork, dr. visits, and admin paperwork. I think it is their way of preparing you for the length of surgery day! Cayden and I were exhausted after that and enjoyed a nice long nap together at home...just him and me :) Daddy got home, Aunt Melinda arrived in town and we headed to Red Robin for our "last" meal. Cayden of course ate his entire order of mac n cheese along with lots of mommy's fries! He was the cutest best behaved baby that night and we had a nice time just enjoying dinner. We got home and daddy gave him a bath, bottle, and it was bedtime...in eight short hours we would be on our way to Peyton Manning Children's Hospital.