Thursday, March 12, 2009

Ben's Surgery UPDATE -AND AGAIN

UPDATE AGAIN

Well Ben slept well last night, with us of course, but well nonetheless. He is eating and drinking just fine, and even taking his medicine without much protest. He seems to be in less pain today and is acting more himself. Which is the problem. I need to keep him as sedentary as possible at least until Monday when the catheter is removed. It is stitched in place and when he moves around it pulls and hurts. I am depserate for more activities to do with him that don't require moving so if ANYONE has an idea for quiet activities and games for a typically active two year old I would LOVE to hear them. I am running out of ideas. It is taking all of my energy getting him not to use his! :-) Thanks again for your prayers!


Hello Everyone!

Thanks so much for your prayers. They were definitely felt this morning. We were all able to get a good night's sleep and head in to the surgery center. We were blessed with wonderful nurses and the best doctor we could ask for and she was running ON TIME! One of the worst parts last time was handing him over to be taken to the operating room. He freaked out. This time they gave him a little "cocktail" to relax him and it was actually pretty funny. He is a really funny kid as it is and this magic juice made him even more so.

The anesthesiologist came in and gave him a little mask to hold and play with before the surgery in hopes he would not be frightened by it when the time came for him to breathe through it and Ben thought it was great! He yelled into it, sang into it and pretended it was a musical instrument! When it was time for them to take him back to the operating room, he just asked to take the mask and the little stuffed lion the nurse had given him with him. Off he went...not even a tear (on his part, mine is another story).

The surgery ran a little longer than expected but everything went well and we were called back as he was waking up. He always has a very hard time waking up from anesthesia but the nurses were so great. He was a little hysterical and I started crying as I was holding him because nothing I did soothed him. They got us a DVD player and some snacks and juice and then gave him some extra pain medication. I think that more of the trouble was just being in the surgery center...he wanted to go home and kept asking for Luke. Once we were able to get him settled a bit and made sure he wasn't having any reactions from any of the meds they let us go.

A little more pain medication and a Happy Meal (Ugh! I know, what a horrible mom) later he is doing pretty well. We are sitting in my bed now watching Pooh and snuggling. We just woke up from a nap and he is still complaining of a little pain but seems to be much more himself.

He will go in Monday to have the catheter removed. This seems to be bugging him more than anything, but this time he is on a preventative antibiotic to be sure he doesn't get a UTI. SO many of our prayers have been answered thus far and we are just continuing to pray for healing for Ben, and that this surgery will be the answered prayer that fixes the problem for good. I am going to try my best for the next few days to just focus on Ben and let the laundry, dusting and floors go. I am going to run out later to pick up a few easy to fix meals and hopefully we will be set. Please also continue to pray we can keep Ben relatively sedentary. He is an active kid but needs to take it easy for a few days so as not to pull on the catheter.

Thank you all for your prayers. We are home and doing well, praising God for his faithfulness and always sufficient grace.

16 comments:

Laurie in Ca. said...

Oh I am so happy to hear that all went well Kristy. He was in such great hands from start to finish. I agree with you, let the house go for now and just be his pal and relax yourself. Catheter out Monday is great too. Praying for complete healing and for your heart. It is so hard to see our kids hurt. Bless Bens heart and yours too. Love you girl.

Love and Hugs, Laurie

jendakerr said...

Awesome news! Glad he is on the mend!

Momma J said...

Isn't that why they are called Happy Meals? Hey, if it made him happy under the circumstances, that's all that matters! (Not that I would EVER do such a thing.... I'm the most health conscience person in the world. If ya believe that then you must also believe that we don't really have four boys! lol)

I am glad to "hear" that everything went well. One more thing to not have to worry about anymore. :)

Kelly @ Sufficient Grace Ministries said...

So grateful the surgery went well...Our God is faithful, and His grace is always sufficient!

Rachel said...

Glad to hear that things went smoothly. Praying you can keep him relatively still for the next few days.
Rachel in PA

Just Me said...

Glad surgery went well (especially for good nurses ;o) ). That sounds like good news that he will get the catheter out on Monday rather than having to keep it a whole week. Hope you can find some fun and quiet activities (for both you AND Ben...it would be good for you to just "hang out" too!) I wasn't QUITE as organized as I hoped to be, and it was a busy week, but a card (and maybe a couple other things) is on its way :o)

Hugs and prayers,
Amanda

Emily said...

Sweet! SO thrilled for you guys. Thank you, God!!

Angie said...

I'm so glad it went well, christy!!! still praying for the rest of the recovery.

Anxious AF said...

Im so glad it is over.....have a good weekend!

Lisa said...

Hey Kristy!

Just a couple days ago I did this with Nathan & he played with it for hours, and into the next day also:

On large paper (I had to tape some together), I drew streets for his matchbox cars, and then he told me what places to draw on it. Like McDonalds, the grocery store, Auntie Claire's house, etc. For whatever the reason, playing with the "map" of places he knew kept him happy forever!

Hilary said...

I'm so glad Ben's surgery went well and that he's feeling so good! I missed your posts telling us he was going into surgery, so I wasn't able to pray then, but I'm praying now that he continues to recover quickly and that the catheter will cause NO problems! Also, that he'll be able to remain calm until Monday :)
I'm sure you tried out lots of these activities, but I'll list some things that my (very energetic) boy likes to do:
playdoh - stick toothpicks in it, cut it with scissors, bury animals and dig them up
Legos
Board games
Read books
Movies
Coloring, cutting with scissors
Fingerpainting
Playing with toys in uncooked rice, pasta, beans etc
Make drawings in flour using finger or Q-tip
Puzzles
Playing in the kitchen sink w/a small amount of water, and bubbles and/or toys

Well, I hope maybe that helped! I'm praying for you all!

Amanda said...

I'm so glad to hear that the surgery went well. I pray that he (as well as yourself and Howard) don't have to go through this again in a few months. I hope he's feeling much better, even now.
I was going to suggest a few quiet things to do, but many of my suggestions are in Hilary's comment. I hope something on that list really interests him! ;)

Kim (marygracesummons.blogspot.com) said...

No new ideas from me although the others sound good. I am glad he is doing so well in his recovery. Will keep praying:)
Love you,
Kim

Debbie said...

Hope you can find activities for him. Glad it went well and will keep you in our prayers.

Rob and Amy said...

Kristy,
What about some shaving cream on a cookie sheet, or some beans on a cookie sheet and some trucks to run through it. I guess watching movies is getting a little boring for him, huh?!?!?

Christa @ Quintooples said...

Praying that all is still ok with little Ben!

Happy Meals are great for special occasions right....like surgeries, (and any time you need a little quiet in the car...at least that's what I tell my little organic cooking heart. :x)

Checking in, and praying that all is well with the family.