Safely through surgery!

It has been an emotional roller coaster this week.  Baby Girl had to be at the hospital at 5:45 am.  MRI of her spine was 7:30 am under sedation.  They then rolled her into surgery.  Hours of waiting for my baby.  Thankfully, the hospital staff called with updates after the MRI and during surgery.  But still the waiting.  My family support system is great.  My dad and brother both flew in from down south, and the ex drove all night to be there for the day.  Hubby and my son and I had quite the crowd of men to contend with and chat with for the day.

Our doctor is amazing.  He only cut a tiny amount of hair on her head and even braided her pigtails.  I've seen some other peoples' incisions and they look gross, as thick as a pencil, skin all weird.  Not my Baby Girl's!  We finally got to see her in recovery at 2:30 pm and were amazed at how well she was doing.

I will spare you all the details of the first night, but I don't think I slept more than 10 minutes each hour.  My Baby Girl was a baby grizzly bear!  Could have had something to do with the nurses coming in every hour, turning on the lights, and shining flashlights in her eyes.  But the staff in ICU was amazing and kind.  We could not have asked for more caring staff.

Day 2 brought her around like she had barely even had anything done.  Not eating much but drinking some liquids.  Therapy staff came and asked a few questions about school and home then took her for a walk.  She came back smiling, and they were so pleased at what she was able to do so soon after surgery.

Day 3 visit from the surgeon and we were told we could go home because she was doing more than they expected her to do.  Motor skills were great, walking up stairs and down, anything they wanted.  So a few hours later, we unloaded the car and settled back into our normal life again.

Countdown to decompression surgery

We are on the countdown.  Just days away from heading to the children's hospital and have Baby Girl's head and neck opened up.  Scary thoughts for sure.  She's ready, the headaches are really bad, some days, and other days, they are less than bad.

How does one prepare for this type of thing?  How do you handle all the questions people have?  What can they do to help?  I love my friends and family for all their support.  I'm thinking they just give me an IV of muscle relaxants to ease my fears, or wine?  I'm trying to get things ready at home so my wonderful husband and the boy will be okay every evening.  Frozen meals are labeled in the freezer, family is set to bring some food by for them too.  Laundry will all be washed up, groceries bought, litter boxes cleaned, dog to the groomer, notes for the hubby....  Am I ready?

I promised Baby Girl that I will not leave her side.  So I've got to get my butt in gear and pack a bag for me as well.  Charging cords for the phone, camera, and Kindle are ready to go.  Pillows, blankets, her beloved blankie, some comfy clothes for us both.  What about snacks? Drinks?  I'm sure I'll forget something along the way.

As she enjoys her 13th birthday party and house full of giggling girls, I'm trying to make sure I appear to be strong and positive.  Deep down, I'm not.  Scared, nervous, and totally scatter-brained.  I just keep telling myself that I'm the mom, I have to put on a brave front for her so she won't realize how scary this is.  Plus, I've got to make sure the house is still running smoothly and everything is in place.

Wish us luck.