Surgery

On Wednesday the 19th, we headed into the hospital for our arrival time of 9:00 AM. We were expecting the worst since Malachi could only have formula until 3 AM and then clear liquids until 7 AM. If you have ever been around our child when he is hungry, he is not a happy camper. He lets you know that it is time to eat and if you are taking too long he goes into full blown anger. The kind where they hold their breath, turn bright red, and there is nothing you can do to console them...yep, we were preparing for the worst. We left our house at 6:30 AM and he slept the whole way to Cleveland. We sat in registration over an hour waiting to be called. My son who can barely make it 3 hours between feedings fell asleep in my lap....I didn't question it. I just snuggled my baby and praised Jesus!

 They finally called us back to do paperwork and prep him for surgery. Our little man just sat there through the whole process--not crying. They started the surgery at 11:30 and were done by noon. We went back to see him in recovery and they had warned us ahead of time that it will take him a little while to wake up and it was best to let him wake up from the anesthesia on his own. When we got back there, the nurse said he was actually already starting to wake up because he got upset when his pacifier fell out...now that sounds like our son!

The surgery went great and they were able to do laser on both eyes to stop any potential damage that might be caused by the retinopathy. Malachi finally was able to eat some clear liquids. The nurse said that he may not drink it or he may not tolerate it well....it was gone in no time and he was looking at me like why are you holding out on me mom! They moved us to a room upstairs for observation overnight and he finally got to eat formula again. That anesthesia must have really made him feel good because he was one happy boy! He had an IV in one hand and wires all over him and he just laid there talking and smiling away.  

Yesterday, our little boy turned 5 months old, completed his first surgery, and was discharged from his second hospital stay (thankfully the second stay was 80 days shorter than the first). Our little guy is strong. He is a fighter and we are so blessed to have a healthy happy little boy.

We are home now and I can't help but sit here and think about the parents whose children have much more complex health problems. Families who spend a good part of their year in the hospital, who go through surgery after surgery, or who have to leave the hospital knowing their baby is never coming home. Would you please pray for those families with me? If you know a family who has a child with special medical needs, give them a hug today, send them a note of encouragement, do a random act of kindness. If you are a parent of healthy children, give them an extra hug tonight and praise God for their health. 

Now that we have that surgery out of the way, Malachi will have to have eye drops four times a day for seven days (Some how his eyelids become iron clad locks and he turns into a baby octopus every time!) and then follow up with the specialist one more time for a post-op appointment. So now, we just need to focus on growing!