Getting Ready for Surgery

Just a little tyke here, but you can
see the two clefts, one in his lip, the
other in his gum. 

Aaron's first of three surgeries is scheduled for this Wednesday.  This one is to his mouth, the next two to each of his ears.

When he was born, he had a cleft lip that extended into his gum line.  They fixed the lip when he was 14 months old.  Now it's time to fix the alveolar ridge, or the bone that your upper teeth fit into.  I'm a touch nervous.

Of course, this is all depending on him staying well.  And that makes me antsy as well.

Michael and Matthew have been sick this week.  Matthew not as bad, but Michael has had a really rough time.  It started late Tuesday night when he knocked on our door and rasped out, "I can't breathe."  It was so bad that William asked who it was and what he'd said.  I jumped out of bed, hollering at him to get into the bathroom and turn on the hot water.

He was a mess.  Massive retractions (sucking skin in under his collar bone and ribs) and mottled skin.  We got him breathing a little better, stuck a pulse/ox on him and he was at 91%,  Not so hot for a kiddo who doesn't usually have heart/lung issues.

So being the medical household we are, I stuck oxygen on him and we took a trip down to the ER.  They were all a bit surprised at the O2.  Oh well, that's how we roll around here.  We had it, he was struggling, here we go.

Anyway, they gave him some steroids to help him breathe and did a viral panel, except the tech messed up.  So we don't know for sure what he had, or what Aaron might get.  But given that his symptoms are essentially the same as Andrew's were two years ago, my money is on RSV.

Yep, that one that sends shivers of fear down the spine of any medical mom.

So like I said, surgery IF Aaron stays well.  We're trying.

And we've been hedging out bets in other areas, too.  You know when you made sure you wore your lucky socks on test days, put on and tied your shoes exactly the same every game day?  Well, we have our rituals, too.

When Aaron had his ear tubes and everyone was a bit nervous, I reassured the anesthesiologist that he'd be just fine because I had my hospital bag all packed and in the car.  And he was!  At least until we were almost home.  Hey, we tried.

This time they're keeping him overnight, at least.  But I spent Saturday making several casseroles to put in the freezer so they didn't have to worry about dinner.  Which means (I hope) that they won't use any of them 'cause we'll be back home by mid-day on Thursday.  Tried to clear the schedule, booked my own physical therapy appointment for Saturday, you know, everything I can think of.

And my goofy kid?  What's he up to?  Well, this morning he desatted because he pulled off his oxygen, and I had to work to get it out from between his teeth to reattach it.  And the whole time he was laughing at me.

I'm not sure how he's going to handle being really swollen and wearing a mouth guard for the next little while.  But if I know my kid, he'll do it with grace.  Somehow, he always does.

And if you've got a little time, check out this video that another young man with his own set of challenges made for Aaron. He has a real talent for the piano and also for optimism.  It touches my heart that so many people pray for him.

An inexhaustible good nature is one of the most precious gifts of heaven,
spreading itself like oil over the troubled sea of thought,
and keeping the mind smooth and equable in the roughest weather.

Washington Irving