Weekending: Post T&A

Where do I even begin to start this post?

It has been a LONG weekend. If you have stumbled upon my page, grab a coffee and take a seat. This will be a lengthy read. 

I've referenced our constant battle that E has had with strep many times on the good 'ole blog (which came in handy when I had to share dates with the doctors) and even disclosed that we had made the decision to move forward with a tonsillectomy. That procedure actually turned into a full T&A (removal of tonsils and adenoids) much to my surprise.

You can guess where this weekending post is going....

Friday morning started bright and early since we had to be at the hospital by 6 A.M. This was following in line with how my week had been going - on Tuesday I had an early annual meeting at work where I gave a presentation to our company, followed by a flight to Chicago for a work meeting and a flight back home less than twenty-four hours later. Needless to say, last week was exhausting. I hardly slept all week and only added five hours to my slumber on Thursday night. I feel like I got more sleep when I had a newborn. 

The nurses and doctors came by to meet us and share what role they played in the OR. One man in particular was asking a lot of questions, but we had no idea who he was. I asked if he was a nurse to which he appeared insulted and said he was a doctor, specifically her anesthesiologist. J was like, "I'm pretty sure you somehow insulted him," and I responded that he should introduce himself next time instead of waiting to be asked. #bedsidemannermatters

Surgery began around 7:30 A.M. E was a champ and only became semi-emotional when we had to leave her. Even so, she still didn't cry. About an hour later, the doctor came out and said everything went perfectly. Praise God. 

We were rushed back to recovery since babies are very cranky when they wake up from anesthesia. When we walked through the door I instantly heard her sobbing as she had been crying for her mommy. That absolutely broke my heart, but she calmed down once I was able to hold her.

We were moved upstairs into our room for the night. E was an absolute dream for the rest of the day. Hydration is a concern and I was very thankful that she chugged around ten apple juices and ate her liquid lunch of popsicles, jello, and chicken broth. 

At this point J left to run some errands and returned a few hours later with Whole 30 compliant food for yours truly. When he got back to the room, E had become more lethargic and wanted nothing to eat or drink. A few minutes later, the puking began.

You know you've hit motherhood when you discuss bodily fluids.

Cheers for green throw up with no sign of blood! After a T&A surgery, you cannot eat anything red or pink for this very reason. E continued to puke a few other times, but every thing looked well. She quickly passed out afterwards and we decided J could sleep at the house since everything was calm. I should have realized that this justification and a phone call with DJ was foreshadowing at its finest. 

The nurse came in to give E pain meds around 9 P.M. Then I noticed that E had blood on her pillow and it wasn't just a drop or two. 

Cue the panic.

The biggest concern with this surgery is a risk of bleeding post operation. This is especially concerning in a tiny three year old who doesn't have as much blood as an adult.

See why I was flipping out?

The next hour was spent changing sheets and outfits, trying to get E to open her mouth to determine where the bleeding was coming from, and catching her bloody puke. She threw up a few more times and in my tears and newborn-tired state, I begged the nurses to page the ENT (which I think had already happened, but cannot recall). Our doctor wasn't on-call, but one of his partners arrived shortly followed by J. After having to pin down by dreary, screaming kiddo, he was able to get a look at her throat. The surgery spots looked "perfect" and he believed the blood came from that morning during the procedure. Praise the Lord that no OR needed to be booked! #givemeallthexanax

We finally got to sleep for a few hours until E woke up at 3 A.M. We took her to the bathroom and somehow she managed to go back to sleep. The nurse came in a few hours later to administer the new pain meds and E took them without complaining, even the nurse remarked that it was the complete opposite from the little girl she met the night prior.

The rest of the morning was spent drinking juice and waiting for our doctor to call and discharge us. E was over the popsicles and jello at this point, but seemed like her normal self. The on-call doctor who we met the night before stopped by to check in and was pleased that E was doing well. Apparently he had been in touch with our doctor and filled him in on the evening's activities. We received the news that we were leaving around noon, which was welcomed since she began to go stir crazy as did her father. I cannot imagine how families who have to stay in the hospital for long periods at a time deal with this.

Once we were home, we let E paint outside to spend some time in the fresh air. I put her down for a nap and woke her up a few hours later to give her a bath. Something about hospitals just makes me feel DISGUSTING. For the rest of the day she lounged around and had way too much screen time.

Later that evening (literally like 9 P.M.) I realized that I needed to pull her Easter basket down from the attic. I had purchased a few items earlier that month, but soon realized that I couldn't completely fill it with the treats as planned since she couldn't eat them. Sigh. Thankfully, I had a few goody bags on hand and was able to complete her basket with those. Yup, I literally finished her basket with goodies from the parties we had been to. #noshameinmygame

Easter Sunday was spent in our jammies playing with the items the Easter Bunny dropped off on our porch. Although the reason we celebrate Easter is much more important than a silly rabbit, it is nice to make these memories with E.

We streamed our church service and gave E the ipad to keep her entertained during the sermon.

A T&A will really make you break all of the screen time rules.

I'm staying at home today since E cannot go back to school for a while. Thankfully, Foxie is coming to hang out for a few days since I have a sales meeting at work later this week. One day my life will slow down and I can return to my running and trips to the gym.

Now, give yourself a high five if you have lasted this long. I know this isn't the most interesting topic to most, but feel it's important to document all the details with the hope that it will help someone else. I plan on writing a couple more posts about the tonsillectomy and adenoid surgery since there wasn't a lot of information I could relate to when I was researching the procedure specifically for a toddler.

Here's to an uneventful week ahead!

*Linking up with B Loved Boston, My Glittery Heart, and HoHo Runs