Our Spring Break wasn't filled with a fancy beach vacay or a fun ski trip...it was filled with surgery and sick boys. And I have to say I wouldn't have changed it. I LOVED being the one that got to take care of my boys for a week during the day without the constant guilt of taking off work. They needed me and I got to be here!
It all started when Henry has his second set of tubes a couple weeks ago. Dr. Pou randomly started telling us about how some kids are misdiagnosed with ADHD, snore loudly, and wake up in the middle of the night. Neil and I looked at each other and told Dr. Pou that he was TOTALLY describing Bennett. Dr. Pou said that most parents just laugh off snoring because it's sort of cute, but it is not normal and we needed to bring him in. Hmmmmm.
At Henry's post op (which was great..tubes look fine), we had Bennett seen as well. Bennett was checked out and had huge tonsils, high palate, teeth grinding, snoring like a man, ADHD, veins popping out of forehead and chest... diagnosed with sleep apnea. Poor thing! We left feeling like our baby hasn't been breathing correctly while he slept for the last 4 years.
We were told to do the surgery either Spring Break or summer. We decided that we didn't want Bennett to miss 2 weeks of his summer, so we would do it now. The down time for Bennett is 2 weeks. He has to stay out of school for 7 days and no physical activity for 14 days. Thankfully, Nana will take care of Bennett when we all go back to work after the break.
To start Bennett's Spring Break, we had a play date at Sam's house. His mommy invited us over for a "best buddies" playdate. These boys just love each other. They seem to play well together at school and always do a little "best buddies" cheer. They each put their hands in the center and raise them while saying "Bessssst Buddddddies!" Adorable!
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| Sam, John, and Bennett |
Tuesday was our big surgery day. Nana came over the night before to make dinner and to get up with Henry while we were at the surgery center. We were so glad she was here to help! Bennett basically got to eat whatever he wanted...about 10 mini Snickers... because we knew he wasn't going to be eating much like that for 2 weeks.
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| Here is Bennett on the pre-meds that make you extra goofy! He still had his tonsils! |
He was hilarious on the pre-meds. He kept laughing and saying silly things. He had to use the restroom during the loopy meds and stared at the pee saying "look at all the bubbles, they are yellow!"
The nurses came in and got him for the surgery. I was soooooooooooooo nervous. Neil is so good at staying calm and keeping me calm. The surgery didn't take long and Bennett did great! Dr. Pou came out to talk to us and told us that he really needed his tonsils out. He said they were bigger than he thought and had a film on them that looked like they were about to be infected. See ya, tonsils and adenoids!
The nurses called us back to see Bennett in recovery. They said "he is pretty upset and is crying." Our poor little guy was just huddled up in a big hospital bed crying. It was just heartbreaking to see him like that. I crawled up on the bed and held him. He was disoriented, crying, and in pain. Neil and I kept telling how brave he was and how proud we were of him. He kept trying to pull out his IV and could not really be consoled.
Nana and Pops met us at the surgery center to check on B. Bennett was glad to see Nana as he had asked for her and Gammy after he woke up. Sweet boy loves his grandmothers! I know it sounds selfish, but I wanted him to want me.
So, we made it home and climbed up in our bed to watch cartoons. We just knew Bennett would fall asleep immediately. The only people that fell asleep were Neil and me!
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| Bennett after surgery with his Batman bandaid on his IV wound. |
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| B used his blanket to cover up Neil on our bed! |
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| Carolyn was so sweet to bring B a banana milkshake. I didn't even know they made banana milkshakes, but that is what he wanted and Carolyn found it! Thanks, Carolyn. |
The next few pictures are a total testament to how easily kids can bounce back. It is a hard thing to keep a 4 year old full-of-energy boy calm for 2 weeks...when he couldn't even sit around the DAY OF SURGERY!
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| Pops brought Bennett a huge basket of Spiderman goodies and balloons. His favorite were these Spiderman punching gloves. Great gift for a kid who is supposed to be sitting calmly. Thanks, Pops! |
I was glad that I was going to be able to send Henry to daycare on Tuesday-Thursday so I could have one-on-one time with Bennett. On Wednesday, his daycare called and said he had fever and needed to be picked up. Poor thing has had a green gunky nose since Wednesday, fever, and a cough. It is just a virus! On Friday evening I called the pediatrician's nurse because I thought Henry was wheezing. She said I needed to take him to the ER for a breathing treatment if wheezing was the care. I had NO idea she would say that.
I called Carolyn and asked her to come and listen to him and she thought he needed to go. I called Erin D. and she said the same thing. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't doing the wrong thing. The nurse told me to go ahead and take him because it always seems to worsen at night. We headed to Highland and do you think he wheezed 1 time? no. I was annoyed with myself for being a paranoid mom, but Neil reminded me that it gave me peace of mind so I wouldn't worry all night long. We were seen by the doctor before the lady even came in to "register" us in the hospital. Glad my baby is well.
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| These boys just want to play outside! But, Bennett doesn't just want to walk around outside...he wants to jump on the trampoline or slide or climb. Poor guy...he is going stir crazy. |
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| We've had lots of offers for milkshakes. Henry had to have one too. He destroyed it about 30 seconds after enjoying it. |
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| Brothers love each other. |
We've totally been trying to come up with calm, indoor fun. We dyed eggs, made
deviled eggs, made an airplane out of a diaper box, built a box fort, planted some plants, rolled a ball that turned into throwing/kicking it, cooked, baked a cake, and made a list. Bennett saw me making a grocery list and said "Mom, will you help me make a list?"
Of, course!!! I am a list maker. I will write something down on a list that I have already done just to cross it off. I am so glad Bennett shares my love of list-making. After I sent this picture to my aunt she said "people who make lists are generally successful!"
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| so here is his list! I love the bullet points. I made the first one and he did other ones. I am so proud of his writing skills! |
