Aunt Tami and Grandma Sue came along to be wonderful help physically and emotionally on surgery day itself. We started out in the sibling playroom for an hour while we waited for our surgery time. It was the only place that mommy could find without food! Since Tommy had gone without food for awhile and couldn't eat until after surgery... it was hard being around folks in the lobby that were eating. So we played instead. Thanks aunt Tami for playing with the car track with me.
Then we got back to the famous waiting room. Cousin Andrew lent us his video machine and great movies and it kept Tommy's mind off of all else. The surgery was a tad bit delayed so we waited... and waited.
And then waited just a bit too long. And he fell asleep.
When the anesthesiologist came to get him for surgery HE DIDN'T WANT TO GO. So mommy had to gown up and take little Tommy back. I cannot adequately say how much I don't like taking any of my kids back to OR. It's just a place that this momma's heart cannot see or even begin to image. It's a place that I know there are doctors and nurses and staff trained to care for Tommy. But I don't want to see that room. Instead, I had to swallow all of those feelings down hard and carry my little son back to the OR and help them hold him while the orange smelling gas mask attached to his face started to relax him. I was sad beyond belief. Prayerful that God would watch over Tommy and take his anxiety (and mine) away. 
After the surgeon gave us the good news of the results.... we were off to our room to get settled. Tommy was very sleepy and on 3 liters of oxygen which we knew was the reason we would stay overnight. Once he got to the room I rocked him from 5:30-9:30pm and so happy to have in back safely in my arms. From there things got a little stressful.
We tried to wean oxygen a few times but as usual he desated. I finished rocking him at 9:30pm and place him in his crib. I 'nested' in our isolation room... unpacked stuff from our suitcase, cleared garbage, arranged his g-tube supplies so I could find in the dark easily, made the pull out couch with blankies and in general got things 'just so' if that is possible while in the hospital. I remember laying down at 10:15 and thinking to myself, I'll sleep for an hour (if I get to) and then I'll change Tommy's diaper again and feed thru g-tube. Just as I drifted off to sleep, very comfy, with the contents and location of everything in our room memorized.... the nurse rubbed my shoulder and said "Sandi I have some not so good news..... we need this room.... you and Tommy will need to move down the hall to a shared room". My only reply was "SHIT".
It's not fun moving in the dark, by yourself (a nursing asst did help), when your child doesn't feel good. But I know these nurses only do it when they absolutely need to. So off Tommy and I went to our new room shared with a sweet little girl. I nested again, fed him thru his g-tube, changed his soggy diaper and then..... rocked him to sleep and thought I would dare to lay down again and get some rest, it was about 2 am. I was tired. Tommy was comfy, dry and medicated and tummy full. I remember I did my usual routine while sitting in the rocking chair of brushing the wires and oxygen on the floor over to the left so my feet, without looking down, could safely carry Tommy to his crib. I can remember counting the wires... iv... oxygen... chest leads.... okay good to go. As I placed Tommy asleep in his crib he started to fuss... and I looked down at his face glowing from the monitors and noticed it was all squeeshed. The oxygen must have gotten caught under the chair and I didn't have enough line to make it to the crib. So I picked him back up, now he was crying much louder and in my confusion I was looking back to the rocking chair and noticed the oxygen and then back to Tommy's face and noticed blood smeared over his face and dripping from his hand.... his iv had been tugged and pulled out. The nurse had placed the iv stand on the wrong side of his bed, the left side when his iv was in his right hand. And I didn't notice. I grabbed his hand and started applying pressure to his slippery hand. The blood made the floor slippery, scared him because it was slimy on his face .... in general we both freaked out. I forgot where the call button had been placed and fumbled around with a 35 pound kid on wet floors to find the call button. I heard a voice from the other side of our shared room sweetly say she could help. And within a couple of minutes the nurses came in and we got his hand securly wrapped. Heavy sigh. I insisted the iv be left out at least until morning. I rocked him back to sleep and again placed him back in his crib. It was near 4am now. I curled up on the little couch, slept in the fetal position, twirling my hair and sucking my thumb until nearly 6am.
Tommy slept thru until 8am yesterday. And then the oxycodone became our enemy. It made him constipated and mean. The pediatrician wanted Tommy to nap during the day without oxygen and stay about 90 oxsat. But he just couldn't nap. I rocked and rocked. We watched a movie. I sang. Grandma Sue and I bathed the blood from the night before off of him, hoping a warm bath would soothe. I fed him. No nap. It was nearly 3pm when the pediatrician finally agreed, he's not going to nap but has been off of oxygen all day and kept above 90. And we got the green light to leave. My parents and I packed that room up within 5 minutes. Literally we were waiting at the nursing station for the discharge papers. Ahhhh, home.
Once home I set up the playpen beside Hannah's bed and Tommy slept there for 12 full wonderful hours. I woked every three hours to medicated, change diaper and feed thru his gtube. Sweet sleeping Tommy! Him and Liam were so glad to see each other. I have bathed them this morning and we got lots of snuggles! Liam and I have been busy with arts and crafts while Tommy took a morning nap. Tommy is LOVING ice cream, yogurt and his beloved banannas. He is just on tylenol now and doing really well.
And that's our story :) I'm off to get a manicure and pedicure with my sister and probably have a glass of wine later tonight! So glad to share with all of you that we made it thru. It wasn't pretty but we did it!