A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words - Trio

Halloween: Episode 2014

I love a theme.  And, this year's choice of Halloween costumes was easy as our family has been committed to the idea of embracing both sides of the force since, oh about...mid-summer.  The real question was which Star Wars character the little man would decide to dress up as.  For months we listened on as he debated Darth, Luke, Obi-Wan...when at last he finally landed on Qui Gon Jinn.

 

 

 

Cast of characters:

 

The bump as the Death Star

Jeff as Obi Wan Kenobi

The littlest lady as Yoda

The little lady as Queen Amidala

and

The little man as Qui Gon Jinn





Tonsillectomy, frenulectomy, adenoidectomy...oh my!

Back in October, the little man underwent surgery to remove his adenoids, tonsils, and to clip his frenulum. Apparently, the size of both his adenoids and tonsils were beyond impressive.  While it is never easy to watch your little one prepped for surgery, I learned many things that early morning as we arrived at Meriter Hospital.

 

1. My little man, while sweet and tender is also very brave.  He quickly put on his game face answering questions, changing into dressing gowns, using the IPad to distract and calm while awaiting his surgery.



2. Scheduling surgery for your son at the very hospital where your husband is a surgeon makes the entire process much easier.  How sweet it was to see staff greet us as we followed Dr. Larson through the hallways.  My heart was simultaneously calmed and filled with pride as I thought of my husband greeting his own patients and interacting with staff each work day.  And, while he chose to be "dad" instead of "doctor" on the day of our son's surgery, his calming presence and professional demeanor encouraged this mama's tender heart as I watched him wheel our son back for surgery. 

 



 

3. Spending three hours post-op cuddling your son on a hospital gurney (after a successful surgery) is precious time well spent.  Strains the back, but warms the soul. 

 

4. How easy it is to take the health of your children for granted.  Many times throughout the morning, I thought of the many families who arrive at the hospital each day for other reasons. The day of Joey's surgery, I was grateful to walk out of the hospital with a smiling little boy in recovery, for the comfort of nursing him back to health in our own home, and the privilege of hearing his little voice change over the next few hours, days and weeks.