-We were up EARLY this morning (4:40ish). Daniel came into our room, got in bed with us and did not go back to sleep. We left our house around 6 a.m., we had to be at the hospital (VCH) at 7:30 a.m. and we had to stop for gas. Daniel was very irritable on the drive and cried or fussed the whole time maybe because he was hungry, maybe because he was sleepy, maybe because he knew where we were going. We arrived at the hospital a little before 7:30, checked in and we were soon called back to the holding room. Daniel was weighed (24.6 pounds), his temp and blood pressure were checked. I answered several questions. Daniel played with some toys, we read a book and then he was ready to go (meaning leave). The nurse found Daniel a car to drive (Little Tikes) and this made him happy to stay. Daniel loved driving around the holding room and up and down the hall. Daniel was excited to be able to drive "his car" to the OR when it was time to go. The nurses said that he loved driving "his car" so much that he did not want to get out of the car once they got to the OR.
-We were told to expect the surgery to take about an hour. We were hungry (we didn't eat breakfast since Daniel couldn't eat). We ran over to McDonald's to grab a bite to eat. Pop-Pop and Nanny stayed in the waiting area. Our cell phone rang while we were waiting on the elevator to go back up to the waiting area, the doctor was wanting to meet with us in a conference room. We were worried that something had gone wrong until we noticed the time and that it had been an hour (the hour went by quickly).
-Dr. Morrison said that everything went great, he tightened the muscles in both eyes probed the tear ducts in both eyes (the right one was blocked, the left one was not). Dr. Morrison went over the discharge instructions with us - discourage eye rubbing, expect bleeding the for the first 48-72 hours, use a cold clothe to prevent/reduce swelling, his face can't get real wet for a week, he can't be in dirty, dusty places (outside, pools, sandboxes) for 2 weeks and we are to apply an antibiotic ointment 3 times a day. Dr. Morrison also went over the symptoms of infection - fever, green discharge and face swelling. We are to call the doctor's office if Daniel shows any signs of infection. We were told that Daniel was in recovery and that we would be called back as soon as he woke up. We were called back in less than 15 minutes. Daniel had just woken up and was very compative. The nurses were hoping that having us there to hold him and talk to him would help keep him calm. Richard picked Daniel up and he was very agitated. Richard and I decided that only one of us should stay with Daniel in recovery because every time we talked Daniel would become agitated and his stats would drop. I chose to go to the waiting room since I had been in the holding room before the surgery. Richard came out to the waiting room about an hour later and said that Daniel was ready to go home. I went back to the recovery room and got Daniel dressed and Richard headed to the parking garage to get the car. We stopped at Cracker Barrel on the way home for lunch. Daniel ate a pancake, a biscuit and ice cream and drank some chocolate milk. Pop-Pop, Nanny, Mary and Emma came to our house to visit after lunch and this made Daniel very happy. (He loves "Memma".)
-Daniel went to sleep on the couch around 4 p.m. and slept until 7 p.m. He ate some supper (roast beef sandwich and chocolate Pediasure). He went back to sleep around 7:30 p.m. while setting in Richard's lap and he is now sleeping in our bed. (We are going to let him sleep with us tonight.)
-We want to thank everyone who has been praying for Daniel and ask that you continue to pray with us as he recovers. He will see Dr. Morrison on Monday, May 4 for a post-op appointment.
