Here's a recap of our day:
Yesterday, we had to be at St. Francis by 5:30 a.m. so our day started at 4 a.m. I, of course, did not sleep much, so I was relieved when 4:00 finally rolled around! Poor Delaney just didn't know what was going on so early in the morning! Thanks to my mom and dad, the older kids were sleeping (and coughing) at their house, so we didn't have to worry about waking them up.
After we got Delaney checked in, they took us through the maze of hallways and elevators up to the 5th floor - pediatrics. Her vitals were taken, we put her hospital gown on, and waited for the ok to go down to the 3rd floor - the surgical floor. In the pre-op room, we met with the anesthesiologist, the nurses, and Dr. Harris. I think we answered all the same questions at least 3 times to 3 different people. We realized that they double and triple check information - I guess that's good! Dr. Harris explained again that he would only be taking a sample of her lymph node, but if it looked like he needed to remove something, he would. The surgery would last anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour and a half, depending on what he found.
When it was time to take her into the operating room, we had to say good-bye as they wheeled her down the hall in her crib (with "G" and her blanket, of course). Chelan and I had tears, but Delaney was a trooper! In fact, the nurses told me later in recovery that she never did cry. Her bottom lip came out when they put the mask on her, but that was it!
By 8:30, Dr. Harris came to talk with us in the waiting room. He explained that he ended up taking out 2 lymph nodes, each about the size of a quarter - pretty large! He sent them to pathology and he would call us on Friday with results. I asked him how common this is, and he answered that it is pretty common for kids this age and at this time of year to get swollen lymph nodes. What was uncommon with Delaney is that it popped up during late summer and has lasted for so long, despite antibiotics. It will be interesting to hear results - I hope we get some answers!
Right after he left, I was able to go back to the recovery room and hold Delaney. She had woken up, but while I was holding her, she was in and out of sleep. I told the nurse I was rather enjoying myself because I don't ever get to hold her when she's sleeping anymore! It was interesting to watch others come in from surgeries and wake up from anesthesia. There were two older women beside us, and a little boy across the room. It was a busy place, but I felt at such peace sitting there, rocking my daughter!
By noon, we were leaving the hospital. Delaney was by no means herself, but she had managed to eat and drink a little bit. On the way home, she perked up when she saw French fries! After a few of those, she was fast asleep and slept the whole rest of the afternoon.
What a day!
Yesterday, we had to be at St. Francis by 5:30 a.m. so our day started at 4 a.m. I, of course, did not sleep much, so I was relieved when 4:00 finally rolled around! Poor Delaney just didn't know what was going on so early in the morning! Thanks to my mom and dad, the older kids were sleeping (and coughing) at their house, so we didn't have to worry about waking them up.
After we got Delaney checked in, they took us through the maze of hallways and elevators up to the 5th floor - pediatrics. Her vitals were taken, we put her hospital gown on, and waited for the ok to go down to the 3rd floor - the surgical floor. In the pre-op room, we met with the anesthesiologist, the nurses, and Dr. Harris. I think we answered all the same questions at least 3 times to 3 different people. We realized that they double and triple check information - I guess that's good! Dr. Harris explained again that he would only be taking a sample of her lymph node, but if it looked like he needed to remove something, he would. The surgery would last anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour and a half, depending on what he found.
When it was time to take her into the operating room, we had to say good-bye as they wheeled her down the hall in her crib (with "G" and her blanket, of course). Chelan and I had tears, but Delaney was a trooper! In fact, the nurses told me later in recovery that she never did cry. Her bottom lip came out when they put the mask on her, but that was it!
By 8:30, Dr. Harris came to talk with us in the waiting room. He explained that he ended up taking out 2 lymph nodes, each about the size of a quarter - pretty large! He sent them to pathology and he would call us on Friday with results. I asked him how common this is, and he answered that it is pretty common for kids this age and at this time of year to get swollen lymph nodes. What was uncommon with Delaney is that it popped up during late summer and has lasted for so long, despite antibiotics. It will be interesting to hear results - I hope we get some answers!
Right after he left, I was able to go back to the recovery room and hold Delaney. She had woken up, but while I was holding her, she was in and out of sleep. I told the nurse I was rather enjoying myself because I don't ever get to hold her when she's sleeping anymore! It was interesting to watch others come in from surgeries and wake up from anesthesia. There were two older women beside us, and a little boy across the room. It was a busy place, but I felt at such peace sitting there, rocking my daughter!
By noon, we were leaving the hospital. Delaney was by no means herself, but she had managed to eat and drink a little bit. On the way home, she perked up when she saw French fries! After a few of those, she was fast asleep and slept the whole rest of the afternoon.
What a day!
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| Waiting to go down |
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| Recovering with "G" |
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| This was Delaney's nurse after her surgery - Crystal. She is a Bethel grad. and we actually recognized each other! |
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| This was my spot for most of the morning after her surgery. I'm not sure what I'm looking at - bad picture! |
So happy it went so well!!! I hope the holiday is really special for all of you - having that behind you!!
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