Surgery Day

Enjoying a Popsicle after surgery

Hannah's surgery has come and gone and I'm here to report (a little late) that she did great. We had to be to the hospital at 6:00 am (thank goodness we live only 10 minutes from the hospital) so my mother-in-law offered to take the day off work and stay with the other kids. She arrived late the night before the surgery and we spent some time talking about nothing and just enjoying her company. We went to bed at a reasonable time (about 10:45) but neither Kenny nor I got much sleep that night. There was just something about what was happening the next day that made us a little antsy.

Hannah woke up on her own around 5:30 and came to see if she could get in bed with us. It was perfect timing and we let her sleep in our bed while we got everything ready. It was nice that we didn't have to risk waking Gracie up when we went to get her. Once she was up and in the car she was ready for the day (despite the early hour.) I was impressed with the speed of the hospital. Normally it takes forever at hospitals, but we sat for maybe 3 minutes before they were weighing her, taking her temp, and making sure she was ready for surgery. They took us to our own little curtain room and gave her some clothes to change into. The nurse said if she didn't want to change until right before the surgery it would be OK. Well, the shirt looked like a dress to Hannah so she was more than willing to change. She even had to leave her room and go show Daddy who was filling out paper work. After that it was a short 30-45 minute wait while we answered questions and met with the anesthesiologist.

Pretending to talk on the phone (the channel changer and nurse call thing) in her hospital clothes before surgery.

Right before they took us to the surgery waiting room they gave Hannah some drugs too make her relax a little. It's suppose to help with separation from the parents and with the other things they're awake for. They took us back the the waiting area where I wondered if the drugs were going to work before she had to leave us. Luckily less than 5 minutes before they came to get her the drugs REALLY started working. She started getting loopy, silly and would stay on the same laugh for an abnormal amount of time. It was very cute to watch and I'm glad the drugs started working before they took her away. I don't think she would have been OK leaving without being a little out of it.

This is one of her prolonged laughs. She was being sooo silly.

Looking a little out of it.

After that they sent us to wait for her to wake up. I was not real happy with the idea that she had to wake up without us, but there was nothing I could do about that. Dr. Hanks came in and told us she had a significant amount of water in both ears and it was good we got them cleared out. He said the tonsillectomy also went well and that we could head upstairs to see her. What a relief! I wasn't really worried that anything was going to go wrong, it was just nice to hear that nothing had. Dr. Hanks said that because she was only 2 they may decide to keep her overnight so they transferred her to the pediatric ward just, in case.

We hurried upstairs to find out she wasn't there yet. The 10 minute wait seemed like FOREVER and then we heard her crying in the hall. She was not happy at all. Apparently the funny drugs from earlier don't make for happy kids when they wake up. She didn't want to be awake, she didn't know where she was, she didn't want anyone touching her, she was just plain miserable. This was the hardest part of the day. I had never seen her, or any of my kids, act this way. She was so lost and in so much pain and still drugged that she just wasn't even close to herself. They had me sit in the rocking chair and hold her while they tried to take her vitals. She wasn't into this at all. They decided she was crying so she was obviously breathing and that would do until she calmed down and went to sleep. I held her for a while, until she fell asleep, and then we put her in the bed. She slept for a little over an hour and when she woke up she was a totally different kid.

Enjoying some Green Jello

The rest went really well. Hannah enjoyed numerous popsicles and lots of different kinds of jello. She drank a lot of apple juice and surprised her nurse with how happy she was, how willing to eat she was, and how willing to take her medicine she was. Every time the nurse came in to take her vitals, Hannah stuck the thing on her toe and helped with the blood pressure. She was very pleasant and you never would have guessed she had just had surgery.

We hung out with her for a few hours and then Kenny went to get the kids at the house. We were so grateful to Grandma for being willing to come and take care of the others. It was so nice to be together at the hospital. She reported that the kids did great without us which is always good to know. After Sarah got home from school Kenny brought the kids and Grandma to the hospital to see Hannah. By this point Hannah was getting antsy. She didn't want to be in her little hospital room anymore so we went on a walk around the hall. The kids enjoyed this and Hannah loved getting out and moving around. They stayed for awhile and then Grandma had to go back home so Kenny took them all home. This was not OK with Hannah. She did not want to stay while everyone else left. Luckily Daddy had brought her favorite movie and that helped calm her down.

Roaming the halls with Daddy, Gracie, and Grandma

Hanging out in her bed with her siblings.

Lucky for us she had done so well all day that the doctor said if she ate a good dinner we could go home. She did really well and ate all her jello, some of her chicken broth (that stuff was gross, I don't blame her for not eating it) and drank some apple juice. Even with all that eating she was still hungry. Dr. Hanks said he wanted her to try some more solid food to see if she could keep it down. They brought us a bowl of Macaroni and Cheese (one of Hannah's favorite foods) and told me to try and get her to take at least a couple bites. When they came to check on her she had eaten the entire thing. The nurses were amazed and when she didn't throw it up they said we could go home. It was such a relief to me and such a relief to her. I don't think she would have done well staying the night.

It was a long day, but a successful day. Hannah did better than expected and we were so proud of her. While waiting to be discharged Hannah didn't want to be in her room anymore. The two of us roamed the hall for at least an hour. Luckily for me Hannah's nurse told me of a wagon they kept for the kids. This way I didn't have to carry her for the entire hour. The nursing staff was great. Ashely, our nurse, thought Hannah was a doll and was very sweet. They fed me dinner even though I wasn't a patient, sometimes it pays to be pregnant, and they took real good care of Hannah. I'm glad it's over, I'm glad it went well, and I'm excited to see what comes of all of this.

Goodbye January Thaw, Hello Sprained Wrist

The week before Hannah's surgery was a pleasant week here in Idaho Falls. The snow had pretty much all melted or blown away, the streets were clear, and the temperatures reached the mid to upper 30's. We were in heaven. I had decided to take advantage of the weather and let the kids play outside a little more. They road their bikes and scooters and I even took them to the playground one day. The playground was still mostly surrounded by snow, but it was outside and helped release some energy so it was OK.

Ben and Sarah swinging.

Hannah enjoying the swings.

The day I took the kids to the park we enjoyed a little swinging time, a little playing time, and a little crashing and almost breaking our wrist time. The kids were having a lot of fun, but it was starting to get real cold again so I told them we needed to go. They could each do one more thing. Ben wanted to climb on the outside of the big tube slide. This isn't unusual for him so I went ahead and let him while I tried to get my ever growing pregnant body in the tubes to drag out Gracie. I didn't see him fall, but I hear it. The lady 50 feet away heard it, it was that loud.

Gracie loves climbing in the tubes and going down the slides.

Ben climbing the outside of the slide he fell off of.

I think he fell flat on his back with his arm under him funny. When I got to him the first thing out of his mouth was, "Mom, I think I need to go to the doctors." As a mom, I of course panicked, but as time went on and he felt better quickly I realized he had probably just gotten the wind knocked out of him and he'd probably never felt that before. He did land funny with his wrist underneath him and it was hurting him, I could tell by the way he was holding it. I checked to make sure he could move it and then scooped him up and took him home.

When we got home Kenny checked his wrist as well. He could move it in all different directions and when we'd push on it and ask him if it hurt he'd say, "Well kind of, I think." We were pretty confident it wasn't broken, just sprained so we wrapped it up and had him take it easy for the rest of the day. I told Kenny I knew it was a minor incident, but I didn't like it at all. I've decided my kids are NEVER allowed to get really hurt, because I don't think I could handle it. No broken bones, no stitches, no car accidents, nothing. I think that's a reasonable request don't you?


The January thaw didn't last too long and a few days later we got a huge snow storm dumping around 6 inches of snow overnight. We've been enjoying a different kind of weather now, taking the kids sledding, building snowmen at friends houses, watching it snow most days of the week, and helping Mommy scrap the driveway. It's been wonderful except for Tuesday, the day before Hannah's surgery, when the temperature only made it to 2 degrees. That was a little cold and not much fun for playing in. Oh well! It's an Idaho winter and we'll take it.

It's Surgery For Hannah

After nearly 18 months and countless doctors and therapist we think we may have narrowed down why Hannah can't speak correctly. It's wonderful news if only we could bypass the surgery that comes with it. I took Hannah to get a hearing test last Friday and they discovered she has a significant amount of water in her ears. This alone causes many kids to have a hard time hearing and thus speaking correctly, but when you couple it with what was determined at the Ear, Nose, and Throat doctors on Tuesday you get a child that talks like this. . .
















At the ENT's on Tuesday he told us that Hannah did indeed have a significant amount of water in her ears (why did no one catch this before?) and that the negative pressure was so sever that they didn't want to wait to put the tubes in. It was also determined that her tonsils are too big. This was suggested by her speech therapist and confirmed by the ENT. They believe that her large tonsils are making it so the pallet that covers the airway to your nose when you talk cannot do it's job. Those big tonsils keep getting in the way. So out come the tonsils and in go the tubes. It's a double whammy for Hannah, but hopefully it will make a world of difference.

She goes in on Wednesday the 28th for both surgeries. I feel so bad for her and what she has to go through, but I'm hopeful that in the long run it will help her speak and be less frustrated. She's such an amazing kid and despite her inability to speak she very rarely throws tantrums and is generally such a sweetheart. I'm grateful she's mine and I look forward to more communicative Hannah in the future.

Making Bread

My friend Amy and her boys came over on Monday to show me how to make bread. Amy is a master bread maker and when she taught our ward in Virginia I was on the cruise and had to miss it. I've been wanting to learn and she agreed to show me. How nice of her. The kids did wonderful playing downstairs together and Amy and I enjoyed baking and talking. It's nice to have her nearby and though I'm glad her husband comes home from Iraq in March, I will miss them when they move back to Virginia.

Sarah Kate and Isaac. She is all into the boys. I think we may be in trouble when she gets older. :)

The bread making was very easy. We mixed it and kneaded it by hand which I've decided is more than I want to do right now. It tires me out too quickly. I think I'll try my mixer next time. The bread was delicious and I think maybe I could even make some on my own. What a homemaker I'm turning out to be.

These boys live on a farm and spend so much time with animals, but they've never seen a gerbil. They loved them.

Here's Sarah showing Noah her Snowflake.

Walking With Dinosaurs and Other Fun

For Christmas my in-laws gave everyone in the family tickets to the show Walking With Dinosaurs. It's a show traveling the world that has recently come to Salt Lake. It hosts life sized dinosaurs that move around the stage as a narrator explains what life was like during the age of the dinosaurs. It was very impressive. We were high enough up that you couldn't tell just how big the dinosaurs were, but that was just fine. It kind of freaked the kids out as it was so higher seats were great. Everyone enjoyed the show and we were way impressed with the dinosaurs.

After the dinosaur show we went to my sister-in-laws house for lunch. We enjoyed some time together as the kids played with Savannah and her toys. After lunch we all headed over to April's, my other sister-in-law, house. On the 20th my sister-in-law, Sarah, turned 30 so April had planned a surprise party for her complete with karaoke and cake. Sarah never expected it and everyone, especially the kids, loved surprising her.

Kenny and April goofing of with the microphone. Hannah obviously approved.

Hannah taking her turn.

Aunt Sarah got to sing the first song. It was slow so she asked everyone to dance along.

Then the party really started. What a bunch of drunk singer. Aunt Nancy, Helen, and Sarah drunk on Rootbeer.

That rootbeer was so good Aunt Nancy had to share. Funny looking picture hu!

This is Zacky my nephew. He reminds me so much of my little Ben. What a cutie.

I love watching men with babies. Way to go Grandpa.

The big 30 year old. Man is she old. :) Happy Birthday Sarah.

The kids eating cake. What could be better.