Counting Down

My heart is racing, my chest is tight, and I feel like my head is spinning.

That's how I've been feeling A LOT lately.

I'm so nervous for Carter's surgery.

Well, I'm not so much nervous for his surgery, but for the days afterward.

I HATE the idea that he will have to be intubated again, but I KNOW that this surgery is going to be life-changing for him. It's for the greater good, so I'm trying to keep my eye on the prize.

He's going to have three different surgeons working on him along with a few tests...I'm guessing that it's going to be about eight hours when everything is said and done. The Plastic Opthalmological surgeon is going to be loosening his eyelid, the Plastic surgeon will be completely repairing his soft palate and replacing the hard palate prosthetic, and the Urologist will be working on a few things. Cardiology will be doing another Echocardiogram (which I'm EXTREMELY nervous for), and Audiology will be performing an ABR (hearing test). We have no idea how long Carter will be in the hospital. For a "typical" kid this would be a one/two night stay, but for Carter it will depend on how his airway is after they pull the tube out.

I don't remember being this nervous for his last surgery, and I think that it's because he had only been home a couple of months, and had already spent nine days in the hospital during that time. He's SO much a part of our family now. I just know that this is going to be hard.

While I was explaining to Mikey and Jovie how next week was going to happen, Mikey told me that he's going to be really sad when Carter leaves. That might not sound like a big deal to people who don't know Mikey, but to those that do...it is! He rarely expresses much emotion unless it's excitement over a video game. We're hoping that once Carter gets transferred out of the PICU, the kids will be able to go up there for a visit. I think it might be good for them to see where Carter is.

Carter has been kicking butt developmentally lately. He's making all kinds of new sounds, and is getting so much stronger when you sit him up. Even his feeding has been going well....I've hardly had to use his G Tube at all. It will be exciting to see what he does after his soft palate is repaired. It should help him to eat a lot easier.

So, here we are in countdown mode. In less than a week, we'll be back up at the hospital. At least we're going there for a surgery and not for a sickness. I hope that this whole post doesn't come across as whining, because I truly do not mean it that way. We are very lucky. There are a few kids out there who could use our prayers right now.

First, there's sweet Ella Grace. Isn't she the cutest?! She is one of our little friends with an extra chromosome, and is very sick with Leukemia right now. She could definitely be lifted up in prayer right now.

Also, one of Carter's therapist friends had a new baby who is in the NICU battling an infection.

As always thanks for your love and support!