Of Tonsils and Superman

I woke up at 4:00 on the dot with no alarm. Me, Mr. I-Couldn't-Wake-Up-for-An-Earthquake, woke up before anyone else. Avi had a 6:00 surgery we didn't want to be late. Once Avi's distraction were packed in his backpack and my distractions were in mine I realized 4:00 was probably a little too early. Oh well, everyone else was sleeping and Avi was spending his last remaining moments sleeping with his tonsils and adenoids. Little did he (or they) know that they'd soon be parting. Avi hated the little ID band. Eventually they cut it off and slapped a sticker on his back.

I woke Avi up a little after 5:00 and we were on our way. He was very tired and didn't know what was going on. He was pretty quiet the whole ride, but when he saw the Costco on the side of the freeway he finally spoke up. "Costco! Want Costco!" He wasn't allowed to eat any breakfast so I think when he saw Costco and thought of the samples and all the food it seemed like a possible and desirable destination. Sadly, our destination was nothing like Costco.

Our car was the first car in the hospital's parking lot. The halls were empty and I was really glad we'd done a different surgery at Primary's otherwise I wouldn't have known where to go. Avi was happy as could be and was bouncing around the empty hallways.

He did great with everything there, from the weigh in to the vitals, he even did great with having his medicine squirted up his nose. As the medicine kicked in he only got happier. A huge smile broke and he couldn't stop laughing at nothing, or everything. I thought it was kinda cute that Avi was drawn back to his little zebra. He is much bigger than the last time he sat on it.

They had me carry him to the OR doors and hand him off. He's grown so much since our last trip there that his long legs stuck out far from under my arms and the nurse said, "Oh, I didn't realize he's so long. Maybe we should have gotten a wagon." Oh well, it was a gurney from here on out.

The surgeon came and told us everything went well and we could see him soon. Surprise, surprise his recovery from the anesthesia was painfully slow. He refused to drink and the nurse insisted he drink his entire cup before leaving. He came back around 7:30 in the morning and at 11:20 he still hadn't had more than a sip. His nurse left for lunch and we let him sleep. We slipped out for some lunch of our own and when we came back we found the replacement nurse getting him ready for discharge. While the first nurse was gone she called the surgeon told him he wouldn't drink and according to his history was unlikely to drink while there. The surgeon said he could leave after a bolus which ended right when we got there. We were just leaving when the first nurse came back. She didn't seem happy that we were leaving. Sadly for her, we left and that was that.

Recovery has been slow and painful for Avi. Last night was pretty miserable for him (and us) but he's doing much better today. He's still not drinking, but he's got his appetite back. Thank goodness he loves Mandarin oranges! He's also eaten his ice cream that everyone said he HAD to have.

As soon as I stepped away from this Jello cup he pounced on it like a lion on a gazelle.

So, he's been sleeping, fighting the forceful administration of his medication, refusing to drink, eating, going to the bathroom and tonight for the first time since surgery, smiling.

I feel like I'm forgetting someone. Who could it be?

Oh right! Itai has had a completely different two days. His energy level is way up and he can't understand why Avi is falling asleep all the time. After being cooped up all day today he and I went to the park. I remembered a blog post from last year where we went to the park during fall break. It was sad remembering Avi was with us last year, but this year he was suffering on the couch. Itai enjoyed himself anyway. He has changed so much in the last year. Last year when we were at the park he was unsteady and couldn't cross the little bridge. This year he flew across it with no problem. Last year he couldn't swing because he was afraid and they didn't have the little kid swings. This year he went on the swing alone and even did Superman, even though when he was done he said, "No Superman!"

Itai has decided that he needs medicine too. He gets upset every time Avi is force fed his medicine. Today I pulled out an old syringe and filled it with juice. He loved getting his "medicine." Oi va voi! That kid never lets us rest.

This evening both boys are pretty tired and ready for bed, just like me!