Surgery Day

I am pretty loopy tonight, but I really want to tell you this story, so here I am. (Besides, I'm about half and hour away from pain meds so I have to stay up a little longer anyway.)

If you remember from yesterday, I visited with the surgeon and he said Wednesday afternoon. Then when I got the call from the hospital, it was 10:15. I was very upset to have to miss Curly's preschool graduation, but we had to move forward anyway.

So this morning  I helped Curly wrap his muffins in foil (that was his treat assignment), put together a gift for Teacher Debbie, and gather his props for the poem he was reciting by himself. He dressed in a royal blue button-up and gray slacks (because I knew the caps were blue!) and my sweetie and I dropped him off at the preschool. They had to be there at 10:00 so they could practice a little more and get their treats ready. The parents were not scheduled to be there until 11:00.

Then we drove the 10 minutes to the hospital. It was busy and crowded and we had to park quite a ways from the front door, but we hoofed it over there and still got in by 10:15.

We checked in with the receptionist and she sent us to the waiting room. We had been there for about 20 minutes when an orderly came out looking for us. She was very apologetic, but an emergency had come through the ER and we had been bumped for about an hour. She promised to get us back to a room as soon as possible so that we would be more comfortable.

My sweetie and I looked at each other. "Can we leave?" I asked. She contemplated that answer until I explained that my 4-year-old was graduating from preschool at 11:00 and if we hurried we wouldn't miss it. We promised to be back in an hour. She smiled and hustled back to check with the doctor.

My spirits lifted, then dropped as the minutes rapidly ticked by. Soon it wouldn't matter if we were able to leave or not. At 10:45 she poked her head out the door. "See you in an hour!" she called. My sweetie and I quickly gathered our stuff and hustled for the door. If all went well, we wouldn't even be late!

We arrived at the preschool at 10:58.

Teacher Debbie was surprised to see us and we quickly explained the situation. We found a comfortable place to sit and we relaxed to join the festivities. Curly was in the back room getting ready, so he had no idea I was there. Several minutes later the graduation music began to play and the kids marched to their seats. Curly was near the end of the line, but a huge smile broke out on his face as he saw me. Just that was enough for all the hassle.

They sang their first songs and then each child stood to recite his nursery rhyme. Curly had some cute little props for Baa, Baa, Black Sheep. He did a terrific job and afterwards he brought me his bags and little sheep and gave me a big hug. I quickly whispered to him why I was there and he admired my hospital bracelet for a moment, then he returned to his seat.

At 11:25 they were done. I gave him one last hug and my sweetie and I left him with the Dog Walker and Baby Doll and we returned to the hospital. We waited in the lobby for about 10 minutes and then they took us back. It only took our new nurse 1 poke to put in the IV and by 1:00 they were wheeling me to the OR.

The surgery went well, and my gallbladder was swollen to three times it's regular size! We were all glad to get it out. My recovery at the hospital took a little longer that expected since I couldn't get my lungs to completely re-inflate. They kept putting me on oxygen and then taking me off again.

At about 6:45 we were finally released. My sweetie sped home and left me in the capable hands of the Dog Walker while he went to Prima Donna's concert at the school. I just lounged on the couch and watched The Incredibles with the kids (and made 20 trips to the bathroom!) until my sweetie got home.

So far none of the horror stories people shared with me have happened, but I guess there is still time. I will let you know tomorrow.

But tonight I am just grateful for the tender mercies that allowed me to share Curly's graduation. And you know what? If I hadn't needed surgery today, my sweetie would not have been able to get off work for the ceremony. One good thing for me and one good thing for Curly. Things really do work out just the way they are supposed to.