An Abbreviated History...Well, Maybe Not Quite So Abbreviated...

Here we go...

1. Christian's surgery was hard. There's really no other way to describe it. Walmir and I spent weeks without sleep, attempting to comfort our poor kid who was in obvious pain for quite some time. Though the surgery itself was a great success, Christian had to keep a stitched-in nasal device in his nose for 6 weeks following the surgery to keep the airways open so he could breath; as well as to keep shape to the newly formed nostril. And of course, just like that soap bar that somehow always falls on an already stubbed pinkie toe, so did our lil' guy manage to bump his nose at least 3 times a day. I'll explain more through the pictures:

The surgery lasted a total of 4 1/2 hours, an hour and half longer than was expected, and though that made me a little nervous, I was fairly calm through the entire process. I spent my time reading, though I can't for the life of me remember which book it was...And I remember being a bit worried about what he'd look like. I mean, I knew he'd be beautiful, but I already loved him as he was. I was used to him looking a certain way... Once it was finished and he was in recovery, we were allowed to hold him. This is just following surgery:

We thought he looked beautiful. Different, but beautiful.

We spent a very long, sleepless night in the hospital. We shared a room with a little boy who had tripped and fallen into a campfire during a scouting event and the poor, sweet boy would accidentally roll onto his burned side during the night and wake up screaming and crying. It was heartbreaking. And of course, as soon as his mother quieted him down, Christian would start up. I remember heading to the bathroom in the middle of the night and catching eyes with the mother of the boy. I'm sure what I saw there was reflected in my own: worry, love, relief, exhuastion, a bit of guilt that our child was keeping the other up... I felt we understood each other at that moment...like we understood, with crystal clarity, what it means to be a mother...

We were lucky enough to be able to head home the next day, but that in no way made anything easier. Because day two was when the swelling and the real pain set in:

Walmir and I took turns that entire week holding him upright at night so he could sleep. He was so swollen that if we laid him flat, he could barely breath. And those arm restraints...yeah right. He was supposed to wear them for 6 weeks (at least). They lasted one entire day! He figured out how to take them off and so we just said "to hell with 'em." Christian was smart enough to figure out that his whole nose was sensitive and didn't even try to touch it. At least, not on purpose. The device was stitched in and over an inch long, so it was extremely uncomfortable and of course, it didn't help when he'd accidentally bang his nose on my shoulder, or the floor, or whatever else happened to be within reach. After about 5 weeks, once the swelling went down and the device loosened up, I went in to get him in the morning and realized he wasn't wearing it anymore. He had ripped it out! Whether on purpose or not, it was gone. :0) We had him checked out and everything was fine. And finally, a couple of days before Thanksgiving, he was device free and fully recovered! :0)

I think he's just adorable in this picture. And yes, he has a tampon in his hands. Sorry boys; he just happened to pull it out of my purse. So, that's the short version. The actual event was much longer, much more emotional than that... Thanks to our friends and family who were there for us during that time. It made such a difference. :0) So...now we're just waiting until surgery number two set for March 1st - the Biggie. This will be when they repair the palate and finish the nose, a 3-day hospital stay at least and a much longer recovery...We can't wait. :0)

So, since I wrote quite a bit more than I originally intended, I'll stop here and continue in another post tomorrow. Until then...