The BIG Day!

Over the last weekend, I started writing a blog post about how anxious we were about Christopher's upcoming surgery, but I never got it finished.

Well, today was the day!

Not a fun day for Christopher.  In fact, yesterday was pretty yucky too.  The man who can eat whatever he wants whenever he wants, which includes ordering about FOUR CASES of Girl Scout cookies each year, had a strict, clear liquid diet...all day long.  Then today...NOTHING!  He was starving and miserable before the surgery.

We had to check-in at the hospital at 11:00am for his 1:00pm surgery.  The actual surgery to remove the prostate cancer was projected to last 3-4 hours.  Then he'd be in recovery for 1-1 1/2 hours or longer because there were "no rooms" in the hospital available.  (Ugh!  Very long day for me!  And very boring!)

When the doctor finally came out to brief me on how it went, we learned that they had a glitch that delayed surgery for 30 minutes.  Christopher's neck was too long!  They had trouble getting the vent tube in his throat and even had to use a camera to navigate his vocal cords.  (I think that's a sure sign he talks too much at work!)

However, the rest of his report was very good.  The prostate was not too large, the cancer appears to have remained contained, lymph nodes looked good, and everything points to a good recovery and successful procedure.  YAY!

After waiting for quite some time, the nurse did allow me back in recovery for just a bit because they still didn't have a room for him.  He was in pain and uncomfortable, and ice chips weren't really the steak dinner he had wished for.  He did inform me that he was NOT doing this again!  And that it was way worse than his pneumonia!  Somehow he didn't think I was funny at all when I reminded him that I had given birth to four of our six kids and went back each time, especially after the first one was a C-section.

They kicked me out of recovery when things got a little busier, "to protect patient privacy."  (Uhm...I could really care less about the person behind those curtains cuz I just wanted to make sure my man was okay.)  However, they expected him to be in his room within 20 minutes.

So...I waited 20 minutes and then went up to his room...

No Christopher...waiting...waiting...waiting...No Christopher...

(Do you know how boring hospitals are?!?)

Finally, after 30 minutes, they brought him into the room.  He was totally miserable again and really needed more pain medicine.  I stayed with him until he got more drugs and they took effect. 

Then I really needed to get home to our house full of kids...and a very good friend who stayed late with them...even fed the crew and got them all cleaned up.  She said I've got great kids.  (Hmmmmm...I'm just hoping that those same kids will be the ones I have to wake up in the morning.)

It was sooooooo hard to leave Christopher tonight.  This is not a macho man kind of day.  Especially since he just had pneumonia, he really needs to keep the pain under control so his lungs can get back to working well.  Lots to do here at home.  Six kids to get off to school in the morning.  Then I'll get to go back to the hospital to check on him.  Yeah...totally mixed emotions about that one...hate being cooped up in the hospital...but really hate for my hubby to be alone.

Thanks to everyone for all your prayers!!!  There is so much good!  And so much we are thankful for! 

Like unseasonably warm weather with no snow or even rain!  It has made getting him to and hopefully home from the hospital much easier than if I had to make the trek through mounds of snow.

Part of me really wants him to come home tomorrow.  However, after seeing him so miserable tonight, I'll happily let him stay longer if he needs to.