Jennas Surgery

We made it through Jennas surgery - woo hoo!! After all was said and done I think it was definitely worse on Dan and I than it was on Jenna. Early last week the surgeon called to let us know he had a morning cancellation and would we be interested in moving up the surgery from 10:15 to 8:30. Hmmm, let me think about this - yes, please! So we were up and out early and at the hospital before Jenna even realize she hadn't eaten. She was so cute in her little hospital gown and kept all of the nurses entertained as she ran around the waiting area giggling. The surgeon came to visit us before his first surgery and asked about the two cysts (I had called him earlier in the week letting him know I thought there were now 2). He took and look and said it definitely looked like two, but he had never seen that before. Interesting.... Shortly after 8:30 they came to get Jenna and I was able to suit up and carry her back to the operating room and stay by her side until she was knocked out with the gas mask, which she took surprisingly well. I gave her a kiss and headed back to wait and wait. It was probably a good 20-25 minutes before the surgeon showed up to let us know that everything went well, but it was only one cyst. His exact words were - the cyst was huge. We're not even talking black olive size, it was the size of an eyeball and it is a very good thing that you had it removed now. He said there was no doubt in his mind that it would have eventually burst, so I am very very glad we decided to have it removed sooner rather than later. A few minutes later the nurse came in and I heard Jenna crying down the hall. They led us back to the recovery area where we were able to be with Jenna. I think she looked great, but she did not enjoy coming out of anesthesia at all. She still had the IV in her foot and the little sensor on her toe. She sucked down 3 bottles of Pedialyte and then alternated between very fussy and sleepy. The nurse eventually gave her some Morphine and she fell asleep for about 30-40 minutes. Just as she was waking up again they wheeled us back to our room in the waiting area and she was back to her normal self and running around. We got our discharge instruction and we were off, dermoid cyst free :-) 

Surprisingly, her little hands have no interest in touching her eyes or pulling at the stitches. We are supposed to keep it moist and put on some ointment twice a day for a week and she does not mind at all. Thursday she was bruised pretty badly and had a little swelling but everyday since it has decreased. We are so pleased with the results and can't wait to see how it looks once it heals completely.   

Heading out to the hospital

Jenna is not quite sure what all the fuss is about

Heading back for anesthesia

In recovery - finally calmed down with the help of some Morphine and her bunnies

Headed home from the hospital

Sunday afternoon nap - 4 days post surgery

When her eyes are open - you would never know she had surgery :-)

Watch out Washington Street

Claire has a new bike and she is still learning to use the brakes!

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
www.onetruemedia.com

Claire in Action

Claire performed wonderfully at her end of the year show - I think she wins for most enthusiastic!

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
www.onetruemedia.com

Great weekend

For our wedding, Dan & I got a gift certificate for a registry of bed and breakfasts. We always knew it was there, but we never got around to using it - knowing that it expired on our 7th anniversary. Well, as we approached that anniversary last year I was super pregnant or wrestling with a newborn so just before the 7 year expiration hit I called them up and begged for another year - success! That extra year was coming up again so Dan and I started researching and picked last weekend to go away. We drove to Saratoga on Friday night for the Zac Brown Band concert - it was fantastic! Nana & Pipere graciously took the girls for the weekend so we stayed in Saratoga Friday night and then headed for the bed and breakfast in the Berkshires on Saturday. After hitting the Lee outlets and realizing how much easier it is to shop without kids, we checked in and headed out for dinner. Our inn keepers recommended a little restaurant in town, which was absolutely fabulous. Dan had duck and I tried soft shell crab. We walked around the town that night and slept for a long time, in peace ad quiet, before being treated to a nice breakfast Sunday morning. We drove back to WS to pick up the girls and and after a very relaxing weekend made our way back to Hoboken with two very tired kiddos. Not sure what Nana & Pipere did to wear them out, but they sure were exhausted.

But you do know nothing goes as smoothly as planned. Fast forward to Monday morning when I wake up at 2AM and notice red dots all over my stomach. I didn't think much of it and feel right back asleep until my alarm went off at 5:30 and I woke up to a rash all over my stomach, back, neck, arms, and legs. After getting ready for work I came to my senses and decided that I needed to have this looked at before I brought it to work. So I dropped Claire off at school and headed right for urgent care where they diagnosed me with an allergic reaction to a medicine or something I ate. I have never had allergies to any food or medicine and I don't have sensitive skin so I was a little lost. But we moved forward with a prescription, some Benadryl and a shot in my @ss to start a Monday morning off right. After almost passing out in the doctors office, I slowly made my way to work and watch my rash begin to fade while pondering what caused this allergic reaction. Now I think I might have the answer - did you know that when you eat soft shell crab you eat the whole crab, shell and all. And the shell contains something called chitin that causes a lot of people to have a reaction. So I don't think I'll be eating soft shell crab anytime soon and I will stay away from eating bugs because the chitin is what makes their shells hard. Whew - what a start to the week, it can only get better, right?