Colby's Surgery...

The week Colby turned 1 year old I noticed his eyes did not look symmetrical. I thought the doctors would think I was crazy so I just kind of ignored it for awhile. When he was 2 we started noticing it more and more so I called the Eye Clinic at Children's..I really thought they would think I was being completely superficial but when I explained what I was seeing they told me to bring him right in. After a long evaluation (it was amazing to see how an eye exam can be done on a 2 year old!) they told me that he has strabismus, his eye turned outwards, not because the muscles in his eye were weak but because his brain was telling it to over turn. We tried months of eye drops to dilate his good eye and force his bad eye to straighten out but it didn't work. Finally the doctor suggested surgery, is this problem was not corrected Colby's brain would eventually shut down vision to his left eye. Here he is on our way to Children's. You can really see his eye turning out in this picture, but isn't he cute anyway??

Here we are at Children's, the place I love to work and trust enough to take my kids...

This is the lobby. It is absolutely beautiful. Colby loves going to Children's (he has been several times before this for eye appointments and he always thinks it's a special treat).

Everywhere you look they have something fun for kids. Colby is mesmerized by the ball maze.

Here the nurse practitioner is taking a listen and doing his pre-op exam.

Colby thought the extra attention was GREAT!

Another reason I am so glad we chose Children's is because they let us go into the operating room with Colby, so we're the last people he sees before he falls asleep. We had to wear the "bunny suits" and Colby thought our costumes were fabulous!

Who would have thought the hospital gowns could look so cute?

To kill some time Colby entertained himself with the sink, washing his hands provides hours of entertainment!

Here we are, ready to go to surgery!

The surgery was a success! When we were allowed into the PACU to be with Colby he was crying and confused and really upset. He also got really hot and his heart was beating really fast. They thought it might have been a reaction to one of the medications they gave him in surgery. Once he was snuggled up and was with Jason and I he relaxed and took a very long snooze.

Jason and I don't get many snuggles from Colby now that he's such a big boy so we were totally savoring this time.

Jason decided to make himself comfortable in the hospital bed (we were going on 2 hours after surgery now). He decided he better hold Colby otherwise the nurse would be mighty surprised to find an adult laying in her patient's bed! It reminded us both of being in the hospital after Colby was born. Both mornings the doctor came in to see me I was in the shower and Jason was asleep in the hospital bed, he was so embarrassed! I think it's hilarious to this day. If there is one thing Jason is good at it is making himself comfortable where ever he is!

My point exactly.

After almost 8 hours at the hospital we were finally released. I have a new appreciation for my families and patients. It is absolutely exhausting and stressful being in the hospital and we were able to go home the very same day. I also have a new appreciation for Children's. I have worked there now for almost 5 years and have always loved my job and the company I work for. The surgery experience was amazing. Everyone took great care of Colby and he thought the entire day was so great he was asking to go back the very next morning! I also have a new appreciation for our insurance. The surgery cost over $7000! Which seems absolutely crazy to me seeing as the doctor told us the actual procedure took less than 10 minutes. It was a relief to get that bill and know we had good insurance, and an employee discount!