rest

Tyler is resting in his room and it looks like his pain is managed now.  He was groggy and complaining of pain when he came into the room just after 1:00, but was given a higher dose of Morphine around 2:30 and is now watching the Polar Express quite comfortably.  He even managed a smile for the camera!  He will be sleepy for the rest of the day and will hopefully be able to sit up tomorrow.



 During the surgery Joey and I walked up to the Family Center which is a quiet place for families to sit and relax and take care of their immediate needs.  It has computers, magazines, coffee, tea, restrooms with showers, lockers, even laundry and sleeping rooms.  This hospital is truly a blessing for kids and families. Anyway, on the way there Joey pointed out the construction on the new part of the hospital.  The steel workers on the project have written messages to the kids who could see them out the window.  It was so sweet.  If you look colsely, you can see the messages.

I mentioned previously the Child Life Specialist who helped keep Tyler calm before surgery, but I need to relay how wonderful she was.  I think her name is Nancy (forgive my memory on the name, I was focused on Tyler) and she met with us in the patient room.  She asked Tyler about how he was feeling and then began the distraction.  He told her that he loved trains, so she set out in search of some to help him cope through play.  She was gone a little bit, then came back apologizing for taking so long and said that she was sorry, but she could only find one little Thomas the Tank engine.  Tyler's eyes lit up and he said "I love Thomas!"  He hopped down and immediately began sending the train on adventures across the room.  Nancy then asked if he would like to race his train with some thing, and she went in search of another vehicle to race.  Tyler was ecstatic and sent the train and ambulance across the floor, crashing into the wall which sent Tyler into fits of giggles.  Nancy then helped communicate with the anaesthesia team about Tyler's fears and also talked to the nursing staff about possible fears or things he would have a problem with when he got to his room.  She was great and helped us through that tough time.

later
  
Now it is 4:45 and Tyler is sleeping.  Tyler became upset a while ago because he was having a problem with his catheter.  I don't know why, but it didn't occur to me that he would get one, so I didn't explain it to him.  I think it is OK now because he is resting.