The "Finnster, et al."

Today I learned what it really means to be a Mama. You do everything in your power to keep your child safe and healthy and in return he hates you for it. Finn spent most of the day making it crystal clear that he thinks I am the cause of all of his pain and suffering. He wouldn't smile at me, he would bat my hands away from him and when he wasn't fussing at me he sat and glared at me. You might be thinking, 'stop being so sensitive, he has just undergone some very invasive surgery and doesn't feel well'. In response I offer that he laughed and squealed with delight every time he laid eyes on Michael and Deniece. To make matters worse he even played with the nurses that he had only met a few hours prior. I do find comfort in knowing that while he may absolutely loathe me today he will thank me when it comes time to start dating! Today was a fairly busy day. Finn woke up at 3:00 and we hung out until 5:00. At around 8:00 the nurses removed all...

Today Finn opened his eyes, and way ahead of schedule I might add! (This picture was taken around 4:00 p.m.) Last night was a rough night for the Finnster. Around midnight I happened to wake up and see Finn's legs flailing about. I got up and saw that he had his back arched and that he was desperately trying to get out of the car seat. I sat him up straight to make him more comfortable and he threw up everywhere. I called for the nurse and before she even made it in the door he had thrown up two more times. There was so much that it was pooled in the car seat and all over his body. The nurse called for some additional help and the three of us changed Finn's diaper, changed his blankets and washed him off. He felt much better after that episode and slept well the rest of the night. The next morning Michael and I noticed that Finn's swelling had gone down a bit (at least in our opinion). Dr. Kelly came in and told us to expect Finn's swelling to get worse through...

This what Finn looked like at 7:30 a.m. This is Finn's first attempt to sit up. Finn chewing on his soothie. Finn at 3:00 p.m. Finn and his crib puppy. Finn chewing on his rattle. Finn's drain tube and incision. Courtesy of my sweet Sunday School girls! Finn at 8:00 p.m. Finn at 9:00 p.m. Still cute as a button. Last was Finn's first night in the ICU. I don't think that I slept more than 1 hour at a time the entire night. For one it is really bright in the hallway, second, Finn was up every hour, third, the machines beeped fairly often, fourth, the nurse came in every two hours to check Finn's vitals and finally the bagpipes woke me up every three hours. There is a soothing music channel that loops all day. For the most part the music is very quiet, but there is one song that features bagpipes and they are loud. At 7:00 one of the neuro physicians came in to check on Finn. He told me that he would take Finn's drain tube out tomorrow. He also removed Finn...

Today is Finn's surgery. I think that he knew something fishy was up because he woke up at 1:30 ready to play. After about an hour of playing in the floor, the two of us slept the rest of the night on the couch. At 4:15 we woke and got all packed for our hospital stay. At 5:00 a.m. we left for the hospital. We arrived at surgical waiting room at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital at approximately 5:30 a.m. Finn was in a very pleasant mood. Next, Finn helped to get himself checked in to the hospital. After all the paperwork was completed Michael and I accompanied Finn back to a preparation room. Here they put Finn in a pair of Vanderbilt pajamas. It took three tries before we got the right size. The XS was visibly to small. The next size up (the yellow one) was skin tight. However, the "beyond toddler" size was just right. After the nurse took Finn's vitals, we let him play in the crib for a few minutes. While in the crib Finn played with a fireman a...

This week Michael and I both honored Finn's hair. I realized a couple of days ago that even with the impressive head of hair on Finn's head, we have never done the Alfalfa. I couldn't let Finn get his head shaved before trying on the Alfalfa! Here he looks more like an Elf - more specifically, an Elf that is up to no good. "We elves try to stick to the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns and syrup." One of my favorite lines from "Buddy." Michael's gesture was quiet a bit sweeter than mine. In honor of Finn's big surgery, Michael decided to shave his head. Now Daddy and the Finnster will look alike.

Today Finn had his pre-op appointments at Vanderbilt. First we went to visit Dr. Kelly. While in the waiting room I met a really nice woman named Anna and her daughter Lillian. I noticed that Lillian had a scar on her head that looked like what the plastic surgeon said Finn's incision would look like. Anna confirmed that Lillian had the same surgery three (3) months prior and that she was doing great. They had come in today because Lillian had a bit on fluid on her brain and Dr. Kelly wanted to check it out. Anna also showed me post op pictures of Lillian - I almost cried and I felt a little nauseated. I knew that Finn would look rough after the surgery, but I certainly wasn't prepared for what I saw. I now know to expect that Finn will look like he has gone the distance in a heavy weight fight. This fact didn't seem to bother Finn in the slightest. He was in a great mood waiting for Dr. Kelly. Once we got back into the room Finn went straight for the pa...