Sophia's surgery

Sophia had a summer appointment with her hand surgeon scheduled due to some pain in her left middle fingers. The recommendation was to separate the fingers a bit more, so we concluded that we would do it over a holiday so as to minimize any impact on her schooling. Wednesday was the day for the surgery, so we failed to avoid the school calendar.

This is the waiting area for pediatric surgery. The Mott Children's Hospital provides folks to both entertain and inform those awaiting surgery, which was a really terrific service, and there was all types of craft resources available: Sophia colored two cloth dolls and a frog, all of which she was allowed to keep. Thankfully, Sophie thought to color a bold, green Spartan S on the back of one doll's jersey, too.

The weather was snowy overnight and in the morning, which pushed us for an earlier departure to ensure we made our 9 A.M. arrival time. Surgery was scheduled for 10:30, and at 10 we were told there would be a half hour delay. At about noon, we were told it would be about a two additional hour wait, all with Sophia only having eaten or drank anything since the previous night at 9.

Sophia coloring with the other kids awaiting surgery, Megan (tonsils) and Margery (tumor).

My princesses, with Sophia's crown craftiness.

There's our Sparty doll.

Our pre-operative visit with Dr. Louis. Around 1:30 we were finally led back to the staging area, where Sophia was weighed and registered, and we enjoyed a few episodes of Zach and Cody.

The surgery team drew a smiley face on the arm upon which will be operated.


Gowned up and ready for anestesia. We were directed to a new waiting room, which was filled with expectant parents, all the familiar faces from the craft area back upstairs in the morning. One cannot help but be nervous regarding your own child's surgery, but we seem to always be brought back to reality by those less fortunate than us: when Sophia first had surgery at Mott at 3 months old, we were very nervous, but found a sense of perspective when a team of surgeons spoke to a family near us about the irreparable holes that were in their child's heart; this time, a girl in our group was to have a mysterious, golf ball-sized tumor removed from her chest. The camaraderie of the waiting room is supportive, and Margery's tumor was completely removed to the great relief of her parents, grandparents, and the rest of the room as well.

Coming around in the recovery room, the Cartoon Network providing the distraction. It turns out that the extent of the surgery involved fewer fingers than we anticipated, and Sophia required a graft to cover 2 skinless areas that were separated and without skin. Also, Dr. Louis feels he found the source of her pain, a band that was restricting the spreading movement of her left hand, which he simply removed.

Despite the tardiness of the procedure, we had super care and wonderful caregivers. Sophia was a trooper all day, in better spirits than her parents (OK, only me, Tiffani was terrific) and only mentioned being thirsty once, and hungry once late in the day just prior to the operation. We were sent home with a bag of goodies from the hospital, and Sophia received some gifts from her classmates too. Her pain tolerance is amazing, and she's been a wonderful patient.