Halen's Christmas Break

Halen's Christmas break probably wasn't the most fun but I'm sure he'll always remember it.  He's always dealt with sore throats and his tonsils were huge so our family doctor told us the next time we hit our deductible, he would recommend getting them out.  Well, with Randy's oral device that he got to help with his sleep apnea, we hit our deductible but it was into December before we did.  So I didn't think we'd have enough time to get everything scheduled and done before the end of the year but it must have been meant to be because everything aligned just right.  We had the consultation just before school got out for Christmas then had the surgery scheduled for the Tuesday after Christmas.  The ironic thing is, is that I got my tonsils out on December 29, when I was 9 and so did Halen...just 29 years later. :)

He said he wasn't nervous but I think he was a little worried about being put to sleep cause he kept asking me questions about it.  Grandpa Ogden came to sit with Mia and Alex while we were gone with Halen.  We got to the hospital about 8:00 am.  He had to wear an adult gown because the kid ones were a little too short for him. :)  He was doing fine until the nurse came in to start his IV then the needle really made him nervous.  The nurse was awesome though and figured out a way to do without him realizing he was getting poked.

Watching TV waiting to go back

The procedure only took about 20 minutes and the doctor came to talk to us while Halen woke up.  The doctor said it was a good thing we had this done because his tonsils were so big and the adenoids were especially big.  He said because of that, the recovery might be a little worse.  That worried me because Halen isn't the best with pain. We've already had a stay in the hospital a few years ago when he psyched himself out so much because of pain that he kept passing out.  I'm hoping we're done with that though.

Enjoying a Popsicle after he woke up 

They brought him to us after he had woke up for a little bit so he was pretty coherent by the time we saw him.  He had already finished one popsicle and was working on another.  Once he finished that, he was ready to go home.  The nurse told him that the more he could keep his throat wet, the better and Halen took that to heart.  He carried a cup of juice or water with him the whole week.  He did really good for the first couple days and was able to eat some mashed potatoes, apple sauce and shakes just fine.  But on about the 4th day, he didn't feel like eating much and just drank all day.  I made him have a Carnation breakfast drink every morning just to make sure he got some nutrition but that was about all he had for about 4 days.  He ended up losing 6 lbs and for an 80 lb kid, that was a lot.  He really did awesome though.  Nights were the worst.  I hated having to wake him up to take his medicine and he was in pain from his throat being so dry but he never once threw up or complained during the day so for the most part he did awesome.  Just glad it's over with.

Mia had to keep taking his temperature just to make sure :)