Surgery #1

Sunday night....

The nerves started in for my mommy as she raced around the house getting every ones bags packed and explaining to my sister what was going to happen the next couple days. She finally went to bed at 10pm.

Monday....

I woke up at 1:00 a.m. hungry (I could eat 24/7) and thankfully they extended the eating time so my mom was able to give me a 7 oz. bottle of apple juice. YUMMY! My grandma and grandpa came over at 4:15 and my mom and dad, grandma and I left for Omaha at 4:30. My grandpa stayed behind so he could get my sister up and off to daycare. We arrived at the hospital at 5:30 and got checked in. The nurse came in and asked her questions, weighed me and listened to my heart and then I got my cool jammies on. Then my mom, dad and grandma took me to the play room so I could play for a while. I was SO smiley and happy and just playing away. Dr. Lusk came in right at 7:00 and talked to my mommy and daddy and gave my mommy a big hug b/c she started crying. He made a purple mark on my right side and reassured my mommy that I would be just fine. Dr. Lusk is an amazing man and so caring! Then the anesthesiologist came in and was SUPER friendly and made me giggle. He brought a really warm blanket and wrapped me up. My mommy kissed my cheek and the doctor carried me away. I don't remember much after this so I'll let my mommy take over. :-)

Briggs was taken to surgery right at 7:10 a.m. Of course it was very emotional for me. The nurse came in at 8:00 to give the first update and said the doctor had made his incision. I asked about the i.v. and she said it took several attempts and finally Dr. Lusk got it in. Poor little guy had holes all over his hands and feet. He's just so chubby that it was difficult to get it. The nurse came back a little after 9:00 and said his vitals were stable and he was doing great. She came back again at 10:15ish and said he was just finishing up and audiology would be in to check the device before he closed the incision. She came back at 11:00 and said he was headed to recovery. The anesthesiologist came in and said he did great and was sleeping for a bit. Then the audiologist came in and said that all the electrodes worked and that his nerve responded to all the pitches!!! That was the best news and she said it was best case scenario and he's doing great! We talked about the activation and what to expect and that was very exciting as well. Briggs was brought back to the room at 11:30 and he was beside himself. It was very hard to see him that way and he could not get comfortable. He was screaming and inconsolable. Finally after a couple hours he was given some morphine and that calmed him down and put him to sleep. I think he was so upset because he was hungry and didn't want to feel that way anymore. After the morphine wore off he started improving. It pretty much just got him over the hump. He pretty much had a bottle in his mouth the entire afternoon. He had a great night and woke up about every 3 to 4 hours and just wanted to eat. He wasn't fussy really at all. We left the hospital about 8:30 Tuesday morning and he just continued to improve!! He is back to good ole Briggs already and doing great!!

Dr. Lusk is amazing and I can't even begin to explain how blessed we are to have him! He has done over 500 cochlear implants and over 40 in the past 10 months. He specializes in pediatrics and has done mostly pediatric implants. He did an AMAZING job with Briggs surgery. His incision is tucked right behind his ear and you can't even tell where the implant is! He took such great care of Briggs and me. :-) He is so caring and I trust him with everything I have! Even with all the experience he has he still insists on taking his time with the procedure and to not rush through it and to do one at a time for the sake and safety of the child.

During surgery my mom, Nick's mom and step dad, Nick's brother Doug and his wife Yay sat with us all day. My sister in law Bre was there and two of my best friends Maria and Raynah surprised me! They all sat with us for a couple hours as well. THANK YOU SO MUCH to all of you for being there!! It meant SO much and you helped the time go by quicker. Later that evening my dad and Elli, our best friends Ben and Miranda, and Nick's nephew Luc and his wife Sarah also came to visit. We received several phone calls from our friends and family and all of it means the world to Nick and I! We are SO fortunate to have such a HUGE support base! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to all of you for your prayers and support!!!

Briggs activation is next Wednesday, April 1st!!! Less than a week away!

We do this surgery thing all over again in less than 5 weeks. Briggs left ear is scheduled for April 27th. Please start praying for us!!

On our way to the hospital with my new ball!

Here I am in my stylin hospital p.j.'s!

Here I am playing in the play room before my surgery. I was having so much fun!

This is right when I got back from surgery. Nothing could make me comfortable.

First time I opened my eyes. I had a bottle in my mouth for about 4 hours straight. I was SO hungry after surgery!

I love my ball but it's still not making this yucky feeling go away!

My first smile! This was taken Monday night about 7:30. My dad had my new ball on his head and I thought it was pretty funny!

My daddy didn't know his face was going to be in this picture. He was watching t.v.

My face is so swollen from that silly i.v. fluid! They put a whole bag in me!

Tuesday morning... back to my ornery self already!!

Drinking from my sippy cup!

Tuesday morning after we got home... FINALLY some REAL food!! His poor little face was so swollen from all the i.v. fluid but the swelling was pretty much gone by Tuesday night.

Mr. Briggs Tuesday night. He recovered so quickly!

The incision

The incision goes along his ear but you can't see the bottom of it b/c his ear is hiding it so well!