Thursday, April 10, 2008

All Done

Houston, we have flat/straight feet! Evan came out of surgery at noon. His doctor said that the surgery went well and he is pleased with the results. He did say that it was a difficult surgery because of the severity of the clubbing and that we need to keep a close eye on circulation (his toes are nice and pink, but he is most concerned with the back of the foot and heel area). He mentioned that there is a possibility that we could lose some skin on the backs of his feet and that he might need a skin graft down the road, but right now, all we can do is monitor his feet, keep them elevated and wait.

Unfortunately, hospital policy does not permit you to go back to the recovery rooms and so I wasn't able to be there when Evan came out of his surgery as I had hoped. Instead I was given his room number and had to wait for him there. Richard came with lunch and was able to be there with me when Evan arrived in his room. He is miserable and obviously in a lot of pain, but he is finally sleeping soundly and hopefully he will feel a little better once he wakes up. He was just sobbing when they first brought him upstairs and it was absolutely heartbreaking. He kept calling out for his brothers and sister (Mommy and Daddy too) and saying, "Good job Evan. All done. All done." After we got him settled in he managed to open his eyes a bit (he is very swollen) and looked at me and said, "Boo, boo. Ouch" Again, it just broke my heart. He has since downed several cups of apple juice and water and is now sleeping "peacefully" as the morphine pumps through his body. The plan at this point is to keep an eye on the circulation in his feet and to manage his pain. If he is still feeling miserable in the morning, he will likely stay in the hospital for one more day before going home.

As hard as it has been to see my son go through this miserable and painful process, my heart also rejoices that we are one step closer to getting him up on his feet. . .something that never would've been possible for him in Ukraine. For the past few weeks he has been telling me that he wants to walk. . .he wants to be up on his feet and running around with his brothers and sisters. Although we still have a LONG way to go, the thought that he will someday be doing just that, brings tears to my eyes. We are on our way!

I am so proud of our sweet little man!

Thank you again for all of your thoughts, prayers, encouragement and support! We truly appreciate them!

5 comments:

Christina said...

Sounds like things went as well as could be expected -- wow, Evan sounds like such a trooper! I will continue to pray that he does not experience too much pian, and that he heals quickly with the desired results! Can't wait to see that boy up on his feet!

Christina
RR Group

The Urbans said...

Oh Valerie! My heart is breaking with you for him. He sounds like such a wonderful, sweet boy. When the pain is gone he will be so thrilled to see his feet. I can't wait to see the post op pictures!

Carla said...

They look so good! How exciting. Hopefully he'll get to try out a gait trainer! Praying he does well so he can go home to his brothers and sister!

Shelley said...

Yea Evan! We've been through the surgery and the recovery....and I assure you that you will be completely and totally amazed when you see those casts off for good. Xander has some nasty scars, but they're getting better with time and Evan's will too. I can't wait to see pictures of him standing. He's on his way now!

Mom2Da'Gorgeouses said...

I'm so glad that the surgery went smoothly. I will pray for a speedy recovery and that his pain gets under control quickly.