On the way to Shawnee Mission Medical Center (we normally go to Heartland, but since our last injections, they had sold out), we thought we would stop at Dunkin Donuts to grab some yummy coffee and a treat to "start the day out right." It was a total and complete disaster! I told Justin, "I'll just run in because it'll be faster than drive-thru"... definitely not the case! There was literally almost no one in there, other than the long drive-thru line, and all I ordered was a cafe mocha & fritter for Justin, and a plain coffee with milk and oatmeal for me. I'm waiting and waiting while other customers are coming in and having their order taken as well. I normally just chill out and wait for things like this, but it didn't help that we wanted to have plenty of time to find this new place since we've never been, the traffic towards Kansas City is totally insane and it's pure craziness with the constant construction.
So anyways, after about 10 minutes or so, I ask the guy, "excuse me, have you made our order" and then I have to tell him repeatedly what I ordered in the first place. Finally, 15 minutes and over $8 later, I walked out the door with super sweet coconut coffee, a tasteless non-mocha, undercooked oatmeal and a soggy apple fritter. Needless to say, this was NOT a good way to start the morning. I was completely in awe ... baffled in fact ... that it was so difficult to get such a simple order and yet it still be wrong. I know I'm ranting ... sorry! Between that and the nutso's out driving, we were getting ourselves all kinds of stressed out. No bueno!
Once we got to the medical center and were settled, things were mostly okay. Everyone seemed a little off kilter though and not communicating well which only fueled the brewing anxiety from the morning. We had to review the injections sites because the middle man transposed sites, ensure the meds were correct (ie Jocelyn needs an accurate weight if uhm, oh I don't know, you are going to be giving sedating meds since its a good idea to ensure the weight is correct so too much medication isn't given), make sure baseline vitals are taken in case there is a change after the procedure (yes, sometimes you have to remind the staff) ... and this would be exactly why I'm "one of those moms."
For the most part we really love our orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Gupta, but we would of course rather not have to see him at all. He's a super energetic physician, extremely opinionated, passionate, forward-thinker and doesn't just consider Jocelyn's joints/bones/muscles. We like him because he is concerned about her diet, supplements, exercise, sleep, bowels and so forth. He follows both evidence-based practice and yet critically thinks about all the children he sees and notices how sometimes he does completely disassociated muscles groups and gets a strange but positive result (ie he will inject a child's latissimus dorsi and then all of a sudden the child can use their hand better which very cool in my books).
Prior to going back for her injections, Jocelyn was given some Versed to help make her sleepy. She was of course already sleepy from being up since before 5am, so after that med, she was down for the count before even going back there. She was so cute though, before the pulse ox was attached to her big toe it continued to make a dinging noise. Apparently in her drug-induced drowsiness, Jocelyn thought that "dinging" was funny because she kept giggling while asleep. It truly was the most precious thing and melted the hearts of everyone in the room. Her giggling, smiling face made any anxiety we had totally disappear and definitely a great way to go off surgery.
Prior to yesterday, all the sites had been previously picked out, but seeing how I can't seem to leave well enough alone, I had ideas about "what was best" or "tell me what you think about this?" which Dr. Gupta always seems to so greatly appreciate! Ha! Well, if I have a concern, you don't have to agree, but I at least want you to stop, listen, think and then we can discuss. No harm in that! :) I told Dr. Gupta that I had concerns about her calves/ankles as she was putting even the best ballerina to shame with those pointed toes. He of course smiled at me, did his little thinking jig and then said "oh ok, we'll put some there too." I know I'm not a surgeon ... I know that ... but I also know our daughter and a heel cord release is really not on my "to-do list" right now. We did a total of 11 different sites and I didn't actually count the number of needle sticks this time (some sites are injected in several different spots so even though only 11 sites are picked, she might actually end up with 30+ needle injections).
During recovery Jocelyn did mostly well with minimal crying which always makes that transition period more tolerable and easier on our hearts. She of course slept the whole way home and was sleepy throughout the day. Justin had to fly last night so it worked well that we were sleepy so naps could be had by all. Of course after Justin left, the vomiting kicked in but it wasn't too awful.
Towards the end of the evening Jocelyn seemed to perk-up a little bit so we thought instead of being stuck in the house for the evening, we would venture the short 2 miles over to Lake Shawnee for the Huff-n-Puff festivities and meet our friends Brian & Dani. The Huff-n-Puff is going on all weekend and its where there are vendors selling things, they have that terrible-for-you type of foods and of course it wouldn't be huffy or puffy if there weren't lots of hot-air balloons! For a $10 donation towards the Topeka Ronald McDonald House, they give tethered balloon rides which we are hoping to do late tonight or tomorrow if Jocie's feeling up to it. I think it sounds awesome, it might not be a full-blown balloon ride, but I'll take whatever I can get! :)
Brian and Dani took such a cute pictures of Boogie & I. She was a mega giggle-box last night which is the best! I did lose the "Mother-of-the-Year" award though because it was C.O.L.D and I had Jocie in a little dress with no pants or shoes ... after a procedure ... I mean HEEEELLLLLOOOOO! I guess I had temporarily misplaced my brain :s Lucky for Boogie and I, we have great friends! Dani disrobed herself of her long-sleeved undershirt so we could slip it onto Jocie's legs to keep her warm. We are so loved!
Dani even caught Uncle Brian attacking Jocie in action. You can almost hear her excitment in these picture!
Here is a taste of one of the balloons for all you awful KU fans! Its been a long while since I've seen a hot-air balloon and was taken by surprise at its size!
Yesterday was a long day ... LONG DAY, but to end it with happy smiles, giggles, friends and balloons? ... Makes me feel blessed!
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Found some pics!!
I am so happy your day and anxiety ended so much better, and to see the smile on Jocelyn's face even made me smile.... I love you all so much... Mom
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