Adnoidectomy and More

 McKinley had her third major medical procedure today.  Obviously, her first at 3 days old was her biggie.. when they put her organs where they needed to be:  inside her body.  Her second was when they "just" put a tube in her good ear, but at the time, they also did a brain stem hearing test so she had to be fully sedated.  Today, she went in for an adnoidectomy.  On Monday, McKinley had an appointment with her otologist, Dr. Berryhill, to check to make sure that her tube was still in place.  It was, but he noticed that McKinley was solely breathing through her mouth.  I told him about her other breathing issues.. he asked if she had trouble  sleeping at night.  After discussing all of that, we decided that removing her adnoids would help her quality of life.  And surgery was scheduled for today. 

 I had set out a cute comfy pair of shorts and tank top for her to wear to the hospital, but she insisted on wearing a dress.  We had to work to keep her distracted, she was very insistent on wanting her cup and pancake.  And car seat.  :)

 Her surgery was supposed to start at 9.  It started closer to 10.  It was a looooooong morning for all of us.  By the time the anathesiologist came to talk to us, she was crying and super ticked we were not providing her with her cup. 

 Thankfully, Aunt Reese sent a video of Merritt, letting McKinley know she loved her and was thinking about her.  McKinley LOVED it. She watched it over and over and over.  And kissed the phone every time Merritt gave her kisses.  We sure love our cousin!!

The nurses came back to get McKinley.  They told her they were taking her to go do something "fun".  She believed them.  The surgery was supposed to last about 45 minutes.  Our friend, Brent came and brought Craig and I some caffeine and breakfast.  Talk about super sweet.  We sure are blessed with thoughtful friends.  Around 45 minutes later, Dr. Berryhill came out and told us that McKinley was still asleep.  They were successful removing her adnoids.  They were MASSIVE.  He said there was absolutely no way that any air could move from her nose to her air passages.  So it is a huge blessing that he recommended that we remove them.  Hopefully this will help McKinley's breathing and snot issues a ton.  But then, we could tell there was more.  He discovered that McKinley only had one tonsil.  In all of his years of practicing medicine, he has never seen a case like this.  He said he kept looking around for the other tonsil, and it is just most definitely not there.  He told us that he was really unsure what to do in a situation like this.  Most of the time he has 2 tonsils to compare side by side to see if there is something concerning that would cause them to need to remove the tonsils.  In her case, he could not compare.  After talking more about the tonsil, he recommended having it removed so it could be tested for the possibility of lymphoma.  He did say that he thought she would be showing signs of lymphoma in other areas of her body, if she did have it. 

Obviously for Craig and I, that was an easy decision.  She was already under anathesia, and there is the possibility that cancer could be in the tonsil.  REMOVE IT.

After taking the tonsil out, he seemed more confident that everything would be fine.  He said alot of times when there are bad things, something is hard.  He said when he touched it, it seemed to be more like regular tonsil tissue.. but was going to continue to get it tested. 

So now we wait. 

 And recover.  Really, recovery for our sweet girl today has gone really really well.  Coming out of the anathesia was ROUGH.  She just does not do well with it. I cant imagine what it feels like for a 2 year old.  Dr. Berryhill said it was ok if she just drank for the first 5 days, but she needed to stay hydrated.  Since she has been home, she has had jello, watermelon, 3 scrambled eggs and ice cream.  My girl likes to eat.  We think she has a pretty high pain tolerance as well.. she has been through alot in her 2 (almost 3 years).  I am expecting that the next couple of days, she may experience more pain.. but we will be ready.  :)

We appreciate all the prayers/texts/calls today.  Lymphoma is a super scary word.  It seemed to come out of left field for us.  However, we totally trust Dr. Berryhill, and know that he did not randomly use that word.  So, we are thankful that we had the appointment on Monday, that led us to set up this surgery today.  Not only did it open up her air passages, but it allowed us to remove something that could be harmful.  Alot of people have asked how we are feeling.  Honestly, we are doing good. My mommy instinct tells me that this is going to be ok.  So I am praying that my instinct is right.  :)  But IF its not.. there is no doubt who is in complete control of my daughters life.  From the beginning of our time with McKinley, we have known that we have been blessed to be chosen to be her parents.  And as much as we love her and adore her, God loves her so so so so so much more.  He has held McKinley in the palm of His hand from the beginning.  We have seen time and time again, His hand in her life.  And I know, without a doubt, this time will be NO different. 

Keep praying and believing for good good news!  We will keep you updated.