Belated Birthday and Surgery Date Set

Rachel turned two years old the day after my last post.  I'm a bit late in posting happy birthday to her.  She is the happiest two year old.  And man, she's a two year old.  Gets into everything she can. And typically with that grin she has in the picture.  She loves her brothers and sisters.  Especially Dylan.  While he's at preschool, she's often asking if it's time to get him yet.  The other day she stood in the front door calling to him, "I need a hug!  Come hug me!"  And like the good big brother he is, he went and gave her one.  I am glad she's a part of our family.

In my last post I talked about Dylan needing surgery.  I met with the pediatric otolaryngologist whom I have taken some of the kids to before.  He removed Molly's tonsils when she was two.  Anyway, he agreed with the pediatrician's diagnosis but ordered an ultrasound of the cyst to be done at Primary Children's Medical Center.  That was scheduled for the following Monday.

Dylan was very good for the ultrasound.  He held very still and followed the technician's orders.  Having seen many echo cardiograms for him, I knew what she was doing when blue and red flashed on the screen.  She was checking to see if there was any blood flow to the cyst.  There wasn't, which is a good thing.  The radiologist came in and looked at the results of the ultrasound.  She said that she couldn't say with 100% certainty that it is a thyroglossal cyst, but that's most likely what it is.  It is atypical.  Most are right on the midline where his is off to the side slightly.  Plus it's not actually filled with pus like they usually are.  Her exact word she used to describe it was "gunk."  My thought to that was, "Of course it's atypical."  Dylan doesn't seem to like to follow the norm.

Later the otolaryngologist called me and said he likes to have another doctor assist with the surgery, but the other doctor would be going in and out of town so he would have to get with him before they could schedule it.  A few days later his secretary called to schedule it.  Dylan has his surgery on Tuesday, November 6.  He will be in the hospital over night and will have a drain that will stay in his neck a day or two.  He will need to take things easy for several weeks.  The surgery itself will take 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

A little bit of trivia for you.  Twenty-eight years ago I was in the hospital after having my appendix removed.  I was there over November 6th, which was the day Reagan was re-elected for his second term of office.  Dylan will be in the hospital overnight on the upcoming elections.  I wonder if he will think the same thing I did as my family watched the election coverage in the hospital room.  "Isn't there anything else on?"