#&@! happens

The weekend started like any other, with the exception that all three of my girls had mild colds and low-grade fevers. This is Daddy's post, in case you hadn't figured that out yet. Sunday morning the girls all registered 100 degrees, and Cassie's been a little lethargic lately. I would be too.

It's been 7 weeks since Cassie's surgery, and her recovery had been going well. Or at least we thought it had been. Cassie is naturally high strung, and a bit of a drama queen. It's not unusual for her to scream in agony if she drops a foam toy on her foot, so we didn't think much of it when she complained when we rubbed silicone gel on her upper lip (part of the post-operative protocol, to minimize visible scarring). But Sunday night she protested a bit too much for mere drama's sake. Upon close examination (which she resisted like death itself), she just didn't look right. Her upper lip was swollen and slightly discolored. That's when both Sherry and I recalled privately thinking that her mouth lately hasn't looked any better than it did pre-surgery. Both of us were quietly wondering if we had put her through the surgical ordeal for nothing. At that moment, however, it looked worse than it ever had. Something was wrong.

We called the 24-hour number for her surgeon, and she called us back within a few minutes. We described the situation to her, and she sent a prescription for antibiotics to a local 24-hr pharmacy. Meanwhile, she asked to see us at 7am Monday morning.

Monday morning, we dragged the girls out of bed and took them downtown to see the surgeon. One look at Cassie and her surgeon knew that she'd require surgery today. My poor baby.

The surgery revealed a hematoma resulting from what she presumed was a post-operative injury. Most likely this occurred within the last 7 days, since that's when we started to think that her surgery had not yielded the results we had sought. The surgeon was able to evacuate a bunch of fluid (blood, et. al.). Meanwhile, she is being held overnight to complete a course of I.V. antibiotics. As I type this entry, Sherry and Cassie are in the post-operative recovery area, awaiting a room. I took Chloe home, fed her lunch, and put her down for a nap. Here I sit in the comfort of home while two of my girls are stuck in a cramped recovery room waiting for a hospital bed to open up.

Excrement happens.


4:10pm Update:
They are in a room - FINALLY. Sherry called me with a shopping list of goodies
(clothes, toiletries, special toys, blankies, etc) to bring her for the night. As soon as Chloe wakes up from her afternoon nap, we'll head back to the hospital. Poor Cassie. She's in for a long night, as is her mommy. At least mommy will be there with her.