Mason has come out of his second surgery with flying colors. Andrea and I got up early this morning and brought him down to Children’s Hospital, where he was admitted at 6am. We spent some time in the waiting room, and then took Mason to the surgical area to prep him. Prepping involves getting him in his gown, taking all his vitals, and talking to the surgeon and anesthesiologists about what’s going to happen.

Mason is such a social guy, he was all smiles as each new doctor came into the room to see him. He must have thought we were throwing him a party. I’ve got some really adorable pictures of him in his little yellow gown, but they’re on my phone right now, and I don’t have the right cable here. They’ll go up later.

Andrea took him into the OR to help keep him calm as he went under, and then we commenced our long wait.

To our surprise, his plastic surgeon came out around 11:00 and said he was all done. We were expecting to be waiting until well after noon, but she said the procedure went extremely well. Dr. Rozzelle closed Mason’s palate, so his oral and nasal cavities are finally two separate things. She also did some touch up work on his lip to reduce the scarring, and the ENT replaced the tubes in Mason’s ears, as the original ones (from October 1) were showing the initial signs of working their way out.

We waited another 20 minutes or so, and then were sent up to Mason’s room, where he was to be brought as soon as he woke up.After a few more minutes, we got to see him–and boy did he look great! His face was (and still is) pretty swollen, but compared to immediately after his first surgery, he looks 100% better (to quote his Opa).

Since then, he’s been sleeping fitfully, but we were amazed when he actually drank a few ounces of formula this evening. We weren’t expecting him to be able to really drink until tomorrow.

Mason has a roommate this week, as the hospital is apparently quite full. Gregory is a very cute little boy who is having surgery tomorrow. He and Mason haven’t talked much yet, but I’m sure they’d be good friends under different circumstances.

Mason got lots of grandparent time over the weekend. We came down Saturday morning (to avoid the slippery roads of Friday’s snowstorm), and it’s been non-stop playtime since then. He brought a gift home for his Opa (consisting mostly of junk food), which he was very eager to deliver. He even signed the bag (which I’m sure will be quite the collectible someday. Oma is saving it, just in case).

Given Mason’s history of not-eating, the pre-surgery dietary restrictions were not much of a problem. He was only allowed clear liquids after 12:30 this morning, and nothing at all after 4:30. Mason didn’t complain, but I know he would have preferred something heavier to drink–maybe a Guiness

That’s it for now…stay posted for updates. Thanks for all the prayers and support!

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