Little Bear's Story

Hi, this is Little Bear, and here is the story of my heart surgery:

In the days between my catheterization and surgery we had as much fun as we could, while still trying to lay low since my leg was a little sore and Mommy and Daddy said I couldn't be too crazy.

Baby Sister and I played together a lot. I just think "our baby" is the cutest!

We all got tattoos.

I got to play outside in the beautiful flowers at Uncle C's place.

And I blew some pretty amazing bubbles!

Thursday morning we woke up, said our prayers for the day, and had a delicious breakfast of jello and popsicles. I wasn't as excited as I was when we had this breakfast on Monday morning before my cath, but I still enjoyed it. Yum!

After breakfast we laid around watching movies and playing in the hotel until it was time to head to the hospital.

When we got to the hospital we watched cartoons and played doctor/patient in the waiting room with the dolls and medical equipment. I didn't even start to get hungry or thirsty until right before it was time to head back to the O.R. (afternoon). Mommy said she was so proud of me and felt blessed that I wasn't whining about food all morning.

After we had talked with the nurse for awhile, watched some movies, changed into the hospital clothes (that I was not nearly as excited to wear this time), and drank the yucky medicine (which I REALLY didn't want this time), the doctors and nurses took me for a walk on a moving bed. Mommy and Daddy said I was a little "out of it" by this point but I still knew everything that was going on and wanted to make sure my parents were with me. The nurses and doctors that were pushing the bed told me to tell Mommy and Daddy goodbye once we got to a set of double doors that only "special people" got to go through. I was sad to leave Mommy and Daddy and kind of confused about what was going on, but I was really brave and didn't cry.

From this point I don't know exactly what happened. I was breathing yummy bubblegum smells through a mask and the next thing I knew I woke up in a bright, loud room and I was very uncomfortable. The only comfort was that Daddy was there with me and he had my favorite blanket and best friend, Teddy. He told me that Mommy was with Baby Sister and I would get to see her in a few hours. I had a really hard time sleeping that night but finally took a long nap in the morning. These were some of the machines in my room that were pumping medicine through the tubes hooked to me.

This is a picture Mommy took the morning after my surgery. I was sleeping when she got there. I was so glad I had my blanket and Teddy to snuggle with. It made me feel a TINY bit more at home.

I was really upset that there was a tube of "oxygen" going into my nose and I kept messing with it all morning, trying to get it out. FINALLY, the nurse told me that I was breathing well without it and I could take it out! Yippee!! I was still upset about all the other tubes but was glad to see that one go!

I wasn't feeling up to doing much besides laying in bed and watching movies but the nurses and Mommy said I would get better faster if I were to sit up more and move around a little. So that afternoon they took me for a wagon ride. I wasn't very excited about it but I didn't really have a choice so I went.

Shortly after the wagon ride, the ICU nurses were ready to take me to another floor where I would not need the critical care anymore. It was much quieter in this room and it was just Mommy and me so I was able to settle down and take a pretty good afternoon nap.

Mommy held me as often as she could and gave me LOTS of snuggles. It made the whole experience a little bit easier for me. She also helped me eat cereal and other foods so that I'd get stronger and soon be able to get out of bed and walk around a little.

Baby Sister and Grandma hung out in my room most of the day now that we were in our own room out of the ICU while Daddy slept back at the hotel. I was glad they could be there with me. It made me feel a little bit more like things were normal.

When they took out my drainage tubes and pacemaker wires that were in my chest it was very painful and I cried a lot but Mommy was there with me and kept telling me how brave I was and that it was almost over. After they were out I laid still and watched a long movie while I snuggled with Mommy and all of a sudden I was feeling much better. I was still really tired and not ready to play much but I was sitting up much more comfortably and just needed a good night's sleep to really boost my energy for the next day.

By late the next morning I was out of bed and sitting on the couch in my room eating fresh blueberries that my aunt had sent with Grandma.

Sitting up on the couch with all of my toys made me realize I really was feeling better. Pretty soon I was standing up, walking around (a little wobbly), and playing! Mommy was soooo happy!

That afternoon, my nap was interrupted by doctors coming in to tell me I could go home. I was glad to be getting out of there, but I was so exhausted that I still wasn't in a very happy mood. Mommy and Daddy got me dressed and I waited for them to get all of our stuff together so we could leave.

Back at the hotel we watched a little cartoon and then took our first nap outside of the hospital. It was wonderful!

More cartoons with Daddy the next morning while Mommy packed us up and got us ready to check out of the hotel...

...and then we had a surprise at Uncle C's house when we arrived--my cousin and aunt were still there with Grandma! I got to see them for just a few minutes before they headed home.

Then Mommy let me put my "Beads of Courage" on my necklace. The hospital gave me these beads. Each one represents a different part of my journey through heart surgery.

I really just wanted to go home. Being in California reminded me of all the bad memories from the past week, even in the safety of Uncle C's house. But we played and had fun, and my sense of humor and silliness started to return as I began to realized that maybe all the awful hospital stuff really was over with.

Daddy and I played with my favorite MarbleWorks game that Grandma had brought to Uncle C's house.

And I played with all of the stickers that I got while I was at the hospital.

Finally, it was Friday morning and I had my LAST doctor's appointment at the hospital in California!! The doctor said I looked great and I could go home that night on an airplane!

We looked at the trains at the hospital one last time.

And we were out of there!!

We got home really late Friday night but I was so excited to be back that I couldn't sleep a wink in the car ride home. When we got there we were greeted by a nice surprise!! Our amazing neighbors had come into the house and put up a "Welcome Home Ben!" banner and balloons! They also left me stickers to play with and a nice card that everyone had signed. What a treat!

Mommy and Daddy say that I was a rockstar and got out of the hospital really quickly but to me it felt like an eternity! Now that I'm in the comfort of my home I am gaining strength everyday. I am slowly starting to sleep better and eat more. I am actually feeling pretty good! I still have a few bad memories from my time in California but I understand that my "long owie" is there because the doctor fixed my heart and now I can run faster, jump higher, and play harder! And Mommy and Daddy are so thankful!!!! Thanks for all of your prayers and support through all of this! We all faired better because of them!