Hanging in there.

Mallory is doing great in her first week home since surgery.
We brought a walker home to help her with balance and she used it for one day.  She has mastered all the functions of living in our home with a cast magnificently.  Her disposition has been great.
Now we are counting down the days till the cast comes off.

What's a sibling to do?

Mallory is very lucky to have her brother and sister.  They have been great these last few weeks.  They did so well the day of surgery but have also managed well at home.  They have been helpful, kind, and compassionate.

Update.

Well after an 1 /12 hours in recovery, they moved Mallory to the Observation Wing.  The Hospital Ortho Wing was full so we were in a holding pattern till a bed opened up.  The staff on the observation wing were great, especially after spending 8 hours with them.  It was 8 p.m. before we were able to move to a regular hospital room.

Mallory got her wish- A YELLOW CAST.

We settled in to a routine of vitals checks, IV checks, and all the other care that's necessary after surgery.

A couple of visits from the Doctor.

Visits from Matthew and Hannah.  And the official first signings of the cast.

I am so proud of Matt and Hannah for handling this day so well.

Room Service x3.  Mallory loves to call the # and order food.

Watched TV with Matt & Hannah before they left for the night. 

Mallory is getting used to ambulating with a cast.  Her pain is being managed. 

Mallory did not sleep at all yesterday.  I was worried with her sleep disorder and behaviors that we would be in for a long night.  I was wrong.  After Todd, Matt, and Hannah headed home, Mallory settled to sleep pretty quickly.  She even slept through a lot of the nurse visits throught the night.  And for my girl who is awake most mornings before 5 a.m., well, she slept till 7 a.m.
*Happy Dance*
Sleeping in till 7 a.m. is pure bliss in our family.

The IV should come out this morning.  We are awaiting a boot for her cast and evaluation from Physical Therapy.
After all that's complete, we are outta here.  Homeward Bound.

Slight Delay.

Just spoke with the nurse in recovery.  They have been working on pain management with Mallory and she has also required some oxygen.  This is not a setback, she is still doing very well.  We should be able to see her in the next hour or so.

Surgery Complete.

Relief.  Praise.  Joy.  That's what I feel after visiting with Mallory's surgeon once surgery is complete.  I have now sat through this 10 times.  10 surgeries.  Too many for any person's lifetime.

Mallory's surgery took just a little over an hour.  It went as expected.   No complications.

Praise the Lord.

The Waiting Game.

Our wait was fairly short in the waiting room.
We managed to get back to the nurse check-in really quickly.
Then the wait began.

A flood of staff in and out of the exam room.
Vital Signs, Name Bands, and Endless Questions.
Mallory loved all the attention.
I did bring the laptop to keep her busy.
Thank God for Wi-Fi.

The nurse were all so kind.
Dr Olney was in and informed us of the days events.
Surgery should take about an hour.
We were tickled to learn that Mallory can get a cast in her favorite color-  YELLOW.

9:10 and she's off.  Skipping, smiling, and hi-fiving her way to the operating room.  That's my girl. :)

What was I thinking?

Mallory is scheduled for surgery today.  Last week when I spoke to the Nurse Practioner at the Orthopaedic Surgeon's Office, I was confident that we needed the earliest possible surgery time.  I mean, who would want to manage Mallory fasting through the morning let alone waiting all day on surgery.  CrAzY!  So, we set Mallory's surgery for the first of the day.   I quietly praised myself for my wise decision. 

Well this morning at 3:45 a.m., I found that my decision was not so wise.  What was I thinking?  Who in there right mind gets up at this time and drives to K.C.?  We managed to leave the house in decent time,  the drive wasn't all too bad, but I was tired. 

I'm pretty sure I saw a zebra just outside of Topeka.  I had to rub my eyes and refocus to make sure it was so.

A coffee and potty break and we continued on for our 7:30 arrival at the hospital. 

I had figured that Mallory would sleep the entire way to K.C.  I was wrong.  She jabbered about her surgery the whole way.  My ears were bleeding by the time we got to the hospital.

We met my parents at the hospital and now the wait begins.