Trooper Will!

8:00a - We're here and we're waiting! Will is in a great mood. I think he likes having the undivided attention of two parents, as well as being thrilled because he's finally big enough to wear scrub pants before surgery! No more gowns and uncovered tushes when we're trying to have a serious conversation with anesthesiologists!

12:15p - Will is out of surgery! We haven't gotten a chance to see him yet, but the doctor came out to talk with us. The OR was backed up this morning, so Will didn't actually go into surgery until 10:30a. So his whole procedure was a little more than an hour.

Thankfully they didn't have to do the more advanced procedure, so Will's recovery will be a lot shorter. We've been advised to take it easy with him for the next day or so, but after that, he should be back to himself. No restrictions on hiking in the backpack!

In case you were wondering, the doctor ended up correcting both of Will's testicles. On the left side, he had a rare kind of undescended testicle called an ectopic testicle, and on the right side he had one that was almost ectopic. Apparently this isn't too uncommon with boys with spastic cerebral palsy, as their muscles contract a lot and this keeps the testicles from descending properly. We're happy that they corrected both of them today!

Hopefully this is the last time I have to blog about testicles. I know you all love reading about them so much, and Will is going to be thrilled to learn later in life that so many people got regular updates about the status of his!

4:30p - We're home! Will had a tough time coming out of anesthesia, so we were held in recovery (PACU) for more than 2 hours post-op. But Will eventually came around, drinking some Pediasure, and preferring to be cuddled. He even peed on his hospital bed, which appeared to be the last "test" before the doctors would release him. So now we're settled back in and have to pick up Will's pain meds soon. Will is enjoying some Elmo and love from his brothers and Oma! They told us that he should start feeling back to normal about 24 hours after the operation, which is a true blessing. He has certainly had more than his fair share of pain in his life (we determined today that this was Will's 7th surgery), so it is a comfort to know that he won't be in pain for long.

We had a very cute twin brother moment when Nate, Will and I picked Luke up from day care on our way back from the hospital. We explained to Luke that Will went to the doctor today and that he wasn't feeling very good. When Luke climbed up in the van, he sat next to Will instead of climbing into his own car seat. He told me that he wanted to sit next to Will (he never says things like this) so that Will would feel better. Once we got home, Luke doted kisses on his twin to make him feel better. Kisses make everything feel better, after all.

Thanks for all the calls and well-wishes today! Just because we're old seasoned pros when it comes to kids in the hospital and surgery certainly doesn't mean it gets any easier. The love and support was a great help and relief to both of us today.