Surgery, Santa and thankfulness.

Elijah did great today! Surgery was quick, with an easy recovery. It was one of the better recoveries from anesthesia that we've seen. I have been careful about saying what the surgery was all about in order to give him some semblance of privacy. It's sort of a private ordeal, so I don't want to scream about it from the rooftops. Catch me in person or over email and I'll explain! He was in a bit of pain afterward and had a mild fever. We will stay on top of pain meds through the night.

Elijah was, again, terrified of the mask. :( Also, again, terrified of removing the IV tape. I am thankful this is behind us! He was such a brave boy today. I could see signs of him being more self-aware than ever before, which was encouraging. He was able to recognize that he was feeling scared about specific things and he was willing to try tactics to not be so afraid. This is a first!

Dan and I always feel so terrible watching him endure pain, both physical and emotional, so we always allow him to pick out a toy afterward for being brave. So that Sammy never feels left out, we let him pick something out, too, for being a good and supportive brother. Today we picked out a toy for both boys to share, a new Lego Movie lego set! They were both SO EXCITED. Oh my goodness, they were happy boys!

One thing Elijah said repeatedly today in the midst of his discomfort was, "MOMMY! I miss you!" When I finally asked what he meant by that, he said that he missed me when I have to be at work so much. :( Ok, this kind of kills me. Obviously we all need to work, but I have been working an exceptional amount lately and obviously it is affecting our family. If Elijah can verbalize it, it means something. Thankfully things will start to slow down soon.

Here is the boys' photo taken with Santa from last weekend! (yes, I believe Santa's bare belly may be showing..)

Tomorrow will be busy, but I'm hoping we can take some time to breathe and be THANKFUL. We have so much to be thankful for. I am looking forward to four days of no work and tons of family time. Friday will be our annual getting-our-Christmas-tree day and we will spend the day decorating our house. We are all looking forward to the next few days! Thanks for checking in and HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Hug your family. Tell them how much you love them. Be thankful!!!!!