Powerful Warrior

When we first thought of the name Watson we really liked it because it was unique and even though it was a common last name it is not a common first name. With our first being named Weldon we also wanted another "unique" W name so Weldon wouldn't be left out, since he got my Papa's awesome unique name :) Our Journey with Watson his first year has been lots of things. HAPPY, CRAZY, WONDERFUL, SAD, STRESSFUL, EMOTIONAL, AMAZING. We sometimes look at life as not what we should, we get depressed, or selfish, we get greedy and angry. But though its easier said than done and I still have my moments, Watson has taught us so much in the last year. He has opened our eyes to a whole different outlook on life. Life is a blessing that the Lord allows us to have. I recently learned the definition of Watson's name. POWERFUL WARRIOR. That touched me in so many ways. Everything is meant to be just as it is. So now that you know the meaning of Watson's name I will now share with you the Journey of our Powerful Warrior, SURGERY DAY.

The night before surgery you can only imagine that we didn't get any sleep. Watson sleeps in his crib every night but since he couldn't eat or drink anything past 10 I woke him up at 10 to feed him. He slept with me and jimmy curled up in my arms. I spent most of the night just staring at him. We got to the hospital at 5am where we checked in. Here is a picture of us right before they called us back to get him dressed.

When we went back the doctors took a little longer to get everything ready before they came and got him. Of course I was so happy to get to spend more time with him but it also made me think more about what was about to happen. I had actually done really well with the months leading up to Surgery to not think about what he was about to have to go through and really enjoyed all his milestones, but that day I couldn't hold it back. Once we were back there he was in the best mood! Clapping and smiling as always. After we got his gown on we took a few more pictures of him. This one is one of my favorites. Looks like he is saying I GOT THIS!

When the doctors came in of course they told us everything that was going to be done with getting him to sleep and that usually takes a little over an hour. They also gave him a little something so that he would feel a little silly when they took him back. And that he did. It made me feel so much better knowing he didn't really know what was going on. We gave him lots of kisses and away he went. I got this picture of the doctor rolling him away. Our hearts were very heavy at this moment.

When I got to the waiting room it of course went by slow at first but I had some pretty good people out there with us to help take our mind off of everything. The nurses called us about every hour to update us on how he was doing. Everything went very well. He was back in Surgery for about 6 hours and then he went straight to PICU to be monitored for 24 hours. We were told everything went well and that we could go see him now. When I first saw him I was crying just because I knew it was finally over and he was ok. We noticed his breathing being very heavy right away. I called a nurse in and they said after he woke up he had gotten a little too relaxed and stopped breathing. After I about had a HEART ATTACK they then explained thats why he was on oxygen and did a couple breathing treatments. His breathing got better after that and it took him several hours for anesthesia to wear off.  He had IV's in both hands and both feet, a drainage tube in his head and also a port in his neck. I think that was the worst part for me! Here is a picture of him right when we went back to see him. Sweet Angel.

The first night was terrible just because he kept pulling out his IV's in his feet and since he is so chubby they were having a lot of trouble getting them back in! He was such a trooper though. We stayed a total of 3 nights in the Hospital and got to go home on Thursday. All and all it was the most stressful time of our lives but we are so happy he has bounced back like a little champ. His scar is from ear to ear and it is healing up amazing. We are so fortunate for all the wonderful people that all helped out and visited, brought gifts for us and for Watson. You have no idea how wonderful and helpful you all were! Thanks again from the bottom of our hearts. As of now we have put all of this behind us and are so happy and thankful its all over. Watson is 100 percent recovered from this and we know he will be just fine! God is good and we are so blessed for all his GLORY!

 Once he had gotten all his IV's out I FINALLY got to hold him. He was so happy to be in my arms, and I'm sure to be able to move around. He was very restless so I slept in his bed with him all 3 nights :)

He had to keep the bandage on his head the longest, two days or so and it was very heavy so this is how he slept most of the time. His eyes were swollen where he could barely see the first two nights. Once he was able to open them he was like a new baby! So happy to see us!

Another special thanks to all of the support from our family and friends. From helping us with Weldon to the snacks, drinks, meals, gift cards, stuffed animals, outfits, bags, blankets, and EVERYTHING we would have never thought of, you guys are AMAZING! So blessed to have you all in our lives!