Marisa's surgery

Earlier this year Marisa was having trouble sleeping. We saw the tell tale signs that she was not having restful nighttime sleep during the day. Just like Elena, she was snoring and falling asleep at odd times during the day and many times a day despite sleeping on a schedule and having naps. Her ENT recommended the removal of her enlarged tonsils and said she would remove the adenoids if she noticed they were enlarged during the surgery. It turned out that Marisa's adenoids were enlarged, so both were were removed. The surgery went really well. Marisa was a trooper and was immediately ready for the popsicles and ice cream we promised after her surgery. She rarely complained, ate normally and healed quickly. Much to our surprise she didn't need the pain medication as often as it was prescribed. However, our biggest struggle came at home and at school drop off once Marisa was healthy. She suddenly developed separation anxiety and didn't want to be away from me. We struggled to drop her off at the church nursery, at her preschool and at speech therapy. It became clear to me that the surgery was somewhat traumatic for her and caused her a lot of anxiety to be away from family. Well, I've since cut back on some of these stressors and she is back to herself already. We recently went on a long trip (more on that on a later post) and dropped the girls off with my in laws for 5 days. Marisa was apprehensive about going but I figured out that the more I talked about the trip the more comfortable she became. Marisa's stay with her Grandma F and Aunts and cousins was flawless, and I am so relieved she is back to herself again...and sleeping too.

I love this picture! I will never forget the sheer joy Marisa expressed when I told her we were going home the morning after her surgery. This was her face, she was so happy yet so overwhelmed with emotion that she was crying too.

and here's one I took tonight...sleeping soundly