Whole Lotta Nothing

So sorry for keeping you all waiting to hear an update on Super Z! We've actually had two separate post-op appointments since we last touched base, but there's hasn't been much noteworthy news. Regardless, I wanted to share what's been happening since we are unplugging for a little while around here! :)

The first post-op appointment held some surprises for us because the surgeons decided to jump forward a week and go ahead and unwrap/unpack the new ear! It was fairly uneventful, as far as Zane was concerned...but pretty much mesmerizing for his present fan club!! The only thing that caused him any pain/discomfort was the clipping of the stitches that were holding the pink mold to his scalp. For some reason, that pushed him too far...not the staples being removed, or the massive amount of packing removed from both the inner and outer ear...just those tiny little stitches!! :/ 

Dr. Owen was pretty happy with how the ear looked and repeated consistently that it will look like a potato for awhile longer until the swelling goes down. Dr. Hanson was equally excited to get a look inside the freshly created ear canal, and Z thought it was pretty cool to watch him unpack it on the magnified big screen. Although he didn't expect to have any positive results that early, he still attempted to check his hearing with the tuning fork. 

No luck just yet, but we did have a funny moment to lighten the mood. After attempting the tuning fork on the bone, Dr. Hanson moved it to the ear to check that ear again. When Zane still couldn't hear anything, the surgeon said, "Well, I probably dampened it too much by now." Zane took in a very loud GASP and said, "We don't say that word!" The residents in the room began turning purple as they tried to stifle the laughter...the surgeon looked clueless...and, as usual, the mom was left to try to explain to the child. "No, buddy...he said a different word." "I HEARD him, Mom...he said (in a very exaggerated and loud voice) the word he accused the doc of uttering. The surgeon starts stammering. The kid starts yelling. And the mother is trying to pull out Webster's to expand the 3rd grader's vocab...all the while arguing with said youngster that the doc said "DAMPEN!! DAMPEN!!!" Go ahead. Get it out. But I might go all Chuck Norris on the next person that walks by me and shouts "DAMPEN!"

In short, we have an ear. That looks like a potato. That is currently unable to hear DAMPENED sounds. 

Thankfully, the skin grafts have healed significantly so Zane is almost pain-free! That's such great news, but it does pose the new problem of keeping him calm and chill. So please add that issue to your prayers!

Zane also started week 3 in his own bed. He wasn't happy to move back, but he was evicted from the buddy system when Dad returned home from a week-long trip to CO! Life is hard. :/ 

The second post-op was pretty useless, but they were primarily making sure none of the composite had broken through the skin graft...to which all looked good. They were concerned about the "crustiness" of the ear so we just need to keep it moist constantly. Besides the antibiotic, that's about it! We go back in a couple weeks...which will be roughly the 1 month mark! 

Once again, we thank you for all the prayers, the meals, the calls, the activities for Zane, and all the many other thoughtful ways you've reached out to us this past month. We are so thankful for each of you!