3 Week Post Op Appointment

It's hard to believe that yesterday marked 3 weeks since Rachel's surgery!

This afternoon was her 3 week post op appointment with her plastic surgeon and it went great. Rachel has been given the green light to ditch the restraints, return to normal food, and to have her sippy cup. We didn't waste anytime, the restraints were off before our appointment was even over.

In the car, on our way to see Dr Martin, sporting a happy face. Little does she know this could be the last time she'll wear her restraints in the car again.
Dr Martin said Rachel's muscles were all there and that he was able to match them up and stitch them like a normal formed mouth. While he can't say for absolute, but because her muscles lined up, her speech shouldn't be affected. But it's something we'll have to see as her vocabulary and speech develop.

While the palate won't be completely healed until approximately 6 weeks post op, at this point, there is no chance for a fistula (hole in the palate) to occur. It's healing and looking great and the rest of the dissovable stitches should be dissolving in the next week or so.

Last week, after looking closer, and getting a second opinion from my mom, we determined that Rachel DID NOT suffer a chipped tooth in surgery. Instead the roughness I was feeling was some of the dissovable stitches poking through her gum, just below the tooth that is coming through. Dr Martin confirmed that what I was seeing and feeling is the end of some of the stitches. What a relief for her not to have a chipped tooth!

Perhaps Rachel realizes this is the man responsible for her being restrained, diet subject only to soft foods, and her sippy cup taken away for the last 3 weeks. She wasn't happy to sit on his lap. LOL.
Her next surgery could possibly be at the age of 5, when she will could have a 'nose job'. Dr Martin said it's at this age where kids become more aware of themselves and of others, and if needed, a nose job would be done to minimize the teasing and making fun that other kids can do. But this surgery is it as far as reconstructive surgery until Rachel is 6-8 years old, when she'll have a bone graft to repair the cleft in her gum.

Having packed a sippy cup in the diaper bag, I gave Rachel her sippy cup shortly taking off her restraints. She grabbed it and hugged it. Here she is enjoying her cup in the car.

After 3 weeks of not having anything but liquids and soft foods, Rachel had a burrito for dinner, followed by a snack cake. Both in which she enjoyed, in addition to being able to feed herself!! And as for bedtime, tonight is the first night Rachel will sleep without being strapped into her car seat. I put her to bed and she snuggled right down and went right to sleep. I think the lil girlie is happy to be back to 'normal'.

It's such a relief to have this leg of Rachel's journey behind us. The Lord truly had His hand on this recovery period as Rachel did awesome. Her pain was limited to a couple of days, she tolerated her restraints better than I ever imagined, and managed to deal with the frustrations of only being limited to soft foods. I am constantly amazed at how God answers prayers exceedingly and abundantly.