Tummy is closed...kinda, sorta.

"If something didn't go wrong that just wouldn't be right."

To quote super awesome cousin-in-law and nurse, Crystal. 

The day started out amazingly, and now I will say, suspiciously well. 

7 AM check in and pre-op went so smoothly.  T was unbelievably chill about the entire thing.  He didn't make a fuss through any of the vitals (normally this is a cry fest) and even agreed to be held and carried away by his buddy, Dr. Lord  (peds cardiac anesthesiologist) for a moment.
Funny thing...The first thing Dr. L did and said when he came in was hold his hand and say, "Someone's been busy growing some veins."  lol.  Love that man.
We agreed he would get a little oral versed (a med designed to help with anxiety and generally calms kids for the separation process) and then we just waited.  We met Dr. Holland (general surgeon) and he mentioned his surprise at the sheer number of GJ changes this kid had.  hahaha.  We discovered a shared dislike for GJ tubes in general and I knew I liked him.  :)
Then we just waited.  T attempted escape a few times and got the nurses laughing.

He played with his beads of courage....he earned several new ones as well

And his special Luke Skywalker Mariner Bear (yes...that is his full given name) that Tristan made for him the day we found out he was a Tiernan and did NOT find out about his heart.  (sorry...bitterness sneaks in every once in a while).  Anyway, Luke Bear has a special button in his foot that, when pushed, plays the sweetest little 5 year old Tristan voice saying, "I like you Tiernan."  Tiernan plays that over and over and over.  We are worried it will wear out at some point.  :(

So they took him away on time and it was clear the versed did not work.  Poor kid definitely cared.  However, Dr. Lord said he did the mask and then found a vein right away and the surgery was over in under an hour.  Dr. Holland came up and said as long as he is comfortable and drinking enough to stay hydrated he would be discharged today, but they sent us up to the med/surg floor for recovery anyway.  Just in case.

Tiernan did really well!  Usually he is way cranky coming out of anesthesia but this time he was really calm and just wanted to be held and sleep.  He chugged a cup of apple juice and then some water and then some more apple juice.  He watched some Curious George and slept some more.  We were discharged by 2:30!!!!! 

We arrived home and he was a little groggy still but decidedly hungry.  So he ate several graham crackers, apple sauce and some milk. 

He was really curious about the new flatter non leaky tummy terrain.  In this photo you can see how the incision site was pretty flat.  Well, within a half hour of this one it there was a swellling that extended the length of the wound and out about a half inch all the way around the perimeter.  Yowza.  Should have taken a comparison photo.  Or perhaps you are all glad I did not. 
At any rate, about 25 minutes later he was playing and fell backwards and bumped his head.  He was more scared than anything but then screamed and cried like crazy.  When he calmed down he casually pointed to his belly and I looked and saw what I described in the previous paragraph. 
You know that feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you see your child is hurt?  Yeah.  Multiply by 10 at least.  Meh.
So I elected to call the consulting nurse since I was pretty sure this would fall under that "When to call" section of the d/c paperwork.  I was on hold for too long so I just popped him back in the car and off we went to tour the new MB emerg department.  I finally spoke to her en route and she attempted, unsuccessfully to locate Dr. Holland or the on call surgeon.  She finally did and called me back to tell me to continue on to the ED...when I was already waiting on triage.  :) Glad they agreed with me.
So in triage, the very sweet nurse was quite interested in his cardiac history.  When I told her he has a murmur she replied, "oh, he must have a really tiny hole then."  I said, well, no.  And she proceeded to interrupt me and attempt to explain why she was correct and I was incorrect.  At this point I very calmly explained that he, in fact, was born with a complete AV canal and his heart functions now as a single ventricle, and in fact is just one big old hole, really.  <combination head shake/eye roll>
She was then so wrapped up in his cardiac history that she completely forgot to look at his bulging incision site until after she had taken us to our private room to wait for the doctor.  But really, she was sweet.  Just a bit silly.

***side note***I hope that if I ever DO become a nurse that I don't behave like I know more about a chronically ill child than the parents of said chronically ill child.

So after waiting close to an hour in the little private room (which I requested so as to not sit in the ED waiting room with whatever germs walked in), I noticed that T was now actively bleeding from his incision.  So I stepped out into the hall and flagged down a passing nurse who assisted in getting some gauze and assured me they were cleaning a room right now. 
So after another 20 minutes of waiting with a bleeding child, I stepped out again and waited while approximately 17 people walked by until I found a nurse to check once again.  She said the triage nurse was shocked I was still waiting.  So finally after another 10 minutes we were led back to our room, where we again, waited. 
Oh and I was greeted with the requisite "So sorry about the wait.  We've been CRAZY tonight".  Yes. Got it.  What.Ev.Er. 
Doc came in.  Ordered xrays. 
Wait.
Xrays done.  He cried but stood perfectly still.  Was impressed.
Wait.
Wait some more.
First good news of the night, the xrays did not show anything amiss inside.  Meaning, the bowel and stomach were all where they should be.  Excellent!!!  I'm just going to say that I am glad my mind had not yet imagined those possible complications.  Eek! 
Waiting on the surgeon to view the pictures and make a recommendation.
Finally, the doc came in and said the surgeon could see no reason why we would need to be admitted.  The bleeding is not a major concern given the clear xrays good vitals and his normal behaviour.  So new gauze dressing applied, and we were out of there for the second time in one day. 
We surmise (J and I, with our extensive medical knowledge) that the tissue was so damaged in there that even the slightest jostling caused the suture(s) to pull out.  Dr. H removed a good amount of the bad skin, but couldn't get all of it. 
While getting into the car, the sweet valet must have noticed I was a tad on the exhausted side of things and asked, "Long day in there?"  I replied, "you don't know the half of it."  he waited patiently while I got T into his seat and then walked me over to my door and held it open for me and then closed it for me.  I'm sure he does this for everyone, but let me just say, I appreciated it.  He was very nice.  And I was/am very tired. 
Amazingly enough, Tiernan slept all night.  (normally after such disruption he is up 18 times) and has woken up with a far less bulgy tummy and a great demeanor. 
Sorry if this post is a bit rambly. I am not even going to proof this one.  I am not quite as quick to bounce back.  haha.
Thanks for all your prayers and awesome juju everyone.  We will have a follow up with Dr. Holland on Monday and then another in early October.  Soon we will REALLY be able to look at his new scar and remember when...