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Scarlett is Strong

Tomorrow marks one week since Scarlett's surgery. She still has a bandage above her right eye and a bit of black & blue still left, but she is one tough cookie. When she was just a few months old I noticed a hard bump above her eye and pointed it out to the Pediatrician who referred us to Seattle Children's Hospital for evaluation. We met with Dr. Birgfeld who let us know that it was common for dermoid cysts to appear in infants. The cysts are caused by cells during the forming of the child in the womb. The cyst needed to come out before she is a year old. So, last Tuesday (after having canceled a prior surgery due to her having a cold), we took her to the hospital. Overall it was a good experience whereby the doctors and nurses were incredibly attentive.

Here is Scarlett before heading to the hospital - she has such a bright smile!
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The morning of her surgery, I took her to the Bellevue office of Seattle Children's not thinking that her procedure may actually be taking place at the Seattle facility. When I'd realized my mistake I was so panicked because of traffic etc. Although we were a 1/2 hour late to the surgery prep, the hospital was very gracious and understanding. The nursing staff was fabulous and really were enamoured with our sweet gal even saying she was the cutest baby they'd seen all day. It really made us all feel at ease and very grateful. Dr. Birgfeld and his team of doctors that included an anesthesiologist, a pediatric plastic surgery resident and others, were so nurturing and caring. They explained to us the procedure and process and made us feel at ease.

 Scarlett enjoyed looking at the beeper we had and her Looney Tunes hospital gown.

This little doll is the light of our lives.


 The hard part was when they took Scarlett from us and to the back operating rooms. From there, Andrew and I headed to the cafeteria for a snack and ended up watching videos of Scarlett on our phones to pass the time and keep her in our thoughts. 

 Before we even had time to finish our meal, we were buzzed to come down and meet with the doctor. He let us know that the surgery went well and her dermoid cyst popped right off - so it was a clean procedure.

 They brought us to the back room to wait for Scarlett to come out of her anesthesia. When she finally did, the nursing staff brought her in to us and I could tell that Scarlett had been keeping her composure, but instantly when she saw us she melted down. It is one quality that we have seen in her since birth - she does great  (typically) in public and around others, but when in private she feels safe and secure to have her melt downs with us. It was so heartbreaking - you could sense the fear in her voice. 

 After giving her lots of lovin' she cheered up and got right back to her normal self - even giving the camera a big wave here ... bandage and all.




Once we were back at home her eye did get a little swollen, but she was such a trooper and didn't let the experience stop her one bit. We love you miss Scarlett and are glad you're back to your normal, fun, energetic, positive self!