On Wednesday, Ervin, Essie and I got up REALLY early to go to the hospital and get Essie’s frenulum clipped under her tongue (that’s redundant. I’m aware.)

We found out a few months ago at her first dental appointment that she was tongue tied, so at her two-year well child check, I asked her doctor to give us a referral to get it checked out. We went last week to the Ear, Nose, and Throat specialist and he told us that it may or may not affect her speech as she gets older, but T. and I had agreed that if there was a chance that it would, we’d really rather go ahead and get it taken care of before she was too freaked out by all things doctor-related (like her older siblings). And also lower the chances that she’d remember anything when she’s older.

BEFORE

It’s kind of hard to tell in this picture, but you can see the line at the tip of her tongue where the sides come forward and the middle is held back underneath. It almost looked like a heart.

We left at 6am Wednesday morning so we could get there at 6:40 for her 7:30 surgery. That was the part I was most anxious about…every morning, Essie demands milk and is super cranky until she gets breakfast. So waiting almost an hour when she can’t have anything to eat or drink? Didn’t sound like my idea of a good time.

I had no reason to worry about, though. She was in a fantastic mood the entire time.

The Waiting Room

Even Ervin did great. He must have felt older and more responsible, since he did turn five months old that day.

When we went into the room where they took her temp and heart rate and all that (is that the triage?), she was giggling and talking to the nice nurses. And you know what was on tv? Only her favorite show, Bubble Guppies (or “Buppies”, as she calls it).

They asked if I wanted her to have some medicine first that would make her a little “relaxed” and “drunk” and help with the “separation” of going back to the operating room without me, I decided against it. I definitely second-guessed my decision as we sat and waited and I got more and more anxious about whether or not she’d leave me without a tantrum.

But when the time came, they brought a wagon with a big pillow in it, and a blanket. She climbed in with Baby (her pink bear) and off they went. Again, no problem.

Obviously, I didn’t see her until she was done and awake, but they put a gas mask on her and she went to sleep while the doctor did what he needed to do. A few minutes later, the nurse told me that she was still asleep and in the recovery room. A few minutes after that, she was awake and Ervin and I went to her. That was the only time she was sad at all: when she woke up and saw the nurses instead of me.

They gave her some apple juice, which she took one drink of (I don’t think using the straw felt too great), and we left, a little over an hour after we got there.

She ate a banana in the car and two entire Pop Tarts (plus a cup of milk) when we got home. Since then, I’ve given her some children’s ibuprofen, but she hasn’t acted at all like she was in pain or uncomfortable.

I tried to get an “After” shot of her sticking out her tongue, but it looked the same as her “Before” shot….I think she’ll have to get used to her new abilities!

Oh, and by the way…take a toddler and baby into the hospital and try not to get attention. I dare you. Every single person FAWNED over them, I swear.