Lillian's First Trip To Children's Hospital...and Hopefully Her Last!

Yesterday was quite a day. It started like most any Thursday. I woke up early and got ready for work while Melissa and Lillian slept. Melissa called me in a slight panic around 11:30 saying that Lillian had swallowed some magnetic clasps from a jewelry kit we had bought for our niece's birthday. I calmed her down and told her to call the pediatrician to see what steps we needed to take. The nurses at our doctor's office blew it off and told us to just let it pass. Obviously, these nursed did not read the same article from Parents magazine that Melissa had. The article was about the damage batteries, magnets, etc. could do to a child's stomach and intestinal tract.

Melissa decided to call a family friend who is a Gastrologist. She immediately instructed us to call a colleague of hers that is a pediatric Gastrologist, and he told us that we needed to come in immediately to have some x-rays taken. I came home and got Melissa and Lillian and we headed to the doctor. We went to Saint Vincents to have the x-rays taken and then took them over to Dr. Morris' office for him to take a look at our sweet girl's little tummy. There it was clear as day, one magnetic clasp stuck to another sitting pretty in her stomach. Melissa and I were actually relieved to see that the two magnets where together because we thought they would pass easily if there were connected. Dr. Morris thought otherwise and told us that we needed to remove it immediately. He sent us over to Children's Hospital to get admitted and prepped for surgery. From the time we walked into the hospital to the time they took Lillian from us to the operating room was maybe forty minutes. It happened so fast, I think that Melissa and I both needed a little more time to process what was happening. One second we had our daughter and the next we were watching a very sweet nurse carry her through the double door of the operating room. We could not help but both cry when those doors closed behind her.

The surgery went well and was very quick. I was surprised when Dr. Morris came out and told us that the magnets had already separated and one had entered her intestines. He was able to get the one that was still in her stomach, and said that we were very lucky to have had the surgery when we did. Dr. Morris told us that if we had waited and done it any later in the evening or even tomorrow than he would have been repairing her small intestines instead of just retrieving a magnet or two. The only complication that Lillian had during the surgery was that she aspirated some of the food and fluid from her stomach into her lungs. The doctor said that this could cause an infection and to just watch her closely.

We are so grateful that everything went as well as it did and Lillian is already on the mend. This whole thing could have been so much worse than it was, and we are so thankful that God was looking out for us.

you can see the clasp in her tummy on the right side of the x-ray. You can see it much more clearly in person.


our hospital room...


cuddling after surgery






the anaesthesia made her really sick : (

getting ready to go home!