A Short but Not Sweet Trip Review *12-1 Pre-Trip Report Link

[AllyBri]

You are just an amazing person and you have a beautiful family.
Bless all of you.

 

[DopeyDonald]

Holy cow! Your title caught my attention and I was just sucked in .... and so glad that as awful as this seemed, it ended up being something that could be managed and was not life threatening. I have tears in my eyes just imagining your relief at being told you could go home for the weekend before surgery, and how thoughtful your DH's company was.

It was nice that your parents could stay with your other two children to finish out their vacation. It clearly distracted them and let you and DH really focus on your little one. sigh. NOT how you planned this vacation for sure!

Welcome home with your baby and hope she is on the speedy road to recovery (and maybe a sneak make up trip?)

I will try to check back soon to see how she is faring & how the rest of the surgery & follow up go.

Your son & dd have such big happy smiles on their faces, esp at the tea. I'm glad you and DH managed to at least have a little bit of one on one time with them before all hades broke loose!

Thanks for reading....Yes, it was a trip of many emotions - I think I knew in my gut that things were going to be OK - I just can't explain it, but I had a such a sense of calm about me that is very unusual.. lol

It was such a hard decision on whether or not everyone should come home or what. In the end it was such a great decision, since they didn't miss the surgery. And it allowed DH and I to spend some quiet time with Cassidy getting ready for the surgery.

She is doing so well - we were outside playing "red light, green light" for quite awhile this afternoon and she was actually running and skipping!

Oh and I'm already pricing out trips to CA or FL for Jan for at least her and I. Maybe her and Annie and I - since my DS Wyatt went to CA in June with his Nana and Papa... My Aunt lives in CA and we could stay free with her so it would be a less expensive trip - lots of options!

 

[DopeyDonald]

You are just an amazing person and you have a beautiful family.
Bless all of you.

Thank you - we are blessed. We had people from all over the country praying for us - it really was amazing... CA, WY, CT, FL, MN, ND, SD, NC, SC, & IL all had prayer chains and groups - we even had friends and family in the UK and Japan! And they were answered big time!

 

[emmysmommy]

That's so awesome that they fulfilled your sombrero wish! What a special memento that will be.

Glad to hear that Cassidy is doing so well. That is so reassuring to know that you had so many people covering you family in prayer.

 

[annie170]

I'm so happy to hear Cassidy is home and doing well. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.

You have some awesome kids there to think about you and get you the sombrero you wanted!

 

[sager1969]

Wow! What a story. I am so glad to hear you guys are out do the hospital. Cassidy sounds like she is getting back to normal. How about you?

Your family is adorable and I send my prayers to all of you as you recover.

 

[SparklyDiva]

As I read your report I was hanging onto every word - waiting until you said that Cassidy did NOT have cancer and I breathed a HUGE sigh of relief!

A trip to Disney, while fun and can take months of planning and saving for is nice but to know that your daughter is healthy and will not have to endure lasting treatments is priceless. Disney will still be there waiting for you to bring your sombrero back to wear with pride next trip!

Oh and 7 is a lucky number so your 7th trip is bound to be the best one yet

many good thoughts and hugs coming Cassidy's way - all the way from 53 miles west of Venus

 

[DopeyDonald]

That's so awesome that they fulfilled your sombrero wish! What a special memento that will be.

Glad to hear that Cassidy is doing so well. That is so reassuring to know that you had so many people covering you family in prayer.

Here's me receiving the sombrero after the kids brought it home the Sunday before her surgery....

It was one of those moments - like gosh, They must really like me to have carried that on the air plane! lol

 

[DopeyDonald]

I'm so happy to hear Cassidy is home and doing well. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.

You have some awesome kids there to think about you and get you the sombrero you wanted!

Thanks for the thoughts and prayers I really couldn't believe that my mother was willing to drag that thing everywhere!

Wow! What a story. I am so glad to hear you guys are out do the hospital. Cassidy sounds like she is getting back to normal. How about you?

Your family is adorable and I send my prayers to all of you as you recover.

Thanks for the kind words and prayers. Cassidy is doing awesome! She has been running around and jumping today. Her appetite is back and I think she's better off than the rest of us - we're all kind of walking around into walls and she's feeling so much better! lol

As I read your report I was hanging onto every word - waiting until you said that Cassidy did NOT have cancer and I breathed a HUGE sigh of relief!

A trip to Disney, while fun and can take months of planning and saving for is nice but to know that your daughter is healthy and will not have to endure lasting treatments is priceless. Disney will still be there waiting for you to bring your sombrero back to wear with pride next trip!

Oh and 7 is a lucky number so your 7th trip is bound to be the best one yet

many good thoughts and hugs coming Cassidy's way - all the way from 53 miles west of Venus

I know - it's been hard to have all the emotions we have had. At first SO focused on her and what was happening that we never even gave the situation a thought. Then gratitude and relief that she is essentially going to be fine. Then exhaustion. And mixed with all of that is a sadness about our trip that never was. I know that sounds completely selfish, but hey we're human. And trust me the relief, and gratitude WAY overshadows the sadness.. we will just have to turn that into the wonderful thought that there will be a 6th trip

 

[maryr1oz]

I'm really sorry you had such a short trip, and especially the circumstances surrounding it, but i am really enjoying your style of story telling

Looking forward to reading more

 

[jennyjinx3]

Wow just wow. Mom great job by you and your family, and what a precious family it is. I admire you staying calm throughout, I only could hope to be that way facing what your family did. So glad to here she is feeling better, our kids mean everything.

 

[DopeyDonald]

Well I left off with promises of Cassidy's 5th Birthday! It was Saturday the 14th - her actual birthday. It worked out very cool actually. So far she has spent every single one of her Birthday's at Disney. (Her first was at DL in CA). Her 2nd, 3rd, and 4th were all spent at WDW. Pretty lucky! So even though she had to give up Cinderella's Royal Table, she got to have her very first real Birthday Party! To be honest, I think she liked it more!!

First, here she is with a special Birthday delivery. It was delivered on her birthday - from my husband's company. She was SO excited!

My friends really stepped up, especially with last minute notice. They put together a princess tea for her. The little girls all wore princess dresses and there were bracelets and tiaras and wands for all. One of my very best friends made her a sunflower cake with oreos - which are Cassie's absolute favorite.

They also made her a piñata, which she thought was pretty cool. The best part, though, was all of the very thoughtful gifts - they were all amazing hospital goodies. From activity books and stuffed animals to flashlights and an awesome little lamp thing that projects Cinderella onto the ceiling. I cannot believe how thoughtful all of it was.

Here are some pics from the party....

Her and her cousin Emma -

Daddy and his princess -

Cassidy and her cousin Elin

From the back - this pic makes me so sad - we really hadn't realized how skinny she's gotten, but when I look at this pic I really notice her little back and all it's bones

The happy Birthday Princess

The decorations

Blowing out her candles

It was a great day! It was a good distraction for her daddy and I. That was the one hard thing about going home for the weekend. We got to spend great time with her, but in the back of our minds we were dreading Tuesday......

 

[DopeyDonald]

Also I apologize for the size of the pics...apparently photobucket is possessed or something because I just spent a long while resizing all of them, but it didn't seem to matter

 

[DopeyDonald]

I'm really sorry you had such a short trip, and especially the circumstances surrounding it, but i am really enjoying your style of story telling

Looking forward to reading more

Thanks!

Wow just wow. Mom great job by you and your family, and what a precious family it is. I admire you staying calm throughout, I only could hope to be that way facing what your family did. So glad to here she is feeling better, our kids mean everything.

I really can't take credit for being calm. That is NOT my nature. I'm not sure where it came but it was there when I needed it. Things always seem scarier in our imaginations, but when we are faced with things, we are given the strength we need .

 

[DopeyDonald]

Flash back to Friday night....

While DH, Cassie and I were relaxing and happy to be home, the Florida kiddos were having a ball at Pirate's League and MNSSHP! Those boogers got to attend 2 parties! Somewhere deep down I am happy for them... lol

Heading over on the boat from WL

I give you: Ned Goodhawk

Annie becoming a Siren - this must be new? We had planned on being Jack and his "skeleton crew" so that is what her outfit is about. She was still going to be a skeleton, but they talked her out of it, due to the heat. They said the make-up would melt off....

Presenting Rosa Seawitch

Wyatt trying and loving his first Dole Whip! I love me a good DW Float.....but my heart belongs to the Citrus Swirl...could really use one right now....

And just for fun...one of my DH last year - he makes such a good pirate!!!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

You are truly blessed.

Beautiful family. So glad everything worked out.

The sombrero pics made me cry. We have to get a pic with those each trip, too.

 

[DopeyDonald]

Moving onto WDW Saturday....While Cassidy was having her Birthday Party, the Florida Contingency was having fun at Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. (they were trying to cram last minute favorites in for Papa who only had the 3 full days)

They went on the Safari, to Rafiki's Planet Watch - my son loves going there as this is where he says he is going to grow up and work. He wants to be a vet at Animal Kingdom. Love his 11 year old thoughts...his only concern with being a vet at AK...."Mom, on my break, do you think I'll have enough time to eat lunch AND ride Expedition Everest?"

Here is my "pretty" boy with his sister. LOL That eye make-up they use is HARD to get off....just something to remember when you plan your Pirate's League appointment! lol

Hangin with Rafiki himself

After playing at AK for a bit, they headed back to swim before heading to dinner at DHS. They had a dinner at Sci-Fi planned. We've never eaten there before. The kids thought it was great and my parents thought the atmosphere was awesome and the food was OK. We will definitely try it next year though.

After a fun time drawing Chip at the animation class, they headed back to pack up and get ready to leave the next day.

They still get to have one last fun time on Sunday morning though. We were able to get a spot as Flag Family! We have had the honor one previous time, but my parents have not, so it was only fitting that they got to experience it this time!

 

[DopeyDonald]

Sunday morning - While Dh, Cassie and I were sleeping in enjoying a lazy Sunday, The big kids were enjoying the view from the top of the Wilderness Lodge. They had a great time and it was fun for them to experience that with my parents. (We had previously been Flag Family on our first trip in 2010). Then they got to have breakfast at the Old Faithful Club.

Missing one from our traditional "saying goodbye to Humphrey" pic This is one of the most things I'm sad about....I have a "see how they grow" pic with all 3 of them with Humphrey every trip. Never got around to taking one this time...I learned my lesson - take it first thing!! lol

After breakfast they loaded up the rental car and headed to the airport. Their flights were on time and uneventful. Except for the large sombrero they had to wrestle with.... lol

Hmmmm maybe "airport sombrero" isn't as fun as EPCOT sombrero....

I LOVE that my son will still wear Mickey Ears in places other than Disney - he didn't want to crush them in his suitcase, so he did the next best thing - wore them!

They arrived home around 9pm and we had a grand reunion.

 

[DopeyDonald]

You are truly blessed.

Beautiful family. So glad everything worked out.

The sombrero pics made me cry. We have to get a pic with those each trip, too.

Thank you. We are so blessed

 

[DopeyDonald]

Monday was a tough, yet wonderful day. It was great to have all of our family together, but we all knew what was coming the next day. My facebook status summed it up:

"If tomorrow goes as fast as today has, we'll be in good shape."

We made the decision to drive down on Tuesday morning as opposed to Monday night. (we live about 3.5 hrs from Minneapolis) Cassidy didn't have to check in until 11:30am and couldn't eat or drink before then so I figured it would be easier to just get up and hope she slept most of the way. Plus it was nice to go to bed in our own beds for one more night.

She could eat up until 3:30 am. Here is my facebook status LATER that night...

"Makin my baby eggs and sausage at 11:30pm. I'm pretty sure she could ask me for the moon and I'd get it for her... lol Good thing she can eat up until 3:30 am. Her appetite came back today!"

We got up and left by 7:30am. The big kids rode with my parents so that they could stop and eat on the way down. DH, Cassie and I would drive straight thru. She slept a little more than half way. When she woke at around 9:45 she needed to use the bathroom so we stopped at a convenience store. After getting back on the road she wondered where we were going. Then it got tough. We hadn't told her too much, as she just plain FREAKS out when you mention hospitals or docs and I had wanted her Bday weekend to be a good one. Plus there was NO WAY I was going to explain a surgery to her. So I simply told her that the Dr.'s needed to look in her tummy with a special camera (which they did - lol).

She did better with this than I thought. She wasn't thrilled with the idea, but kept her worrying to a whimper. I let her crawl in the back with me and just get belted in and we watched Scooby Doo the rest of the way.

Once we got there and checked in it was very close to 11:30 - we planned that just right - The less waiting the better. They took DH, Cassie and I into the surgery prep area. They were very good back there. They let her keep her clothes on - the idea of a gown was stressing her out.

She was alternating between being just fine and being very agitated. All in all, it wasn't too traumatic. We did end up waiting a bit longer than the scheduled 1pm surgery, but nothing horrible. As it was getting closer they gave her some Versed - HILARIOUS! It was like giving her a shot of whiskey. All of a sudden the nurse was her best friend. They came in to draw some blood from her finger and she could have cared less. What was funnier was after they put the Band-Aid on her finger, she looked at it and said "how did I get this? and why is it there?" She never even knew they drew the blood! (which if you knew Cassidy you wouldn't believe it!)

Finally it was time. I got to carry her into the OR and actually lay her on the operating table. HARDEST THING I HAVE EVER DONE. Hands Down. I still can't believe that my feet actually worked to walk that walk. She sat on my lap while they masked her till she was out, then I laid her on the ACTUAL operating table. Talk about weird. I had just turned to walk out and the Dr. said "mom, come give her a kiss on the fore-head" Oh, my goodness, I lost it! I had kept it together until then.

What followed was a VERY long wait. Right away, since I knew that my parents were in the waiting room, I went out to the car for a bit. I just needed to sit somewhere where I could be alone. (DH was out having a million cigarettes - lol) After a half hour or so, I went back in for the rest of the surgery. They would come out and update every 45 mins or so.

Big Bro waiting....

The first call came out and we were told that the laparoscopic part was over and they were moving onto the actual surgery. They also let us know that her vitals were strong and she was doing well. Some weight lifted off....

Here is my FB status from then :
"Update: her vitals are stable they have moved on from the cameras to the actual surgery. But things are well so far. No update on actual prognosis, but my baby is doing well."

It wasn't too much longer and a nurse came out to let us know that they were closing her up and the surgery went well. She was so happy and positive that we were all expecting the best news. I'm SO glad she came out first, because when the surgeon himself came out, I would have panicked because he had such a dejected look on his face. (I have since found out the difference between surgeons and regular Drs. -- lol) He very point blank told us: I couldn't get it all. It WAS what we thought, but it's located in the very worst possible spot. He drew us a few pics of the location that it is in and showed us some actual pictures of the cyst and surrounding area.

Long story short: he told us that the area it is located in is called the mesentery. The mesentery proper (i.e. the original definition) refers to the peritoneum responsible for connecting the jejunum and ileum (parts of the small intestine) to the back wall of the abdomen. Between the two sheets of peritoneum are blood vessels, lymph vessels, and nerves. So basically, this area is hard to get to, is filled with blood vessels and involves the small bowel. His hope was to remove the bowel the cysts were attached to, but you can't remove small intestine. To quote the surgeon "that is incompatible with life". NOT words you want mentioned by a surgeon.

So he explained to us that he marsupialized the cysts. *Wikipedia* The marsupialization is the surgical technique of cutting a slit into an abscess or cyst and suturing the edges of the slit to form a continuous surface from the exterior surface to the interior surface of the cyst or abscess. Sutured in this fashion, the site remains open and can drain freely. This technique is used to treat a cyst or abscess when a single draining would not be effective and complete removal of the surrounding structure would not be desirable.

He told us that we had some more options down the line, but none sounded that desirable - that is IF they grow back. There is about a 45% that they will grow back. Hindsight it's so funny to think back to this conversation. We were on such a high from the nurse coming out to tell us that everything went great and she did fine. Then the surgeon comes out and is kind of talking gloom and doom. It was such a roller coaster. Since then and talking to the other docs - that is kind of how surgeons are. He reminded me of a little boy who just lost his best marble - lol. He was bummed because it wasn't the best out come - he wasn't able to do what he had hoped and so he wasn't happy.

Don't get me wrong - I LOVED this Dr. I felt so confident in what he was telling us and he really was the best in this field. He just wasn't happy that he couldn't get them all. I'll be honest though, it was such a downer and until we talked to the Dr. who would be following her, I was a bit worried.