Day 234: So We Went to See a Doctor about a Belly Button...

My little boy has a weird belly button.

That may seem like a redundant statement because, as I think most of us can agree, the majority of belly buttons are "weird." But my guy has a little extra addition: an umbilical granuloma.  Back in the day when his umbilical cord fell off, it left a little extra scar tissue behind.  We've always known that the granuloma would eventually have to be removed (they are prone to infection as kids get older), but the pediatrician said that if everything was going well, we could probably wait until Little Buddy was two years old.  Well, we've reached that point so it was time to consult the surgeon.  We left this morning to go to the doctor.

Little Buddy now insists on having his picture taken before we leave to go anywhere.  I think he believes himself to a be a celebrity and me to his personal paparazza.

At the appointment, the surgeon looked at Little Buddy's belly button and said that the procedure would take 30-40 minutes with an hour in recovery.  Also, since Little Buddy has a small umbilical hernia (which is very common and which we were also aware of), the surgeon said that he would just fix that during the procedure as well, instead of waiting until age four to see if it closed on its own.  The entire appointment lasted maybe ten minutes, at the end of which the doctor told us that his office would call us to schedule the surgery date.

It was over so quickly, I didn't have time to start fretting until we got to the truck.  I know it will be a very quick and easy procedure, but I still hate the idea of Little Buddy being put under anesthesia and being cut with a scalpel.  I don't think any parent loves that idea, no matter how trivial or even necessary the procedure is.  I also am not relishing the idea of restricting Little Buddy from meals and drinks (No food six hours before surgery and no water two hours before surgery.  No water?  I smell a temper tantrum.) or keeping him still for the twenty-four hours that he'll need to heal (Guess I will be recording several hours of Elmo).  Thankfully Little Buddy isn't old enough to worry yet; he just played with his rubber glove balloon as we drove away. 

Hello big blue hand!

Maybe I will get a few dozen of those balloon gloves to keep me relaxed when he finally does go in for the procedure.  Lord knows I will need the distraction!  Now I just need to stay calm as I wait for the appointment call.

Night all, 

LBM

Little Buddy's Momma