It's Gone for Good!!!

Today was the highly anticipated surgery day!!! We told Simeon we would wake him up at 6:15am to get ready to go-he was up and ready to go by 5:00am. He was excited and nervous, but really just wanting to go and get it done.
We got to the hospital at 7am, and went to check in. We were greeted with a fun surprise-the receptionist was Simeon's Wish granter. She had been following Simeon for over 2 years. What a treat that was to see her smiling face that early in the morning.
A nurse came out to get us and told us that Rebecca couldn't go back to the prep area, so dad stayed out with her.
In the prep area Simeon changed into a gown and pants, they checked vitals and got him all marked and tagged up. They even made Shadow a name band. They were so nice and friendly. They went and got the mask that Simeon would go to sleep with so that he could get comfortable with it. He practiced having it on, and putting it on Shadow. He was so calm and comfortable talking and joking that we all decided that he didn't need any premeds to calm his nerves. Our nurse in that area found out that Johann was in the waiting room with Rebecca and she promptly went and got them which was so nice to have them with us.
When it was time for Simeon to go back to the OR, he decided that he wanted dad to go with him. So dad suited up with the green outfit and big floppy blue hat. I was glad to not need to go back to the OR as much as I wanted to see the new rooms, as I didn't want to see Simeon go to sleep. I watched him when he got his port placed and cried, and then this past summer I was with Ammon as he was put under and he really fought it, and I struggled with it. It's so hard to watch your child be put to sleep.
I took lots of pictures but one I didn't take and will be forever ingrained in my memory is when they walked down the hall to the OR. It was a wide white hallway with a double door partway down. The double door opened and there were people walking down the hall. On the right was a tall slender man dressed in green scrubs with a blur floppy hat, then Simeon to his left dressed in a blue gown, pants and blue floppy hat. He looked so small compared to the tall guys walking with him. You could see Shadows tail sticking out under his right arm. Next to Simeon on the left was Johann dressed in green with a blue floppy hat. Next to Johann was another man very tall and more husky dressed in green scrubs and again a blue floppy hat. All four of them walked down the hallway in a row in silence, then they turned to the right and disappeared from view as they entered the OR. I stood in the hallway with Rebecca in her stroller and watched them go. I didn't know where to go so I just stood there watching where they disappeared to.
After about an hour, they came and got us. Simeon was in recovery and waking up. We were given his port fresh from surgery. We were surprised by what it looked like.
After another 20 minutes they brought Simeon to the room. He was groggy, but able to talk. He was sleepy, but was hungry for a taco from Taco Bell.
Simeon really doesn't like IV's. He's really sensitive to them and he kept asking when they could take his IV out. We needed them to draw blood to check for counts, so after the blood was drawn they took out the line, and he was ready to go home.
We were home by 10:30am.

To say we were amazed with the mature way Simeon acted before and after surgery is an understatment. He is wise beyond his years and very mature about medical things for his age. We are so proud of Simeon and how he faces each new experience with strength. We are also excited for him to have this stage of treatment done.