Before, After and After

Above is a picture that shows Wade's nose/lip (from left to right) when we first adopted him, after his 1st surgery and after his 2nd surgery. Really remarkable progress. We are just thrilled.

Wade Post-Surgery

Here are a couple pictures of Wade post-surgery. He still has tubes in his nose which distorts the shape of his nose a little bit but you can see that his upper lip is really amazing. He still has some scars (will have them for a little while) but is really doing well. He recovered from the surgery in record time - was back to his old self within a couple of days.

Wade is Home

Wade and Shelley came home this morning - exactly 24 hours after we left. They surgery was deemed an absolute success and the surgeons and staff were thrilled with how the surgery went and how quickly he is recovering. (He devoured a plate of macaroni and cheese last night.)

He is allowed to eat anything soft and is restricted to soft for only a week. Plus, they said that he should refrain from engaging in tackle football, boxing or bungee jumping for at least a week. We have canceled his boxing lessons for this weekend.

Thanks to everyone for good thoughts, wishes, and prayers.

Peter

Success!

Wade came out of surgery and Dr. Redett said everything went well, no problems. His lip and nose actually look amazing. As you can see in the picture, there are sutures and some blood but the nostrils are the same size, the lip is totally closed and it appears to be such a huge improvement.

Surgery is Underway

Wade was wheeled via-red-wagon to surgery today a little before 3pm. The procedure is expected to last 1.5 to 2 hours. Wade did incredibly well despite eating and drinking nothing from 8am to 3pm and eating nothing substantial (unless you consider jello substantial) since about 7pm last night.

Some pictures of our journey thus far are included below including Wade in pre-op in his underwear due to unwillingness to adhere to the dress code.

Curious George Goes to Surgery

There is no man in the yellow hat just a 5 year old mischievous little monkey headed into Johns Hopkins for his 2nd U.S. surgery on his cleft lip.

The surgery takes place at 1pm on November 3rd (Tuesday) at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore. We anticipate the surgery will take approximately 2 hours although we are not certain. We continue to be under the great care of Dr. Richard Redett - surgeon, humanitarian and matinee-idol.

This should be his last surgery for a couple of years - next one will most likely be a bone graft to support his upper teeth.

Stay tuned for updates as the situation warrants.

Wade's Recovery Continues Apace

Shelley, Wade and Peter visited with Wade's surgeon on Monday, June 15, 2009. Upon looking in his mouth, he declared that it "looks awesome." As the pictures, indicate, Wade was a superstar at the doctor allowing the doctor to poke, prod and investigate with no crying or complaining. You can also see from the party hat picture that he continues to look better and better. Dr. Redett believes that after the next surgery (to be scheduled for some time this fall or early Winter), that Wade's upper lip and nose will look "almost completely normal."

Wade started at the Hill Pre-School this week (his "camp" for the summer) and he has taken to it like a fish to water. After crying the first day, he ran into class on the 2nd day. He has the same pre-school teacher that Clara June had (Ms. Joyce) who is truly a part of our family and also babysits for us on occassion.

Clara June meanwhile did a week of Chinese camp and will start at the Potomac School Camp on Monday complete with to/from bus rides, swimming every day and spending time with old and new friends.