T minus 30 days
July 22nd, 2009 Tara
I’ve been remiss. Much has happened since my last post.
Anna’s Casting Part II: Our last post ended with Anna having her leg casted to help stretch her tight Achilles tendon. Almost 2 weeks post casting and we can say that it was a real success! When Anna had her first cast removed the following Monday, we already saw improvements in her flexibility. They measure flexibility in terms of degrees past neutral (think of neutral as your toes pointing up to the ceiling if you are sitting with your legs out in front of you) with both a straight leg and a bent knee. When we started Anna was minus 10 degrees with a straight leg and neutral with her knee bent. After the first cast she was almost neutral with a straight leg and 10 degrees past neutral (good!) with her knee bent. After the second cast, Anna was 10 degrees past neutral with a straight leg and 20 degrees past neutral with her knee bent. “Normal” flexibility is defined as 20 degrees past neutral, so we were very excited with the outcome. We’re getting a new brace within the next week or so that will hopefully help to maintain this new flexibility.
I re-read my post from the night before the initial casting; it turns out I was worried about nothing. The process was actually not bad at all (of course, I’m not the one who had a cast on her leg). Anna did everything she would normally do without a cast (some stuff she even did better with the cast than without) – climbing, running, jumping, etc. On the first couple of nights after she received a new cast she complained a little about leg pain. We were told by her PT that this was normal, and that we should give her Tylenol/Motrin to help the pain. After that she didn’t complain at all. Anna was completely freaked out by the cast saw the first time the cast was removed, but didn’t shed a tear during the removal of the second. I’d have to say the one drawback to the entire process was the inability to bathe. Three year olds are stinky beings, and I swear Anna played in the dirt more during those 2 weeks than normal. She left a definite ring around the tub when we were finally able to take a full-fledged bath after 2 weeks of sponge baths!
This past week Anna has been attending a “Helping Hands” camp at the Mapleton Center in Boulder. This is basically a constraint therapy camp where all the campers wear casts on their unaffected hands in an attempt to encourage increased use of the affected hands/arms. This is the first year that the Mapleton Center has offered this camp, and the turnout was a bit lower than they expected. I hope that they continue to offer it in the coming years because Anna is LOVING it! The low turnout has been great for us. There are 3 kids at the camp – 3 little girls ages 3-5 – and 4 adults (2 OTs and 2 volunteers) to manage them. We get the best of both worlds – the benefits of a group setting while still getting the one on one attention from the therapists! Anyway, they practice dressing in the mornings, do all sorts of crafts, spend time outdoors, bake, and play with one another. All the activities are designed to work on particular fine motor skills with the affected hand. She’s had such a great time, and I know she’s working hard by the simple fact that she falls asleep on the way home (it is a rare day when Anna falls asleep in the car). For Mom, it is nice to meet other parents whose children have hemiparesis. We’re planning on getting together after the last day of camp to compare notes!
Noah is now 6 months old! I cannot believe that so much time has passed. It seems like such a short time ago since he was born, but at the same time it seems like forever. The little man is really progressing! We believe it won’t be long before he’s mobile. He’s holding himself up with his arms and tucking his knees under him. We should probably get busy with the childproofing now! YIKES!
Noah had his 6-month check up last week. He weighs 17 lbs. 10 oz. (75th percentile) and is 27 1/2″ long (90th percentile). I was rather surprised that his weight earned him a ranking in only the 75th percentile. He’s a heavy guy!! He’s apparently fallen off his growth curve a little, but the doctor didn’t think it was anything to be concerned about. Anna did exactly the same thing at 6 months. Noah is teething like a madman; he chews on everything in sight and drools all over. For the last couple of weeks hee also seems to have had some sort of GI infection that, when mixed with the teething, has made us go through diapers, wipes and A&D ointment like they are going out of style.
Oh, I almost forgot! Noah has been sleeping in his own room since June 29th. Although we’ve had some ups and downs since he moved from our room, he’s been sleeping much better (and longer)! Last night he slept from 7pm to 6am, and then went back to sleep until 6:45 (when I had to wake him). Sleep does amazing things for his disposition too. He’s a much happier little guy when he gets enough rest! Naps remain a challenge for us, but he’s been doing much better at home in his own bed. If only we could get him to sleep at daycare.
T minus 30…our trip to Alabama is rapidly approaching! I’m a little more relaxed about the trip this time around, but I’m sure I’ll turn into a complete basket case soon. We find out about housing at the end of this month, which makes me a little nervous. I’d much rather know earlier that we have a confirmed place to stay. We’ve been prepping Anna for our trip to AL. We have the same therapist we had when we were there last year. Anna keeps telling us that she just really misses Reggie. I hope she still feels that way when we cast her for a month and make her do difficult things with her left hand. Anna was a very different little girl the last time we were there. She’s definitely come into her own over the past year, and I hope her independent streak doesn’t affect the therapy program (and ultimately, the outcome).
Filed under: Alabama, Babies, Children, Health, Milestones, Travel
