Weblog
Wednesday, 04 May 2011
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We've Moved
We've changed blog places. Please join us now at:
http://countitalljoy.blogspot.com/
No ads, better atmosphere. See you there.
Tuesday, 03 May 2011
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Moving In The Right Direction
You, as the smart person that you are, may have been thinking as you read my last post, 'But it's only been three days. Give it some time, Mama!' And maybe this is the lesson to be learned, that moms and dads so quickly lose hope and confidence while junior is doing just fine and just needs to find his feet again. Anyhow, I am here to tell you that you were right, I need to relax.
Caedmon jumped right in to his aquatherapy. He stood for about 15 minutes playing with the toys on the edge of the pool. He took the two short floaty-stick things and walked the length of the pool and back. He stood and sat about 10 times, totally unprompted, just decided he needed to do that particular exercise.
Immediately following therapy I noticed changes. He was crawling more, trying to climb up in his chair and into his bed. He is a little clumsy and will have to strengthen those muscles again but the point is that he's trying!
Yesterday I took the boys to the zoo and he pushed his own stroller for about 20 minutes. He stood at the edge of a petting pool (you can touch little sharks and rays) and splashed water for another 15 minutes before he was finally ready to sit and rest.
I'd say that's pretty good progress!
Wednesday he gets fitted for twisters, straps that wrap around his legs to hold his feet in the correct position. I think once those are one he will really take off. His left foot is beautiful now, pointing in almost the right way. His right foot is now the problem and trips him up quite a bit when he's trying to walk.
I am so excited to see how far he has come so shortly. It's incredible being on this journey with him!
Tuesday, 26 April 2011
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Baby Steps
Caedmon has been sans cast for three days now. On Friday his new AFOs were finished and he had his final fitting. With the support those give his newly surgeried foot/ankle, we were able to take off the cast. Tomorrow will be his first bath, so looking forward to that!
It has been difficult watching him these last few days. He continues to scoot around on his bottom and does not want to crawl at all. He doesn't believe he can get down from his dining chair, or any chair, on his own. He won't even try to climb into a chair. He is terrified of the stairs, will not kneel next to the couch and cries if we try to help him stand or walk. All things he could do brilliantly just a few short months ago.
I know it is a matter of time and patience, I am trying to let go of Pushy Mommy and allow him to go at his own pace. His PT told me today that the fact that he was so strong and able to do so much before the surgery will mean he will bounce back fairly quickly. It is still really difficult. It is really hard to see how far backwards we have gone. It's hard to see him as scared to take risks when he has never flinched at trying anything before. I hate to see how his confidence has been sucked out of him. I got a little teary during our appointment today. He was so cautious and shy, not my bubbly go-getter at all.
My hope is that when he gets back in the water again on Thursday for aquatherapy he will start to remember all the wonderful things he's been able to do. He will start to regain the confidence to stand and walk and explore. I know this phase will pass, I know he will go beyond what he ever has before, but I also see how easily it can be to lose gains and what an uphill climb it will be for him to keep pushing and not give up.
So for now we take baby steps: encouraging crawling using verbal cues, helping him get back into the habit of tall kneeling while playing at the couch, maybe in a couple of days he'll try to climb the stairs, and maybe next week he'll try to stand, and a few days later he'll try to take a few steps.
Life is all about patience and adaptability.
Wednesday, 20 April 2011
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That Whole Patience Thing
After much anticipation and excitement, Caedmon's cast was removed today. It's been about 7 weeks, it's felt like a really long time. I was looking forward to seeing him stand again, and anxious to see if he was able to walk a bit. I think just being able to bend his knee will be a really wonderful sensation.
His cast was also put back on today. I had not anticipated this. Apparently the doctor communicated some things to my husband over the phone that didn't get passed on to me, ah, well.
So, the cast.
It's the same cast he's been wearing the last two weeks, cut in half and put back on bound by athletic wrap. The purpose is to protect the holes after the pins were removed. They need about a week to scab over before he will be allowed to take a bath and start aqua therapy again. So, one more week of sponge baths, scootching and stationary activities.
Tuesday, 19 April 2011
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Other Blogs
This is for the benefit of my parents and family and friends who might want to know what else I have been up to (I'm using my time more wisely than that report card in 2nd grade, Mom and Dad
). I'm writing a monthly devotional blog for Signpost Ministries, a ministry set up to support families of and people with disabilities. Here's my latest contribution: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Signposts-Ministries/147970165231299?sk=info
I also wrote a blog on prayer for one of the magazines our denomination puts out. You can find it here: http://www.atoday.com/contagious-spirit-corporate-prayer
dameksmom
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- Name: K.B.
- Member Since: 5/7/2008
About Me
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I am grateful to be the mother of an amazing, intelligent, active five year old and an incredible, joyous, rambunctious two year old. When I first started this blog I wondered what I would ever write about. A few months later we learned our new baby would have spina bifida. This has become a blog about our family and what it means to love and grow together even when life doesn't turn out how we planned it to be. It has become so much more.
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