A Hopeful New Year

Braeden was a star patient today! With little to no crying we were able to have new splints made. I am pretty sure that the orthopaedic technician was excited that he didn’t have to hear Braeden scream during the whole process! Getting a pair of splints made takes about an hour and a half. It all starts with putting a cotton stocking over his leg, which gets covered with a cotton wrap and then another stocking put over that. Essentially a cotton wrap sandwich.  Then the orthopedic technician (aka ortho tech) wraps fibreglass around the cotton wrap sandwich and somehow holds Braeden’s wiggling leg and foot in position for 30 seconds to a minute until the fibreglass dries.  Then the whole process happens again with the second leg. After both legs are finished the ortho tech cuts the casts in half and lines them with a nice soft material for when Braeden’s wearing them (and stylish Velcro straps to hold it all together).

Braeden's splints

Braeden's splints open 

We are also very happy and relieved to report that Braeden’s feet have not regressed. Wahoo!  With the help of the splints being worn at night and the diligent stretching that Kendall and I have been doing, Braeden’s feet are staying where they are supposed to. The doctor said that Braeden’s feet are growing (I was afraid they weren’t) and since all things are going well, we do not have to venture the 5 hour drive to the children’s hospital for another 3 months. Our next appointment will be a pre-op appointment to check on Braeden’s progress and talk about the upcoming surgery in May.    

Resilency

It has been a long time since I've written on the blog and my excuse is that I have been travelling for a month visiting family, so sitting and reflecting was far from reality. However, during that time it was awesome seeing Braeden interact with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. He definitely brought joy wherever he went with that killer smile.

Today, I've been thinking and looking back at pictures of his 6 month old life and realized that he has endured so much already. He has had serial casting done, an ear infection, and has undergone surgery. It almost sounds like old grandma complaints "My hip is hurting, my bunions are infected!" and he is not even 80 years old yet. In all seriousness though, he is a trooper! Someone recently told me that she believes that children that undergo medical experiences tend to have the personality that can hack the annoying doctor's appointments, the painful surgeries and the ear infections. This has to be Braeden's personality. He is so laid back, fairly easy going, smiles after the appointments, the foot stretching, and also sleeps well. Cross my fingers that he continues this personality traits as he gets older.

To commemorate Braeden's upcoming appointment, below are a few pictures of how much his feet have changed.

Braeden 5 days old. Picture by Shannon May Photography

Braeden's feet a month into casting

Braeden's feet after surgery and 3 weeks of casting.
This is how his feet are currently.