Baby and Therapies

Hi everyone. Things are still going here - no baby yet. Can't believe it. Never thought I would go this long, really. But not really surprised that I will get to experience the whole spectrum of different pregnancies. One 5 weeks early and water broke, one I was afraid for the pregnancy to end knowing she was safer in the womb than in the world, and this one - the never-ending, completely normal, uneventful, I'll be pregnant forever one. They do say that every pregnancy is different...

I saw my OB doc yesterday and she wants to induce me on Sunday if I don't go before then. I really didn't want it to come to that, but I want to do what's best for the baby and the thought that we could finally meet the little one in just 5 days makes me happy. Plus, with our nursing situation, planning has HUGE advantages. We are going to pretty much need 24-hour nursing care (for Harlie, I mean) while I'm in the hospital and I only get so much per week. But, now that I'm thinking about it, I do have some respite care that I haven't used yet, so that will be fine. It's just that each nurse can only work so many hours. Brandy would definitely do more than 40 hours in a week, but they won't allow it. And one of my other nurses (Dawn) works during the day elsewhere, and the third (my friend, Jennifer) has 2 kids and their schedules to worry about. So, planning really would be very helpful for us all.

Well, Harlie is doing great with her walking. I can't believe how much it has changed her! She is so much more confident in everything else. She is really starting to behave like a typical toddler! You know, she wants up, then she wants down, etc. Whereas she used to be completely content being held forever. She walks every chance she gets now and when she falls, she doesn't cry (that used to set us back days and weeks!) she just gets right back up and keeps going. It has been so amazing and wonderful to watch.

We had physical therapy yesterday and Traci is working on getting her feet closer together when she walks. Right now her base is still far apart and she walks with her hands up high in a protective way. Traci said that in time her hands will come down and within a few months her hands will be swinging by her sides. Brings a smile to my face. Anyway, Traci had Harlie walk on a board that was about 6 inches wide or so to try to get her legs and feet to stay closer together. She did pretty well with assistance. But on her own she just put one foot on the board and the other off, which is still good for her balance practice. The cool thing is how cooperative she was to do it over and over again. She thought it was pretty funny.

We also talked about her foot braces. She definitely walks better with her braces on, versus off. So, we are going to have her continue to wear them all the time (when she's awake, I mean) through the winter and spring and re-evaluate how she's doing at the beginning of summer. Traci said that it's not just a strength issue, it has something to do with ligaments and we just aren't sure what they are going to do at this point. Hopefully wearing them another 8 months or so will get things good enough that she could sport some sandals in the summer on occasion with no braces. She has grown a lot this summer and she got the braces that she has now back in May so it looks like she'll be needing a new set pretty soon.

We also had speech therapy. That was a little more challenging. Beth tried to get a baseline of how her mouth and face are now as far as stretching and mobility goes. That way she can see exactly what we need to work on. There are some facial/mouth reflexes that we have that can be measured - and, well, Harlie didn't have some of those reflexes. But, that just tells her what we need to work on. And the good thing is that we will be able to really tell what our progress is down the road. And that's always good.

But, Harlie wasn't too happy about all the face work. I need to call Dr. Magee's office today. There is a bone in the right side of her jaw that is really sharp and I have a feeling that it will start to come through her skin soon. We found it a while ago and now her skin is bruised and it definitely feels sharper than it did before. When I talked to his office about it after we found it she asked me if it had come through yet and I said no. She said that he won't do anything unless it comes through. I guess he shaves it smooth. ugh. But we see him October 14th for our follow up so we'll see what he says then.

Anyway, my point is that I think the facial exercises, which makes her skin move around, hurts her because of the sharp bone. So, I guess I will continue to do what she allows me to and not force the ones that she really doesn't like at this point (which are the exercises that stretch the bottom of her face).

Well, I've written enough for right now. And I'm hungry. Again.

Take care,
Christy