You Capture: Play

This is my first time participating in You Capture. Beth from I Should Be Folding Laundry hosts it. Go check it out!  This is another attempt for me to get better at photography and have fun with my camera!

I love his little foot in the background.

This is under our train table.  A huge battle!

stream of conciousness

I went to the midwife this morning.  On the way there, Sage asked if I had to pee in a cup again.  Am I scarring him for life?  I missed my appointment last week because Kolby woke up with a 102 fever.  I tried a couple of babysitters but it didn't work out.  I didn't get my Group B strep test last week, so I got it today and she checked me because of my history with early dialation.

First, she felt my belly and said this will probably be my smallest baby and that's okay because girls tend to be smaller.  If only that had translated to less weight gain!  She felt her back and where I'm getting all the feet kicks, she said her head was down but didn't feel too low.  I agreed, I've had some pressure but nothing too incredible.

After the test, she checked me out and said her head is really low.  Lower than she had thought, she didn't want to do an invasive check but she was sure I was 3 probably more towards 4 cm.

After having 3 babies, I kind of knew this is the information we would get, but it still makes me nervous.  She also told us to keep some stuff in the car so we don't ruin it.  Maybe I should have asked what kinds of things.  I just pictured puppy's pee pads.  Do you think that's what she meant?  She also suggested trying to stay off my feet as much as possible.  "I don't know if you have help at home..."  I've gotten that question a couple times in the last couple of months.

Kolby's scabs are healing slower than we thought, so no cast this week.  God's timing is perfect.  God's timing is perfect.  God's timing is perfect.  Drew is fighting our insurance company to get the Ponseti certified dr. in Houston covered.  His benefits advocate found some loophole about a certified doctor being covered within 75 miles.  I'm still praying that God will guide/force us to the right doctor.  The Houston dr. would be so much more convenienant but we haven't met him, what if he's not nice or is just wrong for us?

Also, since I just had the Group B strep test, if I were to go into labor before next week, I would be treated like I was positive just in case.  I'm really praying to keep her in at least one more week and then we'll reevaluate.

My thoughts go back and forth from Kolby to the baby, Kolby, baby, Kolby, baby.  With a little of Sage is starting school soon.

We got Kolby's new shoes to wear at night and I'm so happy to tell you that he has adjusted perfectly to them.  He's worn them 4 nights and it's kind of like he never stopped wearing them.  Click here to see what they look like.  They keep his feet turned out at 60 degrees.

I feel like we are totally ready for this baby, except the whole Group B strep thing.  God's timing is perfect.  God's timing is perfect.

Do you think there is a lesson for me to learn here? 

Non-Feet Related News

Levi now sleeps in the room with the other boys!  I had questioned my sanity earlier in my pregnancy for thinking we could attempt this.  He used to scream at bed time.  Turns out, it might have been because he wanted to sleep with his brothers.

While on vacation, we had them all in the same room, Levi in a pack-n-play.  Some nights went better than others, but it gave us hope. 

So, we got home and set up the pack-n-play in the boys' room.  Some nights are better than others, but for the most part, it goes really well.

One night, Levi would not stop talking.  Drew threatened to put him in his crib in his room.  He didn't believe Drew.  Drew put him in his crib in his own room and he was really mad.  (I was not actually home at this time)  Somehow, Levi calmed down enough for Drew to decide he could switch back to the boys' room.  Sage had told Drew not to put Levi in his own room but to give him a time out or some other form of discipline. 

We have taken that as a sign that everyone agrees with this new arrangement. 

And in honor of my 37th week of pregnancy beginning on Sunday, we're going to switch Levi's crib and clothes into the boys room and officially call it the boys room.  We'll also be spending quite a bit of time cleaning out the junk closet Levi's closet and getting that room as ready as we can for Annika. 

We're leaving it green, we don't have a crib for her yet, although we have a generous offer to borrow one which we will be taking them up on soon, and no she doesn't have special bedding.  I did buy one sheet with tulips on it because it was marked down to $2.98. 

I will be washing, folding and hanging her clothes too.  I've never been so excited to do laundry! 

Worst Fears Realized

We saw the doctor yesterday. He confirmed that Kolby's left foot is definitely relapsing. Clubfoot isn't just a foot that turns in slightly, it is a foot or both that would turn in so much that the child would walk on their ankles. Here's a summary of part of what we went through when he was a baby.

Even though we thought we knew we were dealing with a relapse, we really thought we would be dealing with wearing shoes and the bar at night again.  But, Kolby is going to have at least two casts.  The cast will start at his toes and go up to his thigh.  The cast will get changed to change position of his foot once a week.  After two weeks, the doctor will be able to determine if he needs to do another tenetomy.  This would be done in an OR, with Kolby under general anesthesia and the doctor would again cut his heel chord.  If that surgery happens he would be in another cast for 3 weeks while that heeled. 

The frustrating part is that Kolby didn't get a cast yesterday.  On Friday, he walked through a fire ant mound and his left foot and leg got attacked and bitten.  He probably has 15 bites on his left foot and calf.  The doctor didn't want to put a cast on because then we can't see if anything is getting infected.

Our first challenge is to get these cleared up and prevent Kolby from getting more bites of any kind.  It is almost laughable.  Kolby gets mosquito bites just walking to the car!  We decided he has to wear long pants until he gets a cast.  Long pants during the day and night. 

So, we have answers.  We have a plan.  And we know God will work out the details.  Right now, we're planning on going to the doctor in Dallas because he is covered by our insurance.  And we've met him, we like him and we trust him. 

And don't forget Annika is coming soon, probably in the middle of all this.  Just to make things a little more exciting.  It means I can't go or take Kolby, it will be up to Drew.  And it makes me a little nervous thinking that he'll be gone all day and it will get closer and closer to my due date.  I might need a volunteer labor coach! 

I have cried over this, it's my trial and I can cry if I want to!  But in all seriousness, this is a minor trial.  We didn't get news that one of our children may be dieing, we will have some things that will be challenging, but nothing that isn't manageable.  Especially with God.  He'll see us through.  He is good.  He is faithful.  

It's the Little Things in Life

1. Kolby says gum. Gum. He has always said num. And I couldn't understand him. And then one day, he walked up to me and asked for gum. He gets gum just about every time he asks for it!

2. Levi peed on his potty today. I'm not sure he even realized what he did, but he got skittles! He farted while sitting in his chair and said "Potty?" I asked him if he had to go potty and he said yes. So we went upstairs, looked at a few books, nothing. I asked him if he wanted to sit on his potty and watch Curious George. I turned it on and walked away (I know, bad mommy!). He came over to me and said "Potty?" I said, Let's go sit down! And then noticed there was already pee in it!

stream of conciousness

We went on vacation.

And then we got back.

And I didn't write about it. I've been thinking about what to write and how to incorporate our pictures.

But, while there, we noticed Kolby's left foot turning in a little bit. Drew's mom had been to Houston in early May and said she noticed it then too.

So, I've been on the phone and online trying to figure out what to do. The dilemma has been whether to take him to a Ponseti certified doctor or not. We hadn't been for seeing one for our yearly check ups, which was coming up at the end of this month. I had thought it would be okay because they were just check ups. As long as I didn't think anything was going wrong, we'd stay in network with our doctor.

The more I talked to Drew, he discerned that I was going to want a second opinion from a Ponseti certified doctor even if I took Kolby to this doctor. Primarily, because I didn't trust him. When we first moved here, I took Kolby to see him and one of his residents saw Kolby first (at age 2) and he told me we could probably be done with wearing the bar at night. Ponseti clearly recommends until age 4. After the appointment, I emailed the doctor and expressed my concerns. He admitted that he would have been comfortable with letting us stop wearing the bar at night.

Fast forward to his 3 year old check up and the shoes were too small. I was there to request a fitting for a new pair. Surprise to us, he discontinued use of the bar, said Kolby's feet were great! We were ecstatic.

I wish I would have followed my first gut feeling and insisted on new shoes and insisted on keeping him in them until he was 4.

I have an appointment in Houston for the end of this month with a Ponseti certified doctor who is out of our network. I have a call into a doctor in Dallas, in network, to see if we can get in to see him sooner. So many details need to work out. I keep reminding myself that I'm not in control. God is. And he will do what is best for us.

Sage's birthday is this week. We're having a small party for him on Saturday. And I'm trying to get things ready for that too.

And Annika is due in less than 5 weeks. I don't even want to list out what we need to do for her arrival. Her clothes are literally heaped on the bed in Levi's room. Nothing has been washed. I don't really know what I have and what I need. I'm going by the seat of my pants this time! And this is not like me at all.

Kind of a downer post to come back with, huh? This is life right now for us. Get on and enjoy the ride with us!

I feel like I have to write a disclaimer. I'm not overly worried about Kolby. I trust God that what has to happen will happen. But, man I want to know the details of how it's going to work! Drew might have to take Kolby by himself and that tears me apart. I need to be with him. I was at every. single. appointment when he was a baby and now... I'm crying just thinking about not being with him. I might disobey doctors orders and go anyway. But, maybe I won't tell you until after we get back!

I missed posting a picture of the kids on July 1. Maybe I'll take it on Sage's birthday and try to get back on track in August.