Update on Drew

We went back on May 23rd to get Drew a new cast. Their office likes to switch casts every couple weeks so it doesn't get too dirty. He had an X-ray done and was starting to grow some new bone back. He chose green as his new cast color. The visit took awhile(way longer than expected), so the boys had I think 3-4 lollipops each.

Next visit was this past Thursday, June 6th. We had been told at the previous visit that there may be a slight chance of the cast coming off, if enough bone had grown back but told not to get our hopes up too high. They took his cast off, so they could X-ray his leg better. It's nice they have the X-ray capability in their office. We brought the portable DVD player this visit to ensure not a boatload of lollipops, and so the downtime for waiting wouldn't be too bad. I was quite surprised the cast came off and stayed off. I actually had to come home instead of straight to school, since I didn't bring a second shoe for Drew to wear.

His leg that had the cast has atrophied quite a bit--most noticeably in  calf. The left has almost no muscle and the right calf has so much muscle from compensation, it's solid. He's still got limitations on him, but his leg speed is slowly coming back.

Thursday, we tried a little walking around the neighborhood, to get him up and walking and see where his stamina was. We did less than 1/4 of 1 lap around the neighborhood in 30 minutes. Friday, he walked the whole 1 lap in 45 minutes. Yesterday was 40 minutes, and tonight was 26 minutes. As reference, it usually takes us 10-15 minutes for walking 1 lap, depending on how fast we go. So we are closer everyday.

Notice how his right leg(on this left in the pic) has more muscle in the calf?

This freckle used to be 1/4-1/2 of this size pre-cast. May have to check it out.

Taken tonight. He is still putting more weight/leaning towards his right when he walks. I also noticed that his left foot is in the habit of toes angled out when he walks.

Excitement in the Gee home, part 2: ER

So, apparently we don't juggle enough and must need some new challenges/experiences. Let me preface by stating that Drew has been going to soccer class on Tuesdays, and Ivy has gymnastics class right after. Fortunately, they both take place in the same general vicinity at a community center. It was supposed to be that Tom was going to take them to class, but it didn't work out like that the first couple classes because of work stuff. Well, April 30th, it was finally Tom's turn and he was home in time. He suggested to both Drew & Ivy that they should ride their bikes to class (Ivy is training for a race that takes place on the 18th). So, they biked. Tom was in front of Ivy, and Ivy in front of Drew. Apparently, there was a bench Ivy saw and swerved around. Drew didn't see it in time, and crashed into it with his left leg. They got to soccer class okay, but Drew sat it out.

After Ivy's class was over, I offered to pick them up, but they biked home albeit very slowly. Tom left for Scouts(his Tuesday calling). Drew was left in his bed to rest, and ended up having an accident because it hurt his foot too much to put down to walk the few feet to the bathroom across the hall. After 5 hours, his left leg was still hurting, so after Tom was back from Scouts, Drew & I high-tailed it over to the ER. After a couple hours, they x-rayed his foot and found nothing and were about to send us on our way, when I insisted he have a splint or something. We got a splint and some Motrin.  Poor guy. It was 3 hours past bedtime by the time that the splint and Motrin from the ER finally happened. Why they never x-rayed his leg there, I'll never know. Unfortunately, it was after 11 when we finally got the foot x-rayed and it slipped my mind.

Next day was Field trip day for kindergarten. Of course. That's how things happen--right before something big, like a field trip or school pictures. Drew desperately wanted to go, so he rode in our car since I was chaperoning 3 other kids with another mom(we got the most mellow of the class), and I wasn't allowed on the bus because their liability insurance won't let Brent ride the bus. Drew had a mostly good time. Of course, he did have to go to the bathroom when we were the furthest away from a bathroom--the way it always works with kids--a side note, I'm not sure why the zoo didn't build a bathroom, one on each end of the zoo for this exact reason. After lunch, we went to ride the train. This is the same train that I rode on in Santa's Village up in the Big Bear mountain area growing up. So, it was pretty cool Drew got to ride it too. I had to carry Drew since there was no room for the stroller in the serpentine. We had to wait for 3 train rides before it was finally our turn. Instead of sliding Drew all the way in, I had him by the side door, and when I got in, I accidentally bumped his leg causing him a lot of pain. He sat on my lap for awhile on the train. His pain medication was wearing off around the same time too, so that didn't help. After the train, we made a bathroom stop, and told the teacher we were headed home for medicine. His teacher has been great throughout our whole ordeal.

We had a follow-up visit at the pediatrician's office on Friday, May 3rd. He made Drew do some mobility tests and noticed Drew was still sore around his calf and we were sent for x-rays on his leg just to make sure that there were no fractures or anything. I had also mentioned, Drew was rather reluctant for bearing weight on that leg. After an hour of waiting(wasn't too bad--Drew found a Frances book in the kid waiting room), we got x-rays and sure enough I saw a gray line across the tibia. They were nice to give us a copy and then called the doctor right away with x-rays(the two buildings were like 1/2 a block away from each other). The doctor called me and said nothing weight-bearing on the leg and that we could call the office for our referral to a pediatric orthopedist after lunch to get a cast.

The red circle is around the fracture on his tibia(almost horizontal gray line on the x-ray).

The first number they gave me, also in the same hospital block as pediatrician's office, said they had no appointments available for 2 weeks!! Drew's doctor wanted a cast on ASAP, not 2 weeks later. I called the pediatrician's office and had them change the authorization. We found a place that wasn't too far of a drive, maybe 15 minutes away, and could see him Tuesday morning, the 7th. He got a cast on, and picked blue.

We really like this orthopedic doctor, Dr. Kelly. His staff is just okay. We also got a prescription for a pediatric walker, as the doctor and I both felt crutches have a high learning curve, Drew's a small guy, and so nobody accidentally (or intentionally) gets hit with a crutch. On our way out, the office asked if we wanted to see if insurance would pay for it. I said sure, since I know most places don't carry them, and could otherwise cost us upwards of around $100.

So, I called back around 4 pm to the doctor's office, seeing how they were doing on finding anything out anything from insurance. "Oh, we don't do that until Wednesdays." I was fuming, and told them they needed to send Stat/Urgent on the request form because Drew had no other mode of getting around, besides me holding his hands and hopping him along(which quite hurt my hands), carrying him(I did this on the 1st for part of his field trip), or using Brent's stroller which I'm sure he's past the weight and height limit on. Well, wouldn't you know it? First thing the next day, I get a call saying insurance will pay. Well, the number they told me to call didn't carry pediatric walkers, nor could they order one--they only dealt with prosthetics.  Ugh. You have got to be kidding me. I call the orthopedic office back and tell them find another place. 

This is around 11:30. Noon comes, and one of our friends that moved a few miles away called and said her family owned a medical supply store and she would have them deliver after 3 pm. I call the orthopedic office back and tell them to switch the provider of the walker to our friends' family's company. At 3:30, the doctor office calls back saying no to this place and give us another number. 4 pm rolls around, and the friend's family's company says that they can't work with our insurance for payment. I call the new place--apparently insurance is only contracted with 1 other place besides the prosthetics place--and they don't have the authorization fax. I call the doctor's office. They claimed they faxed it, I have them fax it again. I call 20 minutes later to check on the walker. After a lot of waiting, I was told that I would get a call back right away after they verified things with insurance and to make sure they had a walker the right height. Well, another 20 minutes later it was almost 5:00 and I called back, anxious, and was asked if we wanted the walker that night or the next day. I said that night since I planned to take Drew to school on Thursday, with or without a walker. We had it by 7:40--which was pretty impressive, in my opinion. It's just too bad it took so many hours out of my day to make sure things moved along for a 6 year old!!

Here's a cute video I took of Drew trying it out, with appropriate Popeye theme song music in the background--compliments of Netflix on the Wii.

Drew has now been in school since Thursday of  last week. I was there all day Thursday with him, and Friday he was on his own. He's on a modified school schedule, going after lunch ends so he doesn't have to sit out morning & lunch recesses, and safety issues(he'd have to go in a different way than all the other kids and some of the early kindergartners are rather large and clumsy and bump into the teacher frequently and have some aggressive issues--we don't want more injuries). He's been able to keep up with homework & classwork. Earlier this week, they rearranged the class so it's easier for Drew to get around. I think most of the pain is gone or at least tolerable with the walker. He is fiercely independent at school and doesn't like the other kids helping him.

My mom sent him a game for our Mobigo that we've had 2 or 3 years now, I picked him up a board game and a wipe off activity kit from Target, and today two of the kids in his class (who are cousins to each other, and live in our neighborhood) dropped off a bucket of goodies this afternoon for him. For now, I'm keeping him in the stroller for morning drop-off of Ivy & Collin, due to parking issues and trying to get them there fast. Drew moves fast in the walker when he wants, but he can still tire out quickly. Next week, we go in to get the cast change. The orthopedist only likes the first one on for 2 weeks, and the second for 4 weeks. I've got Drew excited for color change, and to find if they have any glow in the dark.

Here's a picture of Drew getting to hold one of the class butterflies after school yesterday.

Swimming and other things

Two weeks ago, the kids started up swimming lessons. To be honest, I wasn't sure how Collin would do being in a non-"parent & me" session and handling the deep side of the pool. The first 20 minutes of class are in the shallow(3-4 ft.) and the second 20 minutes are in the deep side(6 ft). The first few days, Collin had a really hard time. The second and third day I spent all but the last 5 minutes of each 20 minutes getting Collin in the water & staying in the water. I made quick acquaintances with the pool managers. I am happy to say that I am the only parent allowed to be all the way up next to the edge of the pool when I need to assist Collin--keeping him on task & being an extra set of eyes to make sure he does not let go of the pool.

By the end of the first week(each class lasts 2 weeks), Collin had decided he liked staying in the water. Now I just have to deal with keeping Collin on task & having a bored 2 year old--Brent just turned 2 on Friday. Drew was in Collin's class. Drew's done well enough to move up to the next swim level. Collin, no surprise, is in the same class as last week. He can do most things but won't put his head or face in the water without help. Ivy's doing well, as expected. This week, she's in a new class and actually learning new things.

Brent had his 2nd birthday on Friday. Thursday night I took Brent to Target to pick out a couple toys. Between the toy stimulus overload and close to bedtime--I didn't want to take all 4 kids if I could help it--we had some pretty serious tantrums. We finally(after over an hour) came home with a Lighting McQueen toy car that sticks out its tongue, a 5 pack of Hot Wheels cars, and a book about trucks. Tom got whisked away to a Scout campout, so we only saw him for about 30 minutes between Friday morning and about 2 pm on Saturday. He got a Funfetti(?) cake with homemade buttercream frosting--I almost had a cow that the cheapest storebought frosting was like $2 for a tiny thing. I drew Elmo on it. Didn't turn out as nice as I wanted, but it was still recognizable and enjoyed by all. I did some fingerpainting with the food coloring since I forgot to set aside some frosting. Whoops. Lesson learned.

Today, keeping the kids as busy as I can. I'm making some cheap wall art today. Probably will be done in a day or two. The tutorial is here  (click for link) and here is a picture of me doing a layout with a poster size frame. Ivy's silhouette looks funny, since she had a low ponytail and I was being nit-picky about Collin's looked larger than her head size. So I cut off the ponytail and taped it on higher. Then I photocopied it 104% a couple times to get it the right size.

Here's the original picture I had for Ivy.

More pics and video of the swim class & birthday up in a couple days.

Good times and miracles

So, it didn't finish it up all exactly like the pattern, but got it all done in a short afternoon and Brent loves it. I had issues with the circles for the ends so I skipped those. What I may end up doing next time is cut out 4 circles, and sew 2 pieces with right sides together with small opening, turn right side out, stitch the opening closed and then hand-sew on to the ball.

Anyway, Drew just turned 5!

Can't believe he's going to be in kindergarten in the fall. We just  picked up his registration packet this morning. Having a birthday party with a small group of friends and some cousins on Saturday. Spent a lot of time today cleaning up for that, so in theory there will be less to do before Saturday morning. We're all cake/cupcake'd out from celebrating on Sunday, so he's decided on lemon bars. Tom's mom isn't too thrilled about the no cake, but seriously, it's our house and cake leftovers lasts like a week here. He just started up karate classes, and after a couple classes says he'd rather not go. Which is odd. I take him and he loves it. Typical 5 year old: doesn't know what he wants/likes.

Collin just switched classes at school a couple weeks ago. Can't remember off the top of my head if I mentioned that or not. His teacher went on early maternity leave, and in the meantime he was picking up some behaviors from some of the younger kids in the class. It's pretty good now. Only one incident, but with an amended IEP behavior plan I think he'll be fine.

Got a phone call about our meeting with the county last week. Kept praying & praying about it. Even had friends and family too. Well, during the meeting, after about 5 minutes into it, I got the distinct feeling like this is not going well, or how we want. Sure enough, by the end they were recommending a trial period of 3 months for the therapy company we're having problems with to get their act together, and if we were still have issues in 3 months we could switch. So, one of the first things we had talked about was swapping out staff. Almost a week goes by, and reality's setting in about it going to be a long 3 months--we were committed to documenting everything that went wrong or was questionable for our next meeting in 3 months. I still was thinking to myself, we got this in the bag. We switch staff, there is no way in heck that Collin would adjust to new staff & be able to work on his goals. So, the upper supervisor calls me and informs me that apparently we have the "popular time slot"(ie. after school) and they are understaffed(didn't say it specifically, but it's because everyone's leaving to the company we're trying to switch to) so would we be okay with either reducing hours by 2/3 and just wait for it to be filled or put in a request for a vendor change(and the county would be okay with it). So of course we say switch. I had no problem. It's exactly what we wanted in the first place. What a miracle!!!

Speaking of which, how I managed to get the kids to mostly behave themselves so I could listen to 85% of a 2 hour funeral this afternoon is beyond me. The last 30 minutes were the hardest. I brought our iPod with us to occupy mostly Collin, but also for him to work on turn taking. The battery completely dies with 30 minutes left. Thankfully, we took a few walks in the halls, since I was smart enough to sit in the foyer, and came back for some coloring with pen on scratch paper and eating Japanese rice crackers that thankfully were still in the diaper bag. For those who used to be in our stake, the service was for Kurt Weaver from Cypress 1st ward.

Another sort of miracle, if you will. I managed to somehow get my belly button infected for the first time ever in my life. How does this happen? I don't touch my belly button unless I'm washing in the shower. After a day and a half of it, I took myself to the doctor's office. I got some steriod/cream/antibiotic all rolled into one. It's too bad the doctor was right that the cream burns a lot, but it works.

In other news, we just got a new vacuum. We are having not so good luck with vacuums. We're on our 3rd in  11.5 years. Did my research, and ended up with a canister style vacuum that's rated very well for carpet & non-carpeted floor all with in our price range of not going over $300. It's got the HEPA filter Tom wanted, and the bag in it that I wanted. I really love it. I got it Monday night, and tried it out all Tuesday. Does better vacuuming than our uprights have. I can get up to wall and furniture edges with no attachments on. I can clean under 98% of our furniture without having to move the furniture. So far, only not liking the color, but I can live with it.

Andrew

Since Brent's been getting so much time mentioned on here, here's some equal face time for Drew. These were all taken this summer. I was cleaning out my camera card so we had room to take pictures on our Christmas trip. I've got some video from the swim lessons, but need to play with the computer a little to figure out how to get them to work.

Right after a water gun fight

Swimming lessons