Wow...What a Week!
Monday was a big day for Carson...he got his AFO splints! I had heard that many kids who wear these have trouble adjusting and initially put up a fight...not my Little Man! He put them on at the brace shop and hasn't looked back! A few pics...
In my never-ending effort to "cool up" any corrective devices required, I decided to call his AFOs his "Ultraman Boots"...score!! Carson not only gladly wears them, he proudly shows them off to whoever will look! He also has a different pair of AFOs (slightly different padding, same general concept) for bedtime, which we call his "Bedtime Boots." The goal of these AFOs is to stretch out his heel cords since he is a toe-walker. If we can stretch the cords with the AFOs, we can try to avoid any additional surgery.
My biggest fear with the AFOs was that Carson would be upset about losing his Ultraman gym shoes. These AFOs are HUGE and require shoes two sizes bigger than his actual foot! When the orthotist brought out his new shoes (specially made by the brace shop to accommodate the splints), he was actually excited! He is very into being a "bee boy" (aka big boy)...eating "bee boy byes" (big boy bites), for example...and when the orthotist called the shoes his "big boy shoes," that's all he needed to hear! The shoes are basic white gym shoes (see 'em in the pictures?) but he loves 'em! The Ultraman shoes are in a box...outta sight, outta mind! I would love to get them bronzed, just like we did with Meggie's first walkers. I'll have to check into that!
Monday night, Kevin put Carson in his Bedtime Boots and was tucking him in bed, as is the usual routine. Suddenly I could hear Carson sobbing. I ran upstairs and he was crying, repeating over and over, "Soss off! Soss off!" (aka socks off). Kevin had put Carson's socks on him under the AFOs to protect his skin from the plastic but Carson would have none of it. He had the biggest crocodile tears running down his face...what could we do? The socks came off, the AFOS went back on, and he went right to sleep! We have had a couple of nights this week where he awakened in the middle of the night crying and the only thing that would stop it was removing the AFOs, but for the most part he has been very compliant with his regimen.
I asked the orthotist at the brace shop how long they thought Carson would be in the AFOs. She said the typical routine is around three years. Yikes! Poor guy...he's probably wishing we'd send him back to China where he was free. Now he comes to the U.S.A., we tie him into plastic splints, and expect him to get a good night's sleep?! I know, I know...in the long run, this is a good thing for Carson. I just feel bad 'cause he doesn't understand why everything is changing on him!
When we arrived home from the brace shop on Monday, we got a very special document in the mail...Carson's Certificate of Citizenship! He was an American citizen the day we arrived here from China, but this document is very important and is required to obtain his Social Security number and a U.S. birth certificate. Very exciting!! Even though Carson's citizenship was official all along, it just seems more "real" when you see it on paper, with the official U.S. seal!
Wednesday at OT, Carson got a wrist splint for his left arm. Since both of his poor feet are stuck in splints about 23 hours a day, Miss Mary and I decided we would let him alternate hands rather than having all four limbs tied up every night. Unfortunately, he is really struggling with this left splint. Miss Mary and I thought his right wrist looked the worst of the two, which is why he got that splint first. However, he seems to have much more discomfort with that left splint...even to the point that the little stinker is removing it at night! He cries, then he removes the Velcro, then I go into his room and replace it...repeat, repeat. Gotta give him credit...smart little booger figured out how to take the thing off! Unfortunately, that new knowledge is gonna make compliance with the splint schedule more challenging!
Carson's favorite activity at home is to help Mommy with laundry. He LOVES it! One day, in an effort to keep him busy while I hung up a load of wet clothes, I asked him to empty the dryer into the basket. That kid is EFFICIENT and obviously watches Mommy like a hawk while she does laundry! (He follows my routine to the letter!) When Kevin and I were first married, we used to dump the clean laundry on the couch...and the pile would get HUGE since we could just avoid it. We decided pretty early on to always dump it on the bed...that way we HAD to fold everything before going to sleep. I was shocked when Carson not only filled the basket with clean clothes and dragged it to our bedroom, but then he proceeded to put everything on the bed...which is quite a feat for him (as you'll see in the pics) since our bed sits pretty high off the floor.
Wednesday afternoon, he wanted to help again, so I captured it with the camera:
...emptying the clothes into the basket...
...dragging the basket down the hall, past the kids' bathroom...
...and into Mommy and Daddy's room...
...winding up to make sure...
...that EVERY towel ends up on Mommy and Daddy's bed...
...making sure the pile stays securely on the bed...
...carrying the empty laundry basket out of Mommy and Daddy's room...
...back down the hall, past the kids' bathroom...
...and placing it back in front of the dryer!
1 comment:
I am so happy for you that he took to his AFO's so easily!! It took Max three days of screaming before he gave in. He doesn't have to wear them at night though. What a great little helper you have. Max tries to help, but he hasn't quite got as good as Carson has! Have a great Holiday!
Chelsie and Max
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