Of course we picked pink

Charlotte did AWESOME when getting her cast. I, being lucky and never having needed to get a cast, was unsure as what to expect. I really thought it was going to be a lot harder to place the cast than it was.

She has adjusted really great to not having the use of her left arm. She continues to use it in was that she can.

The only downfall the her having a cast is.....she now has a pink weapon attached to her arm, and I already have taken a few hits from it.

Kennel

This may seem cruel but...she wanted in this dog kennel, and I we had a hard time getting her out. At one point she closed to door after we had opened it.

What a cutie !

Broken Angel Wing

Where to begin? Thursday night (9/9/10) after dinner Charlotte and I went into the backyard to play. Like the million other times we have been back there, she is climbing all over things. Her water table, picnic table, patio chairs. I was sitting just outside the sliding glass door, and Charlotte was at the other end of the patio climbing on the chairs. I looked away for one second and when I looked up, she was on her way down and landed on her arm. At first I did not think anything of it because she has fallen before, and usually gets right back up, but this time she just laid there crying. I went over a picked her up and I knew it. I knew she was hurt. You could see the bowing in her arm. She was not screaming, her finger did not swell so for a minute I thought maybe it not not what I thought it was. I took her down to Steve, and right when he looked at her arm he said " it broken" and we were off. We took her to Intermountain Medical ER where thank goodness there was no wait to get in. Once we got back they took our info, asked what felt like a million questions. . It felt like an eternity to get back into our room, which then we waited an eternity again to wait for the nurse, then again for the doctor. All this time Charlotte is crying. Finally !!! The nurse got the okay from the doctor to give her some morphine. This was the hardest part for me. We had to pin Charlotte down to the table, wrapping her in a sheet so she would not move while they put the IV in. She screamed the moment that IV poked her, but minutes later she was feeling better, and started to quite down. Then we waited...again. This time for x-rays. Steve stayed in with Charlotte in getting her arm x-rayed as I paced back and forth outside the door wearing a rut into the floor. By the time we back to the room, Charlotte was not feeling a thing. She was smiling and laughing, standing on her head, jumping in the bed, and flirting with all the Doctors. After some time the Doctor came and talked to us about the outcome of her xrays. Her forearm is broken right between her wrist and her elbow, her Radius bone is broken ,and her Ulna bone is bent. There was not an Pediatric Orthopedic surgeon the at IMC so they stabilized her arm, and we were then sent up to Primary Children's Hospital. At this point it is 10pm , we arrived at IMC just after 7pm. Charlotte's bed time is 8pm.
Once we get up to primary it feels like the entire thing over again, but at least this time Charlotte was not crying. Same million questions, same waiting an eternity for anything to happen. After the initial check-in and check-up from the doctors it was time to reset her arm. This is where I started to get scared because had the be sedated, and I had to leave my baby in the hand of 6 medical professionals. I chose to leave the room while this did this because I did not want to see them working on her, and I did not want to hear any bone popping noises. So Steve and I went to wait in the waiting room, for again what felt like an eternity, but was only 10 minutes. her arm was put into a brace. casting was not a possibility since they had to reset her arm, and there could be some swelling with that.

Finally we got paged to the back, where they were getting Charlotte some apple juice. We could not check out until some time had passed to make sure Charlotte was not having any complications with coming out of her sedation and the make sure the medicine had run its course and was now out of her system. This places us at 1am.

We, all three of us were exhausted. Crying, being scared, worried, unsure, nervous, all of the above for the last 6 hrs. It took a toll on us all. Finally were allowed to leave and I saw a light at the end of the tunnel. We all slept late this next morning, Charlotte sleeping until 1030a.

Since then she has done really well. The first few days were really hard. I am sure her arm hurt, she refused to wear her sling, refused to eat anything but yogurt or applesauce, and she had a hard time with her sling. She is doing great now. She is acting as if her arm is just fine. Putting pressure on it. Using her fingers, and holding objects with both hands. Climbing on chairs, her toy box, the sofa. Putting me near a heart attack every time she stumbled.
Tomorrow ( Weds 9/15/10) she gets her cast and I could not be more excited. Yes, I am nervous because I am not sure what casting her arm is going to in-tell, but excited because her arm will be in something much more stable.

I am still feeling extremely guilty. She was in my care and I should have been quicker to respond. Many tears have been shed by me, but I starting to calm down some.

(x-rays after her arm had been set)

18 Month Check-Up

This check-up was an adventure in its self. Like always, we are on time and they are behind, so for 20 minutes I have to try and keep her entertained in an office where there are no toys. Once we got called things started out good. Got her height and head circumference, but then it was time to weigh her, and she was not having it. She threw a fit on the scale, so I am sure her weight is not accurate. Finally it was back to the room to wait..and wait..and wait some more.
Dr. M finally came in and handed her a book, she was all smiles and so talkative, then it was time to check her ears. Start of the tantrum, and once it started it was a good 30 minutes it ended and we were out the door. She kept trying to open the door to escape. After about 15 minutes of tantrum it was time to get her 2 shots, which made things worst. She was screaming and kicking, and got herself so worked up that she threw up all over me. We were done and I did not even take the time to get her dressed. She rode home in her diaper.
Besides the appointment being a nightmare, her stats are GREAT!

Weight: 27 lbs(84 percentile)
Height: 34 in (96 percentile)
Head : 18.7 (77 percentile)

Height to weight 59 percentile.

She is perfect.

Charlotte - 18 Months

It seems I say this every month, but is so so true. Where has the time gone?when did she get so big? Time has simply flown by and I am amazed
Everyday she shows me something new that she learned and is so proud. She is a ball of energy, and is pure craziness.
She is talking all of the time. Although I can only understand a few words, she is very intent on what she is saying. I wish I knew what she was thinking, and trying to tell me. She shows her frustration when I do not understand. She now has all 4 molars, and hair is getting long, and becoming much more curly. When it is time to eat or she is hungry, she will push her highchair out from the wall and climb in.Every morning when we get up and get ready to go downstairs, she always grabs 2 treasures to bring with her. It is usually books, blankets, a pair of shoes, or a stuffed animal.




Likes: Cartoons,Shrek,Finding Nemo, coloring, turning in cicles, dancing, pickles, pasta, flipping, playing out in the dirt and water, pulling on Millies tail, looking at books, yogurt, applesause, her bottle, making messes, running around any store store, when her dad comes home from work.

Dislikes: baths, diaper changes, meat, (except hot dogs),sitting in the shopping cart, siting in the car seat, taking naps, coming in from outside, anything I need her to do, and behaving anyplace I need to go.




Everyday is an adventure, and we are loving everymoment.

Home Sweet Home

Now that these toys have a home, it seems they never leave it. Not sure if it is "out of sight, out of mind". Sometimes she opens to box...looks in...and then walks away.
Maybe this would be a good time to get rid of some of them.

Another work of art

courtesy of one Ms. Charlotte LaRue