Clubbed Feet.

(Progress after just two weeks of casts.)

I realized yesterday, as we were headed home from our 3rd visit with Ochsner's pediatric orthopedic department, that I haven't talked much about Elam's clubbed feet and the process it is going to take to correct them. 

Elam's little legs have been in the smallest of casts for the last two weeks, and had his third pair put on yesterday. They really don't seem to bother him, but it sure does make him appreciate the couple minutes he gets each week when the doctors take them off. 

The cutest movement you have ever seen comes from Elam's left leg as he wiggles it with pure excitement when it is freed from his cast. This makes my heart happy. 

The doctors have estimated around 6-8 weekly cast changes will be needed, as with each casts they are able to straighten the foot out a little more.

 After the weekly round of casts get the feet straight and flexible enough for the doctor's liking, Elam will undergo a small surgery to further loosen the tendons in the back of his feet. He will then be put back in casts for a month. 

After the month of casts, at this point I am not sure if there will then be more casting, or if then he will go straight to braces (that he will wear 24/7 for three or so months, and then at night for 4-5 years).  

It is really amazing to us to be able to see such improvement in just two weeks!

Getting out.

Sometimes you just need to be outdoors.

With a cranky toddler and a momma who is going a bit stir crazy, we figured heading down to the creek to get some riverbank sand between our toes is just what we needed to soothe our souls.

We celebrated Elam's one month birthday this way.

 

5 months ago.

There have been several days in the last year that have completely rocked our world, leaving us with a perspective that is far different than one we had ever dreamed of having. 

January 25 started it all. A day that broke our hearts beyond our ability to descibe. A day that changed the way I would look at pregnancy and the uncertainty of it, forever.

January 28 brought us back into the light, as we learned more of our son's condition and more on the power of prayer. We felt God's strength wrap around us, and as our hearts were lifted, we walked out of our exam room knowing our future was full of uncertainty, but that uncertainty would be accompanied by a lot of joy, too! 

These two very memorable days will always hold a special place in our hearts, for they started something uniquely special, a journey we would not have chosen on our own, but one we are so grateful to be a part of. 

Between those days and now, we have had quite a few that left us feeling pretty low, but through it all, we were graced with hope and strength. 

Our journey through Little Brother's pregnancy wasn't exactly easy, but all of the heartache we experienced just made God's purpose and love all the more clear - because at 5:49pm on June 20th, a set of perfect little lungs filled air, and we heard our brand new baby boy for the very first time. In that moment, we knew what pure love, peace, and utmost joy felt like. 

We endured five months of an emotional rollercoaster. Five months of waiting and praying and wanting so desperately just to know more than an ultrasound, blood work, or doctor could ever tell us. We just wanted our son. And now, as I watch him sleep on the bed right next to me, I have exactly what I had been longing for. 

I have a son - and he is perfect. 

I look at Elam and I am overcome with so many emotions. I see him as the little boy on the ultrasound screen at 17 1/2 weeks who we thought wouldn't survive. I see him as the little boy we were told we could abort at 18 weeks. 

But more than any of these, I see him as the perfectly created little boy that God has beautifully chosen to bless our family.  And with that, I smile, and thank our Lord for the gifts we are so undeservingly given.