Five days after Georgea's surgery we were able to remove the soft casts on her feet. We were so ready for this. Georgea was "allowed" to walk immediately after surgery, but she had no interest in walking. It was obvious she was fearful of putting her weight on her feet. I'm guessing that the shape of the casts made the thought of walking on them somewhat intimidating as well. So we struggled for 5 days. It sounds like such a short time, but we were tired and anxious and worried about our baby girl. She was more fussy than normal, frustrated that she "couldn't" walk and struggling with things like making it to the potty on time. What an ordeal for a little girl who had only been potty trained for less than a month when this all went down. All in all though, she handled it like such a trooper. She is really a tough cookie and in some ways I think this whole process has been equally as emotional and hard for James and me. This was another learning experience for us that brought us closer to Georgea and helped us once again to know her more intimately, and for that we are thankful.
Outer layer removed and now taking off the soft cotton wrap underneath.
Georgea did lots of examining and touching. This entire process was definitely an emotional one for her. We spent a good bit of time prior to her surgery talking about her fingers and toes. Counting them, and acknowledging the difference between hers and ours. We gave the simple explanation that someday Georgea's would "have 10, just like Mama and Dada." She would play this sentence back for us, so we know she absorbed the words. But the content....there was no explanation on our part, just the fact that it would happen. We tried so hard to give her the information she could process for her age and tried not to overwhelm her with more information than she would know what to do with. It was a fine line. We tiptoed across it to the best of our ability and I hope we gave her what she needed.
More touching and examining.
Somber. Processing. Grieving??
Five days after Georgea's surgery we were able to remove the soft casts on her feet. We were so ready for this. Georgea was "allowed" to walk immediately after surgery, but she had no interest in walking. It was obvious she was fearful of putting her weight on her feet. I'm guessing that the shape of the casts made the thought of walking on them somewhat intimidating as well. So we struggled for 5 days. It sounds like such a short time, but we were tired and anxious and worried about our baby girl. She was more fussy than normal, frustrated that she "couldn't" walk and struggling with things like making it to the potty on time. What an ordeal for a little girl who had only been potty trained for less than a month when this all went down. All in all though, she handled it like such a trooper. She is really a tough cookie and in some ways I think this whole process has been equally as emotional and hard for James and me. This was another learning experience for us that brought us closer to Georgea and helped us once again to know her more intimately, and for that we are thankful. 
Outer layer removed and now taking off the soft cotton wrap underneath.
Georgea did lots of examining and touching. This entire process was definitely an emotional one for her. We spent a good bit of time prior to her surgery talking about her fingers and toes. Counting them, and acknowledging the difference between hers and ours. We gave the simple explanation that someday Georgea's would "have 10, just like Mama and Dada." She would play this sentence back for us, so we know she absorbed the words. But the content....there was no explanation on our part, just the fact that it would happen. We tried so hard to give her the information she could process for her age and tried not to overwhelm her with more information than she would know what to do with. It was a fine line. We tiptoed across it to the best of our ability and I hope we gave her what she needed.
More touching and examining. 
Somber. Processing. Grieving??
The part of this process that I struggled with the most as Georgea's Mom came from the fact that these extra fingers and toes were the reason she came to us. We chose this special need prior to ever laying eyes on Georgea. So, we were adjusting, changing, altering the very thing that brought our baby girl to us. We thought about, prayed about, sought & received counsel from many about the right thing to do and felt confident that we were there....but there is still a grieving process, a loss. We love every inch of our baby and saying goodbye to those toes and fingers was hard on all of us.
Bouncing back oh so quickly. I saw the light in Georgea's eyes and her playful nature start to take over. A blessing.
Kissable, just like the rest of her.
Playing with her bandages.
Happy to see her "Ugg boots" and ready to wear shoes again after 5 days in hospital socks.
She insisted on putting her shoes on herself, which was great.
It took several days, 4 or 5 for Georgea to really get walking again after her surgery. We were running down the hall carrying her trying to get her to the potty, etc. But ultimately she regained her stride, her balance and her enthusiasm. She's running all over this house again which is an awesome sight for us to see.
3 comments:
Hi Amy....Its great to read what has been happening with you all. Im so pleased Georgea is doing well...bless her heart, she has been a brave little girl! And I didnt realise you knew Sue? She has become a good "bloggy" friend ... I keep telling her that we are coming to Scottsdale for my husbands 40th and MUST meet!
Anyway, I have been praying that everything would go smoothly for wee Georgea, I'm sure you and your husband are relieved. Take care. Dx
I forgot to say, Im getting those UGG boots for my little girl.....too cute!!!
Love her and her smile!
Sue : )
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