Welcome! Nuestra Casa Es Su Casa ...Our house is your house

A glimpse into the life of Daniel and Jaynee Lockwood and their 12 precious blessings. Thank you for visiting; we pray that what we share here may always bring glory to our wonderful God and Saviour. May you praise the Lord with us for the great things He has done and continues to do as we serve Him sharing the gospel here in the little town of Cuidad Insurgentes, BCS Mexico. He alone is good and faithful!

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Update on Little Samuel...who doesn't feel so little in a big cast :)




Praising the Lord for His goodness. Through His Word and through the encouragment of so many who love Him and love our family and are upholding us in prayer, He truly has renewed our strength and strengthened our hearts. How good it is to trust in Him! He never fails!
Samuel had a rough first night...lots of tossing and turning. And of course, I jumped to his side at every little whimper just praying and wanting him to be as comfortable as possible.
But he had a really good day and today he's even better! He slept wonderfully ALL night last night and slept in nice and good this morning. I missed having him by my side for my quiet time, but was so happy to see him rest so peacefully and soundly.
He normally spends his days scooting all around the play room, going all over the house in his walker, watching everyone from his swing or high chair, or hanging out with mommy in a sling or in my lap. But now, when he's not in his crib sleeping, the only really comfortable place we've found for him is on the couch in a semi sitting position. But he seems to be quite happy there, and he can see not only the play room but the kitchen and dining/homeschool room where most of the activities of the day take place. The children are constantly bringing him new toys so he "won't get bored" :) and reading to him and playing peek a boo and he's just overall doing so well. Thank you, Lord!
The children signed his cast :). Noah hadn't signed yet, and I'd told him that as soon as he finished up his school, he could sign too. So when he was done, I got him a marker, but I was reading with another child, so wasn't really paying attention to what he was doing. He brought back the marker when he was done quite proud of himself. A little while later, I went over to Samuel and right over the front of his diaper in big bold letters so carefully written it said, "NOAH" :).
On the leg of the cast it said, "NO".
Noah said that the cast was "too bumpy" to write on and it didn't look nice. He was a bit disappointed when I told him that I would have to change Samuel's diaper. :)
How encouraging it was to us to get so many comments and emails sharing stories of one's own children or another child having broken his/her femur. It was just a comfort to know they are all doing so well now.
A few people have asked about how we are diapering Samuel. The cast is completely around his broken leg down to the ankle; it wraps around his hips and waist and then down the good leg to the knee with a stablizing bar between the two legs to keep the broken leg immobile (*note to self to tell about the bar in a minute :) ). From the comments/emails, I think what he has is called a spica cast. They left an opening in the appropriate area so that he can "do his business". :) It's been an experience trying to figure out how to diaper him without it leaking or getting the cast wet/dirty. I've found what is working best is putting on a larger size diaper than he normally wears, lining it with a smaller diaper for extra exorbancy, and tucking it as best I can between the cast and his skin. So far so good. :)
The other concern I have is that the back of the cast is beginning to leave a good mark on his back...like a dent. I don't want him to get a bruise there but the most comfortable position for him to sit for his leg just pushes that back part of the cast into his back. I lined it with lots of cotton this morning. Hoping that will help.
I was just proof reading my post and saw my note to self. When they were setting and wrapping Samuel's leg, the doctor told the nurse to find a broom handle. She left and came back with a piece of something (maybe pvc?) but the doctor said that wouldn't work. Later someone came in with an old, broken broom handle. The janitor/maintenance man asked how long it needed to be and cut it and that became Samuel's stablizing bar :).
The doctor talked to Daniel yesterday and said if Samuel's leg is healing well and surgery is not needed, he'll be in the cast for 6-8 weeks. I have heard that children can heal pretty quickly, so I'm thinking it will be a long haul, but I'd be very happy if it was a bit shorter. Just praying for wisdom for the doctors, healing for Samuel, and a patient, joyful spirit for Samuel and us too :)
Oh, the Lord is so faithful and so good.

14 comments:

  1. You are such a good Mommy! Our youngest (adopted) son came to us when he was almost three. He had Brittle Bone disease and so we have seen our share of fractured femurs and spica casts. It sounds like you are adapting very well and looking out for all the important problem areas (pressure sores, etc.). Loving siblings are a tremendous help as well.

    God bless you during this challenging time.

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  2. I'm praying for Samuel! Also I love the last picture of him smiling so big...very cute!

    Emily <3

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  3. I LOVE the broom handle story! thanks for sharing that! Amazing what can be done to adapt when the exact right thing isn't available! :)
    Jaynee, you are right to be concerned about that pressure of the cast on his skin. Padding it with something loosely put in there is a great idea! Did they talk to you about changing his position fairly frequently to avoid constant pressure? Even the skin of healthy young children can begin to breakdown with constant pressure on an area, and you don't want to have to deal with/treat a sore in that area while he has the cast on. I know that Judah was not too fond of "tummy time", but they were encouraged to support him and his cast in different positions every two hours or so, even if just for 15-20 minutes, to relieve that constant pressure. I'm guessing your older children will be very creative in finding their own pillows or stuffed animals or anything, to support their little brother even tipped a bit on his side, with the cast hanging off the couch... or whatever for a few minutes at a time. I remember seeing Judah on the floor in a soft bed of pillows stacked at appropriate heights, to support him lying on his tummy in an area where he could see his siblings busily at work...just like Samuel likes to watch his siblings. One thing about a home-school family....there is constant activity to distract a little guy! Judah also had one video that he had literally memorized all the dialog, because it was one that Mom and Dad approved for unheard of viewing several times a day for the duration! Worked for a three-year-old..but Samuel might be a bit young for that! :) So glad to hear that you are getting sleep and Samuel is taking this all in stride. Poor kid has had way too much experience with unusual medical situations....but that has also made him very flexible, which is serving him well right now! :)

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  4. Funny about the broken broom...so much for being proffesional huh?

    I'm so glad to see Samuel smiling...I've been praying for him throughout the day since it happened...and for you too!

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  5. Jaynee, reading this post just made my heart rejoice with gladness! Praising the Lord that Samuel doesn't need a pin. Gavin had his pin in right away, the day after his accident.

    Thank you for a wonderful update. We'll keep praying for him~

    ~hugs~ Cinnamon

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  6. Oh, poor Samuel! I can imagine it's sooo hard for all of you to see him uncomfortable.

    Praying that the Lord will help you to find ways to comfortably care for him during these next few weeks, and that it will heal VERY quickly.

    Love,
    Anna M.

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  7. I burst into tears when I first saw his little cast. I am so thankful for such wonderful siblings for him to have. That is so sweet that they are trying to help him. I know that 6-8 weeks is a long time. I know that it will have its rough times but kids are super resilient and he will be just fine! I know for momma it has to be hard. Moms have such a tender spot for our hurt children. I will pray for you as you deal with your little guy. May God bless you and your wonderful family. Things have been rough since I started reading your blog. I pray that God will continue to be with you every step, that you will be able to see His presence and that He will pour blessings onto a Mom that loves her children so!
    Shorty

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  8. It is important to keep an eye on that possible sore area - with my oldest, it seemed that those sore spots could develop easily and then be hard to get rid of. For him it seemed that keeping that area well-lotioned in addition to keeping it padded really helped. Also to adjust his position as much as is possible during play, etc. After one of his surgeries we had to keep his leg elevated for 6 weeks...not an easy thing with a 5yo!

    The Lord gives an incredible amount of grace just when we need it!! I've learned that glib phrases like that can roll off the tongue until you get to the point of truly needing His grace day to day and then you realize how true it is! I'm praying for all of you!

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  9. We're praying for sweet Samuel and your whole family during this time. Noah's signature idea made me laugh. Your children are so sweet and loving to bring Samuel lots of good new toys. Aren't kids so thoughtful?
    Enjoying your blog so much, you are such an encouragement to me!
    Kami

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  10. Jaynee, when I was a baby, I had a dislocated hip and had a cast on that had an opening to take 'care of business'. My mom would put plastic wrap around the edges of the cast at the opening in order to keep it from getting wet or dirty in that area. The doctors said I had the cleanest cast they had ever seen. ;-) Just thought I'd share that little tip in case it may work for you. Praying for quick healing for Samuel. God bless, Jill in Ohio

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  11. aww poor little guy - praying for quick healing and for the next couple weeks to pass quickly.

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  12. We are praying for you little Samuel! You are doing a wonderful job taking care of things.

    Hugs.

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  13. Like Jill said, plastic wrap works great and so does Press 'n Seal. Our son had a cast from his waist to his toes and the Press 'n Seal was the best.

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