Graduation!

I know I owe you guys a post about our graduation, but we've hit the ground running since that obnoxious thing came off!  Birthdays, Beaches, Disney, adventures all around.  I'm beat!  I promise I will get to it soon.  In the meantime, enjoy this little picture of my tired baby after Disney!

MIA

Hello friends!

I know that I have neglected you terribly.  It's just that I felt like if I had nothing good to say, I shouldn't say anything at all.  Who wants to hear someone go on and on about the negative?  We've had a disappointing last few weeks.  We were positive we'd be done a month ago and it didn't happen.  Our neurologist was not happy with the progress.  Quinn's head didn't grow AT ALL last month so there was no improvement.  Plus, I think our orthotist was just done with us and didn't really do any "molding" with the helmet.  She didn't get an adjustment the entire time.  (Needless to say, I would NEVER recommend this orthotist). 

So here we are 16 weeks in and still helmet wearing.  Ugh.  Honestly, I think her head is still flat and am so afraid when we see the neurologist next week he will say to continue. I just can't!!!  It is so stinkin' hot here in FL and I just really want my little girl's head back.  It's time.

One and a half more weeks to go (FINGERS CROSSED).

Ta Ta for now. :)

Somebaby loves books!

I cannot stand how she's growing up so quickly! :)

Week 9

At least 4-6 more weeks?  Ack! That's what the neurosurgeon suggested today at our checkup.  I guess I got my hopes up we'd be done in 3 weeks and shouldn't have.  Yes, her head is still flat.  She is continuing to get better though!  Today her cephalic index was 88.4%.  Still a long way to get to 82% which is the norm but progress is progress right?  I just want my baby back!  People who say this helmeting time flies by are nuts!

In other news, baby bird went to the fair for the first time and LOVED it.  She would have ridden that carousel all day.

Quinn and Daddy at the fair.

Somebaby loves the park too!

Weeks 7 & 8

This helmet is sooooo much better than the last one.  I really need to focus on how happy I am that we have a helmet that fits for the last half of her treatment and not dwell on the fact I'm so irritated we wasted the first half on a bad fit.  There has been tremendous improvement in just the 2 weeks that she has had it.  Well, in my opinion.  She still has a ways to go, don't get me wrong, but she is really rounding out.  It's funny because we were so worried about the plagiocephaly that we never really noticed she had brachycephaly too!  Now that her "flat spot" is getting better we are seeing it more.  Oh well.  I am so ready for this to be over.  I read all the message boards and everyone is so upbeat and their children adjusted so well to the band.  Poor Quinn hates it.  It very well could have been because the helmet fit so poorly in the beginning, but she is not loving it like everyone else describes.  We are in the process now that her helmet stays on of moving her back in her own bed.  Eeh gads is that tough.  Little munchkin is so used to waking up with Mama right there that when she wakes up now she's in a full sweat terror!  She got up every hour two nights ago.  Thank goodness Daddy was there to take some of the wakings.  She's been asleep for an hour now.  Let's hope she has a good night!

Here's a photo we snapped tonight of her head progress.  Better right?  Have a good week!

Week 6

I cannot believe we are technically halfway through this nightmare!  Six weeks really has flown by.  I do see that her head has improved a lot, so hopefully this will all be worth it in the end.  We got our new helmet yesterday and so far so good.  There are some minor tweeks that still need to be done, but I can finally see my baby's eyes and it seems to be staying on better this time.  Her second casting was a breeze and she was a trooper.  She even busted out some dance moves during the process (thanks again to Daddy for the musical and dance entertainment!).  The orthotist tried to convince us to be done with the helmet saying if it were his kid he'd leave today.  I'm 99% sure he just wants to be done with us, I can't imagine we're his favorite clients.  Seriously though, her head looks better but she's still pretty flat.  89% cephalic index is nowhere near "normal" and if she's going to look back at pictures and see herself in a helmet, she better be able to look in the mirror and see a perfectly round melon. Here's looking forward to an easier last 6 weeks!

Really guys, this again?

Daddy the Duck

 In other news, my little bumblebee turned 7 months old today!  Where is the time going?  I just want her to stop growing for a year.  Then, other times I can't wait for her to grow up.  So is the life of a mother I guess.

7 Months Old

 All for now.  No pictures of the new helmy yet but will post soon!

Week 4 & 5

We're getting a new helmet!  Finally.  Our orthotist came to terms with the fact there is no fixing this original helmet and we are going to get casted again (poor Quinn) tomorrow.  Here's hoping this one fits nicely.  Sheesh, she'll have been in this poorly fitting one for half the entire time!  What a stinkin' waste.  ALTHOUGH...we had our follow up appointment with the neurosurgeon last week and he saw nice improvement.  Her cephalic index went from 94% to 90% in the four weeks she was wearing it.  So I guess it's not all that bad.  I think the visit is what prompted the decision for a new helmet.  The orthotist was at the follow up appointment and the neuro guy basically bashed the helmet fit. 

I wanted to share a couple pics of the decorated band before it hit helmet graveyard.  I think it turned out so cute.  We're debating whether or not we'll decorate this new one.

In other news, our little birdie has taken to dancing.  She dances to any beat she can find.  It's so cute!  Today she was dancing to firetruck sirens.  Love her.

Week 3

Ugh.  Helmet still pops off after 3 1/2 weeks.  Obviously we are not seeing that much of a change because the helmet is never on her head.  The orthotist actually said last "adjustment" that there was nothing more he could do to get it to stay on and that she'd just have to grow into it.  Really?  I really hoped this would be an upbeat blog with great stories of how my sweet baby girl's head is rounding out making her even more beautiful than she already is.  Now I just feel like giving up. We are headed to another orthotist for an evaluation next week. We'll see if they can offer anymore advice.  Plus, I'd like them to take a look at this horrid fit!

My poor little love bug. She's having to endure this helmet which she hates and she's not even getting the full benefit of it.

Recent head shot.

Sorry to be Debbie Downer.  Let's hope it starts to turn around!

In other news, our Miss Piggy had her 6 month appointment last week and tipped the scales at a whopping 20.15 lbs and 28 1/4 inches long!  She is perfectly healthy and has learned many new tricks like sitting on her own and waving.  She also will break out in dance any time she hears anything remotely like a rhythmic beat!

Week 2

My baby bird turned 6 months old today!

So my grand plans of being a super blogger?  Yeah, not doing so well!  Ha!  It's been a busy week.  Baby Quinn has been having a heck of a time with her helmet.  Or should we say the helmets been having a heck of a time.  We cannot seem to get it to stay on her head.  She's been sleeping like a champ because every morning when I wake up, the helmet is sitting nicely in the corner of her crib.  Argh.  We had it adjusted today and hopefully that helps.  Although, I can already see a dark red spot forming and when I put her down tonight...shift shift shift...it looks precariously close to popping off.  I'm starting to doubt this orthotist.  Ahhhh, breath in breath out.  I just have to have faith her little head will round out eventually.

We finally got her band decorated this week too!  I think it turned out great.  I will post a few pictures soon.  We went through Bling Your Band.  Coree was really easy to work with and the stickers are just what I had hoped for.  I recommend her to anyone!

In other news, we started little baby bean on real food!  She ate like a pro, so stinkin' cute.  Today is her 6 month birthday.  I cannot believe it has been that long, it seems like just yesterday I was holed up in the hospital.  What a precious little gift she is.  I'm so blessed that she is HAPPY and healthy except for a few minor cosmetic issues.

Chow Time

Hope you all are having a good week!

First Week

They say the first week is the hardest. Well, I'd have to agree.  We started off great.  She barely noticed it.  Then we attempted to have her sleep in it.  Naps...OK.  Bedtime...uh not so much.  She got up every hour the first night until I finally took it off at 4am and we snuggled in bed and got a few good hours in. Second night got up every 3 hours but it took 2 hours to get her back to sleep. Fail again.  On full time wear day she was a pro.  Didn't seem to notice it at all.  I pulled it off at 6pm to give her a nice little bath and noticed a big ol' red spot that didn't fade.  Argh.  Too late to call the orthotist so she slept without it.  Ahhhhh, 10 hours of uninterrupted sleep, but no helping the flatty.  When I called the office first thing in the morning they said they were booked solid (really?) and to just wear it intermittently until my regularly scheduled appointment tomorrow.  I attempted to have her sleep in it again tonight but the red spot just got darker.  Another night wasted.  I hate to be little miss negative, but it seems I just wasted a week of probable growth and those two nights of no sleep got us nowhere since we are back at square one with her getting used to sleeping in it. 

Let's hope we get these kinks worked out and on our way to fixin' that flat!

Finally, some zzzzzzzzzz's

Happy to have the helmet off!

Helmet Day 1

Little birdie got her helmet today. :(  I guess it really wasn't as bad as I was expecting, but it's not fun for Mommy no matter how cute she looks in it!  She was in it 3 hours today and will go for the 2 hour stretches tomorrow.  Honestly, I don't even think she noticed it was on.  I'm nervous about nursing her in it, but have faith it will be just fine. I am designing her "bling" and hopefully will give her some style in the next couple of weeks!

Check out the cutey in her cap...I love the one in her saucer, looks like she's groovin' to the beat!  What a little chunk.  More tomorrow...

Last Days

It's official.  In two short days I will have a helmet baby!  For now I'm just taking every opportunity I can to snuggle that sweet, fuzzy head.  I'm so glad I snapped this photo while we were enjoying the Florida sun today.  Her blonde locks are just so gorgeous!

Doubts

So, today I have a lot of doubts about the decision to helmet.  There's that small nagging part of me that worries the helmet might cause brain/development issues down the road.  Then I think, what kind of issues would the flat head cause?  Ugh.  I know it could be WAY worse and I should be so happy I only have to deal with a flat head, but sometimes I can't help feeling sorry for myself...and my little munchkin.  I hope I'm making the right decision!

The Dreaded Casting

Well, it's over.  The casting that is.  I think I was more worried for this than the actual wearing of the helmet.  I heard horror stories about how it's a traumatic experience and it takes 15 minutes, etc.  It really wasn't that bad at all. The office staff was warm and friendly which really helped us calm our nerves.  My husband came with us and served as the entertainment.  We couldn't have done it without him!  I wish I had taken a picture of him quacking like a duck and bouncing all over the room just to make our little girl smile.  Steve, the orthotist, was great as well as his assistant.  They were both calm and moved quickly.  We took a picture when they put the stocking cap on her head and then when it was all over with the picture we call plaster face.

 Nice Hat!

You owe me one Mommy.

Plaster Face :)

The timestamps were 5 minutes apart.  Not bad.  Quinn was a trooper and really only got slightly upset near the end when she had a stocking cap on, one layer of plaster, a plastic bag covering half her face and another row of plaster.  A little annoyed yell peeped out and that was all.  After it was over, she was back to her smiley self!  We were in and out in under an hour.  I feel confident we made the right decision going with Steve and hope everything turns out well.  We should get the helmet in about 2 weeks.  We got pink.

The Journey Begins

Welcome to my blog!  I'm starting this blog because when we found out little Quinn was a candidate for the helmet, I went searching like crazy for any info I could find.  I scoured the internet for blogs, pictures, anything I could get my eyes on.  If this blog helps one mom out there as she embarks on this crazy journey, well then I'm happy.  Plus, it gives me an outlet for all my thoughts, emotions and experiences.  I don't claim to be a wordsmith or a master blogger by any means so please forgive the simpleness!  Anyway, here is where it begins...

We noticed Quinn had a flat spot on her left side at about 2 weeks.  We mentioned it to her pediatrician and he basically shrugged it off and said make the right side of her life more interesting.  We didn't really think much of it and thought it was cute how she had a "favorite position" to sleep in.  At her two month appointment the pediatrician again sort of shrugged off her ever flattening side and said "put her on her side and pin her to the bed" (yup, you heard that right).  Being first time parents, we were worried about many things, a flat spot just wasn't one of them (oh how we wish it was!).  Well, at 4 months we were told it might be a good idea to see a neurosurgeon just to have it checked out.  After about 2 minutes of glancing at her head, we were given a prescription for a helmet due to the technical term for flat head, Plagiocephaly, and sent on our way.  NOOOOOOOOO!  I could barely keep it together in the office.  Quinn had been in a Pavlik harness for the first 9 weeks of her life for a hip dislocation, now to hear she had to be in a helmet?  I had failed as a mother!  My poor baby will not have a normal babyhood!  People will stare!  I was distraught.  I had a million thoughts running through my head.  Should we?  Shouldn't we?  Would it pop out?  If it doesn't, what will she think when she's 13 and her glasses don't fit (and you know she will have mommy's crappy eyesight)?  In the end, it felt like the right decision to afford her every opportunity in life and put her in the helmet.  A few months now for a lifetime of beauty ;).  Life is hard enough, you don't need to throw a crooked face and head in the mix (they said she had forehead bossing and crooked ears, too).

 Quinn in her harness.

After the big decision to go forward came the decision on who was going to give her care.  We heard horror stories on the plaster casting so we looked for the orthotists who would do the scan.  We made our appointment with Star Cranial of Excelence.  We walked in and the office staff was rude and the second Quinn laid eyes on the orthotist, she burst out in tears.  They're out.  We decided to go with an orthotist who our neurologist highly recommended.  He swore he could do the casting in 4 minutes.  We made our appointment.  No looking back, here we go.