A milestone that you DON'T cheer for - Kaitlyn gets her first cast...

Age of Lady Kaitlyn:  23 months and 29 days

Family,

And a good evening to you from the Queen City, where the Bull is fresh off a twelve hour day at work

and trying to wedge this post in before his trip to VEGAS, BABY.  But lest anyone think I'm giving the "woe is me" speech, I will acknowledge that my wife has had a MUCH tougher day for reasons I'm about to elucidate.  And with that lead in, let's get amongst it, shall we?

So I realize that normally I start with Kaitlyn's word count, and I promise we'll get to that.  However, while the emotions and memories are still fresh, I think it more appropriate to start with the event that prompted the title of this post - and it all started with a little text asking "How's the day going?"

Long story short - The first part of the week was great, with K getting down to Discovery Place Uptown for a play date with Marlowe and Tina, and all signs were pointing to a wonderful last full week of her 24th month.  The trend continued last Wednesday, as Jenny took K down to Mindy's for a play date with Hayden.  It should be noted that K was SO EXCITED - the whole night before she kept talking about "Hayden backpack!" and "Baby Seth!", and when you asked her where she was going, she would say "Meeendeeee."  The play date itself also started well - everyone was having fun, the weather was gorgeous and all was right with the world. Things were going so well, in fact, that the gang decided to make a trek over to Freedom Park (as you would do with weather like we had) and play on the playground.

The gang found some slides, and one slide in particular (henceforth known as "blue slide") was particularly steep.  JT let K go down it once on her own, but the incline was quite severe and worried JT.  Kaitlyn was NOT worried, however, and wanted to go down it again.  And so Jenny, being the wonderful mother that she is and wanting for foster and nurture K's sense of adventure (you'll notice a theme here in my writing, but let me spell it out clearly before we go any further - MY WIFE IS AMAZING AND THE BEST MOTHER ON THE PLANET), went down the slide with her, holding K on her lap.  Well, as fate would have it, K's foot got caught against the slide on the way down and twisted at a rather harsh angle.  What happened after that, was, well, nothing shy of awful.

Now keep in mind that I wasn't around for ANY of this.  However, given how clearly it's imprinted in JT's memory bank, I feel the below will be a fairly accurate recreation of events.  K was apparently screaming uncontrollably, just shouting "blue slide knee!" and pointing to that part of her body.  At first everyone thought that she was scared, but when K couldn't put any weight on it and screamed uncontrollably the entire walk back and then on the ride home, it was clear something was wrong.  JT, again being the amazing mother she is and having good instincts, managed to get an appointment at the Peds, who took her in for an x-ray (although it should be noted that, while waiting for said x-ray, there was a FIRE ALARM, meaning they had to stand outside for 20 minute - did I mention this is the SECOND TIME this has happened when we've been to the Peds?  And it's not like we're there every day.  Anyhoo...).  Oddly enough, they didn't see anything on the x-ray and said that it was probably just a sprain.  They sent the film onto our Children's Hospital here, who said they would look at it and call us if they saw anything.  With that plan of attack, JT brought K home, where she was still in pain and could bear no weight.

Snack time for the munch on Thursday - it
was so much easier to bring the food to her
vs. trying to move her pre-cast.

I got home late that night - all I'd had from JT was a text that said "Interesting day - all ok.  Will tell you when home."  Well, of course I couldn't handle that, and so I had to call on the drive home.  K was in good spirits and eating when I arrived, but anytime you picked her up, she screamed and was clearly in pain.  In the bathtub she kept scratching her leg, and it was clear something was wrong.  To be fair, we still thought it was just a sprain coupled with exhaustion (she'd only slept 45 minutes), but when she woke up the next morning and still couldn't walk, we knew something was wrong.

The Peds called later that morning, telling us that the folks at Levine (that's the children's hospital) had reviewed the film and confirmed the unexpected - K had a broken tibia.  Although booked, those fine people managed to make a spot for us at 2:40, and so we jumped at the chance.  Oh, and did I mention that, throughout all this, we picked THIS DAY to transition her to a big girl bed?  That's right, folks - if you're gonna make the switch and change a baby's routine, YOU GO WHOLE HOG.

Here's the deal - we'd been planning to make the jump since Atlanta, and our thoughts were multiple fold.  For starters, it was going to be much easier to get her out of a big girl bed on the floor vs. leaning

into the crib (less painful for her as well).  Secondly, it's not like she was terribly mobile, so we realized we could use this time to get her used to the new bed and get her into the habit without having to deal with a munchkin constantly crawling out of bed and heading to the bookshelf.  Third, we felt that it was time anyway, and given that her focus was elsewhere, she might not react that adversely to the change. And while I will speak more on this in a bit, I am VERY happy to report that, at time of writing, she's still sleeping in her big girl bed and has only had 1 reversion (which we predict will be the last!).

Okay - back to the story at hand:  K didn't fall asleep that day until almost 1:30, and then we had to wake her at 2:00 to get downtown for our appointment.  Parking was a nightmare, but we did arrive in time and found the Levine Specialty Center.  Now a quick word here - obviously it's terrible when your kid breaks a bone.  Heck, it's awful when they get injured or feel bad period.  But when you go into this area of the hospital, there are basically 2 ways you can go - 1 is for things like broken bones.  The other is their cancer research center.  Family, let me tell you something - when you look at that door, you realize how blessed you are that you're not walking through it and hope and PRAY you never have to.  And it was with that sobering thought that we rolled into the broken bone wing and kicked off quite the adventure - getting K into a cast.

So another bit of commentary here - the staff was amazing, and the service was top notch.  We had to do follow-up x-rays, and through them we learned that K had a clean break straight through the middle of her tibia from the ankle to the knee.  K got to select her cast color ("Pur-pullllll"), and I think she genuinely enjoyed having the cast molded to her (she winced a bit when he formed it around her knee, but most of the time she was mesmerized).  The good news - once that cast was on, she was INSTANTLY pain free, and her cute little smile returned almost immediately.

Here's the experience in photos:

Act I:  The check-in

Act II:  Uncertainty and Discomfort

Act III:  Rapt Fascination (and some comfort)

Act IV:  The selection of "Poopul Cast"

Act V:  The instructions

Another bit of commentary - my poor wife was DISTRAUGHT throughout this entire process.  And Jenny, I am going to say it again for the cheap seats - THIS WAS AN ACCIDENT, AND YOU SHOULD NOT BE UPSET WITH YOURSELF.  Things like this happen, and K won't even remember or know it happened until we show her the pictures (just like Jamaica!).  You are the THE BEST MOTHER I have ever seen - I mean that! - and don't you ever doubt for a second the care, love, and protection that you provide the Sneetch each and every day.  I know this was tough, and I'm sure that, in your shoes, I would have felt the same way.  But look at all the love and hugs K is giving you - all is well!

The good news is that, since the cast, K has been (largely) all smiles and very happy (certainly pain free).  Helping her mood has been a generous portion of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, some Mickey stickers, lots of Peppa Pig, plenty of books, and even some visitors (more to come on that in a bit).  All in all, she's been happy, and has even managed to become mobile again!  She is doing an amazing job of crawling, scooting, and pulling herself wherever she wants to go - she's even tried to stand up a few times and jump!  What's cute is when she watches Mickey during the Hot dog dance.  At first she tried to get off the seat, but now she realizes that she can't dance.  Instead, she just bounces in her seat and kicks her free leg up and down - too cute!

The new feeding position - the pillow to
keep her foot elevated.

Also, she's continuing to love the Big Girl bed.  At night when you say "do you want to sleep in your crib or Big Girl Bed?", she always points to the mattress and says "big girl bed."  She usually also asks for "air pump!," but we've stopped turning that on to appease her (no drama so far :-)).  On Friday, K actually wouldn't stay in her big girl bed, and after she crawled out twice (JT went into her room and found her by the books saying, "Reading, mama") Jenny moved her to the crib.  K went INSANE, but the good news - after that, she has NOT crawled out of the bed once.  I think she realized that the big girl bed was a privilege and a sign of growing up, whereas reverting to the crib was a prison.  So far the lesson seems to be intact, and last night we even made the switch from the air mattress to the actual crib mattress.  K was a little confused (at first she was pointing to the crib), but soon enough she figured it out and went to sleep on a bed of stuffed animals. :-)

Needless to say Mickey is now getting ALL
KINDS OF LOVE.  

The weekend itself was fantastic, as Dad and Alice showed up on Friday night for the weekend.  We had an absolute blast, and K was treated to a few more birthday presents!  She's now the proud owner of a Minnie Mouse plush, and she also got a little more money for that college fund - thanks, Granddaddy and Granny A!  They were also the first signatories on K's cast.  For K's part, she was in Heaven, as Alice had all kinds of games on her tablet (which kept K in rapt fascination for pretty much the whole of the visit).  K really enjoyed a memory game (picture a simpler version of Classic Concentration) and actually became quite good at it - genius, I tell ya!

Still smiling!

So there you have it - quite the roller coaster week of emotions for Team Taylor.  K is in the cast for 3 weeks, and our follow-up appointment is on March 30th.  The doctor said this type of break really was common and didn't seem concerned, and some of the reading I've done said that kids normally just break bones before getting sprains given their physiology at this age.  JT is on the mend emotionally as well, and I now think harmony has been restored in the Taylor household.  All the same, we'll ALL be glad when that cast is off (20 days - not that I'm counting...).

In terms of other development items, K's vocabulary continues to explode - most notably in the form of simple sentences!  Within the past week, I've heard:

And forever scholarly...

1.  "Dada Running" (she saw me in a picture at the Chicago Marathon and knew the gear equates to my exercise)

2.  "Girl painting!" (a sticker in a book)

3.  "Dada working!"  (she knows this is what happens when I close the door to the office or give her a kiss downstairs before heading up)

4.  "Dada beer!"  - HILARIOUS!!!!  This one (my personal favorite) came out of the blue on Saturday after I cracked open my first beer post-race (30th half marathon in the books, baby!).

5.  "Mama gym!" (when she sees Jenny in the read Singapore Shirt - a sure sign she's swimming)

6.  "Reading Mama/Dada" - it really all depends on who she's in the mood for

And as for the words, WOW - here's the latest and greatest:

1.  Doughnut (she hasn't tried one - just saw it in her Elmo book)

2.  X-ray (no surprise where she learned this one) - the funny thing is that now, whenever she flips through a dictionary or word book, she ALWAYS says "x-ray!" when she sees the image

3.  Dollhouse

4.  Jumprope (from Sesame Street)

5.  Sloth (the stuffed gift from the Ticos)

6.  walking (and she will add "mama walking" and "dada walking")

7.  crayons

8.  umbrella

9.  gym

10.  gym bag (she can identify JT's gym bag and follows it up with "Mama gym!"  She then usually goes on to name her two favorite caretakers - Brenda and Kathy, aka "Binda Kateeee" - so cute...)

11.  backpack (from Hayden)

12.  Piano (not sure how she learned this one, but it is arguably her FAVORITE WORD in the "Baby's first dictionary" book - she always says piano as soon as she picks up the book and wants to flip straight to it)

13.  Ribbit (I mean, come on - just go with it)

14.  Squeak (because, after all, it IS the sound a mouse makes)

15.  Gobble (that's right, baby!  K now knows the Turkey noise!)

16.  Mud - this was on the Tuesday I think, and I was outside with K playing.  The weather was gorgeous, but the rain from the previous day had left the ground quite muddy.  K played for quite a while outside and eventually had mud all over her shoes, some of her clothes, and a nice streak on her cheek.  When I went to clean it off, she proudly announced "mud" - Tomboy in training, baby...

17.  Tag (as in the tag in her pants)

18.  Pants - so K is now desperate to try and put her own pants on.  JT is a saint with regards to this, always patiently trying to explain to K that a) the tag has to be in the back, b) you can't put both legs in the same hole, and c) it is virtual impossible to put pants over a cast.  K has been getting quite frustrated, but I'm pleased to report that JT's persistence has paid off and progress is visible (more to come on next week's post, as I don't want to steal all the thunder there)

19.  "Uptown" - so whenever JT drives uptown now, K always says "Uptown!"  She's actually taken it 1 step further, saying "Uptown dada working."  Basically, she now understands the concept that "daddy works in a building uptown," and that's where he is when he's not at home in the office. What's funny is that, when I read to her and we see any picture of a building, she always says, "Dada!" and points to it.  I mean, seriously...adorable...

20.  Kangaroo (not quite as cute as when she says koala, but it's pretty darn cute)

21.  Cream

22.  Peter Pan - so this one blew my mind, but K can now name almost ALL of the characters from my old Peter Pan book!  She has fired off Tinkerbell, Wendy, John, and Michael so far, and I'm starting to work on Captain hook and Tiger Lily.  It's actually been really amazing for me to read some of my old books to her, and she's loving some of them (the Bunny Book, Scruffy the Tug boat, and Peter Pan).  Two aspects in particular have been wonderful.  The first has been opening each one, seeing who gave it to me and the date/occasion presented (given that he's no longer here with us, the ones that have Granddaddy's name always make me smile).  The second has been that, as we work through more of them, I'm starting to remember some of them from my childhood - most notably "Sesame Street Count to 10."  I must have read that book a basquillion times, and it's CRAZY to look through those pages and remember things like the 9 dragons who wanted to play baseball, King Hungry the 8th, etc.

23.  Mermaid - see above - tied to Peter Pan

Lastly, K is continuing to show off her memory skills and association.  The first came when we were looking at the dictionary book and saw the zoo.  K said, "May May Mac Mac Zoo," remembering that she went to the zoo in Tampa with them.  The other was when Jenny and K were going to Discovery Place.  JT mentioned that they were going to meet Marlowe, and K heard "Maya" (another friend.  K then said, "Maya choo choo train mall," a memory from a few months back where she and Muffin Puffin rode the train around Concord Mills (best $8 JT's ever spent :-)).  Bottom line - that mind is a steel trap right now, which is a VERY large reason the Bull has decided to curtain his language severely.

So there you have it, a CRAZY week in the books, but one that will definitely live forever in the memory of Team Taylor (well, the adult portion, at least).  For my part, I am happy to report that my girls are both doing well, and hopefully JT's psyche is healing as quickly as the Sneetch's leg.  3 weeks to go in the cast, so stay tuned for more adventures!

Love,

Sam and Jenny