First Week

We faced several challenges the first few weeks. I think we're getting the hang of it now.

Bath time: Sponge baths are no fun. We're able to wash his hair and top half of his body and run warm water over him to rinse in out, but then he is sitting there, wet and exposed to the air. That's when he turns into a bright pink squealer. I can't wait until the casting is over and we can place him in a nice tub of warm water that he can enjoy.

Chaffing: Apparently the top of the casts were not padded well before they plastered them. His inner thighs now have these huge rashes on them from where the plaster rubbed against his skin. We've been applying eucerin lotion and antibiotic ointment to try and ease the pain for him, but the poor little guy will have scabs for a few weeks. With the second set of casts we asked for them to try and pad it better, so at least it doesn't look like he has any new burns from this week.

Diaper changing: Changing a diaper poses 2 problems. First, it is hard to lift both of his legs in 1 hand while cleaning and changing with the other. The second set of casts is pretty much the limit that my hands can hold, so I'm not sure how the rest of them are going to go. The other problem we have with diaper changing is the occasional sprinkler. On day one we had a little accident and ended up with urine stains the rest of the week. We got a package of baby wash cloths that we call "peepee teepees" that we now use to cover him while the diaper is off, but occasionally some pee still gets on the casts.

Awkward long legs: His legs are bent slightly at the knee under the casts, but for the most part his legs just stick straight out. Since he can't bend his legs, they make it challenging to hold him in certain positions and awkward to seat him in my lap. Worst of all, we got a nice little cosleeper for our bed so he could sleep next to us, but now he's too long to fit into it since he can't bend his legs...it didn't even get 3 weeks of use.

We'll probably just get the hang of dealing with the casts as soon as the last casts come off.