Getting AFO's: Part 2

Well after four week of waiting we finally have Rae's AFO's (read about the casting process here). Yesterday, we went to Hanger Orthotics to pick up her "magic" shoes (All I hear in my head is Forrest Gump, "Momma says these was my magic shoes."). Ben came in and gave one of the AFO's to Rae. Of course it had to pass her inspection...

First, she had to touch them....

Then, true to nature, she had to taste test them.

Guess they passed muster because she allowed Ben to put them on.

We expected a little complaint since the AFO's were stretching her feet, but it went very smoothly.

It looks like she has a small paddle on her foot.

A few minor adjustments to the length and we'll be ready to go.

Rae was a very patient client while we waited on Ben to trim all the extra material from her AFO's.

The finished product!

If you look close enough you can see the tiny butterfly.

When we first put them on her she was in a good mood and I think she really liked the sound they made when she kicked her feet against her stroller...

Getting AFO's: Part 1

Today was an exciting day, not that every day doesn't contain some form of excitement, but today was just a bit different. We had our appointment with the local  Hanger Orthopedic office and Rae was measured for her first pair of Ankle Foot Orthotics (AFO's) this afternoon.

This was probably the quickest appointment I have ever had with Rae. Once I signed in at the front desk Ben, a Licensed Orthotist Certified Orthotist (seriously wouldn't Licensed Certified Orthotist be sufficient?), promptly greeted us and showed us to our room. He confidently explained how the casting would be made, offered suggestions about color options, and made sure I was at ease with the entire process. Unfortunately, Rae was not at ease which resulted in squealing, whining, and screeching during most of the appointment. True to form, I took my camera to her appointment and photographed the process:

Here is a diagram of her AFO's. They didn't have an example in the office so I figured this would suffice.

These are all the swatches I had to choose from, which included: Superman, Spiderman, butterflies (2), hearts (2), camouflage, and the American flag (to name a few). After sending pictures to a few friends and family, I ended up choosing a purple butterfly print, purple foam padding, and purple straps (I was going to use pink padding and straps, but Ben said it gets dirty looking quicker than the purple).

Rae was fairly quiet at this point, but that was before Ben started putting socks and a wet gauze like casting material on her legs.

Ben slipped socks (one to add room for her actual socks and one to attach to the casting material) onto her leg along with a tube that helps keep the scissors from touching her skin when he cuts the soft cast off.

Then it was time to start wrapping.

The right leg was done in no time and here's the finished product. It will be used to mold the plastic used to make the AFO's into the shape of her leg.

Then it was time to cast the left leg (it's pretty much the same as the first).

It was at this point that Rae became fussier. Ben had to push on the bottom of her left foot to set the cast in the proper position. She was not a happy camper (see video below). The muscles in this foot are tight and at times it is uncomfortable for Rae when we try to stretch them.

The left cast was cut off...

and now we wait for 3 weeks before picking up the finished product...on Rae's 2nd birthday.

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!