Spica Parent's Name:

EJ

Do You Have a Blog About Your Spica Journey?

www.sugarfreespicajustthewayitis.wordpress.com

Spica Baby's Name:

Iz

Spica Baby's Age When He or She Was First Casted:

8.5 months

Weeks In The Cast:

12

Favorite Spica Journey Memory:

Watching her crawl around within 12 hours of being casted and smiling! I knew then nothing was going to stop her - she constantly amazed me while in spica.

Biggest Lesson Learned:

It's OK to cry and worry as a parent - you will get through this! Just know your child will astound and inspire you more than you'll ever know.

What Do You Wish You Knew:

Expect tears - especially for the first few nights. It sucks and it is hard. While all the doctors say 'it's amazing how quickly they adjust' it is obvious that they don't have a child with a spica on at home.

Favorite Gear or Must Have Item:

A cast cooler - we used it everyday! it kept the smell down (everyone has the odd blowout!), her skin healthy, relieved itchiness, etc. 

Modified bumbo was also really handy both at home and to take on outings. 

Also, be sure to have a comfy car seat and stroller.

Final Thoughts or Advice:

I'm not going to lie or sugar coat this, spica sucks. However, I don’t think we’d be the same if we hadn’t gone through it. I am so much more appreciative of everything she accomplishes now. Not only did my daughter learn to crawl like a champion before the cast, but she could do it in the cast. Oh, your 10 month old is starting to cruise furniture? MINE TOO! In a spica! Yeah, she’d reach all these milestones out of the cast but still… she amazes me. 

My girl is now walking at 13 mo and I still sometimes tear up at how proud of her and all she's been through to get to this point. Soon we'll be running and jumping and I'm not sure I'd be this excited if we hadn't been in a cast for 12 weeks. 

So, overall, I’m glad we are done with the cast. While our hip journey continues I have to stay positive (like my girl) and believe we won’t be revisiting the purple turtle shell ever again. Bring on the next brace! 

HIP HIP HORRAY.