These Hips Don't Lie!

Today we had an appointment with #2's doctor about her hips.  We don't have to do surgery!!  We are still going to continue OMT, and we are going to start physical therapy, but we don't have to do surgery!!  I am so crazy excited.

 To better illustrate this, here are some pictures.  I don't have really amazing pictures of the before, because I didn't realize what was going on.  So here are a few, and they are both old ones!  I didn't realize how long this had been a problem.

 If you look closely, you can see that her left leg is kind of at a funny angle.  At the time I just thought, yeah, she is a baby, they sit funny.  However, I didn't notice that her left leg was ALWAYS up like that and much higher than her right leg.  As a result, her left leg grew faster to compensate, making her left leg 1/2" longer than her right.

Here is another before.  At the time I just thought it was super cute that she would sleep while holding her foot.  But it wasn't really normal that her leg was always up so high.  The problems were more obvious while she was relaxed and sleeping.

 This is her leg after her first OMT appointment.  I mean, could you see a bigger difference?

This is her at her appointment today.  Look, she can sit up!

Oh, and a great bonus to all of this is, with the OMT helping realign her hips, and because we found this problem so early, her right leg has caught up!  Just like her left leg grew more because her hips were tilted, and as they straightened out, her right leg grew more to even out. 

She still can't roll over, and she doesn't seem close to crawling at all, but surgery is no longer in our plan!  So excited for this little girl!

Little Vacation

Hod was able to get a week off work.  I've been missing family, so we decided to drive to see the family we have that lives the closest.  We had a wonderful time!  My girls were able to spend some time with some of their cousins, and they loved them!  I didn't take a lot of pictures, I was too busy playing, but I think the few I did take were winners!

 #1 playing with her cousin.  This was a fun moment for me because #1 is just getting so she wants to play with people and not just next to them.  Look how cute they are!

 Cute Cousin licking off the beater after we made sugar cookies.  (And I like the handsome man licking a beater in the background.)

We went to a cathedral and it was beautiful!  The girls were really pretty good while we walked around.  This part was #1's favorite, because I actually let her get down and climb on the benches.

A beautiful quote outside of the cathedral.

Sadly I didn't get any pictures with the older cousins who my girls were also big fans of.  Over all it was such a great week!  Thanks for putting us up, L4!

And this is totally random, but last Sunday at church we had our primary program.  They sang all of the verses to Follow the Prophet.  Turns out #1 loves it.  She became quite the distraction as she danced along.  I thought you all may like to see it.  Cause she is stinkin' cute.

And we can't leave out #2!  She is such a sweet girl.  We are still doing OMT on her hips, but she is making great progress.  Next week we will find out if we need to meet with a surgeon.  But through it all she keeps smiling!  Oh, and she FINALLY cut her first two teeth!  So happy for her!

Ladies, Get Over Yourselves

I don't live in Utah.  I used to, but I moved about a year ago.  Sometimes I rely on social media to let me know of the big happenings going on there.  And I recently learned about something that makes my blood boil.  Seriously.  This ticks me off.

http://fox13now.com/2013/08/30/group-of-mormon-feminists-push-to-be-part-of-priesthood-meeting-at-general-conference/


ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!

Ok, so I'll admit, I like some things about the equal rights for woman movement.  I totally believe that women should be able to vote.  Women should be paid the same wages for their work.  It is true that in many situations a woman has to be better at something than her male counterparts to be considered equal.  I experienced that when I was in High School and in College.  It may seem like a silly example to you, but when I was in school, I was a drummer.  In some areas, this has changed, but often girl drummers are not the norm.  I remember a specific example where we were practicing a cadence that my male section leader had written.  He told me it was difficult.  As we were sight reading it, right as we came to the "difficult" part, he stopped everyone.  I was a punk, and I kept going.  The look of shock on his face when he saw that I could play this part was hilarious.  He couldn't even play it.  He figured he would have to water it down to make it playable for me.  HA!  This particular gentleman had been less than kind to me, voicing his opinion that girls aren't meant to play drums.  I knew he thought less of me and my skills because I was female.  Once I showed him that I was actually better than he was, he started treating me with respect.  That entire situation was just wrong!

But the Church is NOT treating woman without respect!  Men who truly honor the Priesthood treat woman as more than their equals.  I DO NOT need to be ordained to the Priesthood to be equal to a man.  And, lets think about this really... Can a man use the Priesthood to bless himself?  No.  So, as a woman, when I already give all of myself to my family, teaching them, trying to care for them, often sacrificing myself... why in the world would I want another responsibility?  Why give me something else that adds pressure, that doesn't even benefit me?  Some people may be saying, "But, Paily, having the Priesthood totally benefits the man!  They have an extra measure of the Spirit when they exercise the Priesthood power."  Heavenly Father is not sexist.  Yes, he gave the men a job that woman don't have.  They are not entitled to extra spiritual experiences because of it!  A loving Heavenly Father will never limit my ability to feel the Holy Ghost.  Only I can do that.

It is interesting to note, that the article mentions that in factions of the LDS church woman have the Priesthood.  I'm sorry, but if you are looking at people that fell away from the Church as an example of what the body of the Church should be doing... You are probably looking at in the wrong place.  Don't you think if they were doing everything right that they would be part of us?

And, let's not forget, Woman can fight for equality all they want, but we will NEVER be the same as Men.  Men will never be the same as Women.

Honestly, not having the Priesthood has done a lot for me.  It has greatly benefited my marriage.  I was 26 when I got married.  I had been living basically on my own for years.  I was working to provide for myself, taking care of myself, and doing anything I wanted to do.  When I met and married my sweet Hod, those attitudes didn't change.  He often felt like I didn't need him.  Men want to feel needed, just as Women do.  He realized that I had more education than he did, I could get a better paying job, I was used to doing it all.  There was one thing I couldn't do for myself.  And that was anything that involved the Priesthood.  Having something that I had to go to him for strengthened our relationship.

Men and Woman are meant to be equal partners.  We are both needed.  If I too held the Priesthood, then I would need my husband for little more than his ability to get me pregnant.  (Sorry if it is crude, but it is true.)  Most woman who have had children will tell you that there is something so sacred about the experience.  Yes, it hurts and is agonizing at the same time, but during and right after the births of my two girls I have never felt closer to God.  Is God sexist because he has allowed me to experience this, and he doesn't let men?  NO!  I am not saying that childbirth is equal to the Priesthood.  What I am saying is, we have different jobs.  We have different responsibilities.  That does not make us less than equal.

I lived in Western New York for 18 months.  During that time I was able to attend the Hill Cummorah Pageant.  This is a commonly protested event.  People that think they know better stand there and try to get things to change.  My first year going to the pageant we parked across the street from the pageant.  We had to walk through all of the protesters to get there.  I will always remember the feeling of confusion and anxiety I felt walking through them.  But then, as I was able to walk onto dedicated ground, I was filled with the Spirit of the Lord.  It left no question in my mind of the truth.  Protesting is not the way of the Lord.  Maybe if you are looking for the Lord to change, you should change.  Remember Jonah in the Bible?  The Lord asked him to do something, and thinking he knew better he did what he wanted.  That didn't work out to well for him, did it?

One last question for those who think Women need the Priesthood.  Why do they need it?  I understand some woman want it, but do they NEED it?  We need to learn to differentiate between our wants and needs.  I often think I know what I need.  Thankfully Heavenly Father doesn't listen to me, and instead gives me what I really need.

If you have questions, take it to the Lord.  But don't throw a fit trying to get your own way.

A Word of Caution To This Tale

#1 loves to play with my phone.   I let her sometimes.  She really enjoys texting.  Most often she texts her dad, because I'm texting him most of the day.  She pokes at the keyboard for a while and makes random non-words.  It makes her happy, and we like that.

However,  it appears that she has figured out how to add words to my phone's dictionary.  Not a huge deal, but I text by Swiping.  I run my finger over the letters and all sorts of gibberish pops up now.

So, when you get random words from me (Like now my phone always tries to say "sui" for "so") just know that is a bit of love from #1.

A Little Hope

Today #2 had another doctor appointment.  We visited her doctor for what is called an OMT appointment.  I don't have a clue what OMT stands for.  It is hard to explain what these appointments are like.  By applying constant, gentle pressure, the doctor aligns different things in the kids bodies.  They generally focus on the skull.  It is slightly like a chiropractor... only to the untrained eye (like me) it really doesn't look like anything is happening.  The average appointment involves about 20 minutes of adjusting.  And they do the entire body from hip to head.  Today it took 25, and almost all of that was on #2's hips.

And I can see a difference.  The doctor taught me some things I can do to help keep it aligned.  If we can continue to keep things right, and if we can keep getting this much change at each appointment, we may be able to avoid surgery!  It is going to be hard work to get here there, but there is some hope!  I would MUCH rather have lots of doctor appointments and be inconvenienced by having to change the way I do things and do lots of stretching and adjusting here at home, than do surgery.  We were meeting with the doctor every six weeks, we have switched to every two.  For now we are keeping our appointment with the surgeon, just in case.  But, if things continue to change then we will be able to cancel!  SO HAPPY!!

Giggles

#1 and #2 are really starting to enjoy each other.  Not always, but sometimes, most often when we are in the car, I will hear giggles coming from the back seat.  They aren't doing a lot.  They just look at each other and smile.  #1's smile makes #2 giggle.  #2's giggle makes #1 smile.  It is a beautiful cycle.  I love it.

In other news, we finally got an appointment with the surgeon for #2.  Unfortunately, the next open appointment is on October 5th.  That is really far away.  Something about this city, if you are good at all, your next available appointment is always at least a month away.  It totally bugs.  So... guess we just try to keep her comfortable and happy til then?  She is starting to get frustrated when her body holds her back.  She tries so hard to roll over, but then ends up giving up with the saddest little cry.  Poor kid.  She is such a sweet girl!

 #1 has decided she really likes my shoes.

Just playing under the coffee table.  #2 scooted herself there.  She lays on her back and pushes herself around with her heels.  Way to adapt kid!

So, my phone does this thing where if I take a bunch of similar photos in a row it puts them together into something like this.  #1 really felt the need to do my hair.  (I hadn't planned on all of the pictures being put together, so please pardon my crazy faces!)

Little Help

So, in about an hour I am going to the hospital with #2.

A few weeks ago, I started noticing that something wasn't quite right.  #2 can't straighten out her body.  If she is standing up her little bum is sticking out.  When she lays on the floor she always has her legs up.  If I try I can force her legs down, but then she has to arch her back. She also can't roll over.  Her top half can do it, but she can't get her legs to follow.  I could tell something was off.

She had a well check today and I talked to her doctor about it.  We currently know very little.  Her left leg is longer than her right.  And something is off with her hips.  We are going to the hospital for x-rays to see what is going on.  In a perfect world, everything is normal and we just need some physical therapy to get her hips to work correctly.  In an imperfect world we will find out that she needs surgery.

I'm kind of freaking out, and trying not to.  I mean, really, in every other way she is perfect.  I just hope a little physical therapy is all that we need.

So, if anyone feels inspired to pray for my sweet girl that everything is fine, that would be great.

*UPDATE 7 hours later*  I heard back from the Doctor, and I guess the x-rays aren't awesome.  They didn't take shots of what the doctor wanted so she couldn't see everything she hoped to see.  However, she did say that the hip is where it is supposed to be, and nothing looks broken.  (I didn't even know broken was an option!)  She is still pretty concerned, because there is obviously something unusual going on.  I just keep hearing that her "hips are really tight!"  I don't know what that means.  The doctor wants to meet with us next Wednesday morning to look at her hips some more.  For now, she is thinking that we should probably meet with a pediatric orthopedic surgeon because they would have a better idea of what to look for to figure out what is wrong.  So, I guess we still don't really know anything except that the obvious isn't the problem.  We'll have to keep trying to figure this out.  Thanks for the kind thoughts and prayers!

Accidentally Inactive

While serving my mission, I met a lot of women who thought they were still active in the Church.  They hadn't been to church for over a year, but because they knew the truthfulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they still felt they were active.  They had just gotten out of the habit of going to church.  I never understood those women.

But I'm starting too!  (Don't you worry, all, I'm not losing my testimony or anything.)

The month #1 turned 18 months old (yeah for being able to go to nursery!) Hod switched positions at work.  Now he has to work two Sundays a month.  I have learned who is willing and able to help me during Sacrament meeting, so we still go.  I get a little help during that meeting, and then for the rest of church #1 is in nursery so I'm fine!

But, you aren't allowed to go to nursery if you have a cough or a fever.  Lately about once a month #1 has both.  Now, because we have 1:00 PM church, I always miss Sunday School.  #2 does not like to sleep while being held, and that is nap time.  Because of this it takes me about 30 minutes to get her to sleep.  Our Sunday School teachers are very enthusiastic, (which is awesome!) and their loud voices wake her up.  When Hod is at church we trade off who gets to go to Sunday School.  #2 is usually super happy during Relief Society, so it is all good there.  Our building is currently under construction, so as of last week, only the Chapel, the Nursery, and the Bishop's office have doors.  If you have a crying kid in the halls EVERYONE can hear you.  Because of all of this, if Hod has to work, and #1 gets sick, we just stay home.

Now, I did try going to Church one week by myself with a sick #1.  We left half way through Sunday School.  After 20 minutes of screaming by both girls I just took them home.  We weren't getting anything that day.  It has been a full 6 weeks since I have been to church with Hod.  Either he has to work, or #1 is sick so one of us stays home.  (Usually me, cause I get to go to church more than he does.)

I miss church.  Have two under two while your hubby works is hard.

In other news, someone tried to break into our apartment last night.  They pulled the screen out of #1's bedroom window.  The window was locked so they couldn't open it.  I called dispatch to have someone come and look at it, but there isn't really anything we can do.  SO glad we put our 60 day notice in last week!  I'm giving sick #1 a few extra kisses today.  (cause she is sick and because someone tried to break into her room.)

#2 can sit up, and can stand.  She still can't roll over.  But she is getting close.  She seems to not have any desire to crawl at all.  When I put her on her tummy she holds her head up for a while, but then she gets all pitiful and plants her face on the floor and cries.  It is pretty sad.  She is such a cute kid!

I think #1 is getting close to being ready to toilet train.  We decided to start sitting on the toilet, just to get her used to it.  She hates it and screams.  I think she is afraid of falling in.  We need to get one of those little toilet seats to help with that.  I wish she could communicate better.  But we are getting a referral for a speech therapist.  Just waiting for the nurse to call me back.  (Well, not today, cause it is Sunday.)

The other day our couch broke.  So, we went window shopping.  Looks like it is time to start saving up!  We actually found a couch that we both like.  Seriously, that is a big deal, we have very different tastes.  It is a couch where we don't have to touch each other, and we can both be comfortable.  We feel old that we are to that point.  Sometimes, at the end of a long day, you just need your own space.

I am FINALLY feeling like a non crazy person again.  Yeah for being 6 months postpartum!  So glad to feel like myself.

Hod is working hard.  He is kind of over his job, so he is looking around for a new one.  And he starts online school in a few weeks.

Busy times at our house!