Caleb Joseph at Three Years Old

I asked Caleb some questions about his life. The bracketed responses are my input when I thought clarification was needed.

What is your favorite color? Go Big Red
[orange]

What is your favorite food? Soup and cheese
[nothing compares to his love for noodles and cheese]

What do you like to do for fun? Fun, go outside
[play with Evelyn and Zach, build a train track, run in circles, watch shows, tickling, yell incredibly loudly]What makes you feel happy? Landon, singing, Mommy make me happy
[vehicles, playing with family, cheese, water, funny faces]

What makes you feel sad? Zach don’t share
[when we tuck him in for nap or bedtime, anytime we ask him to go to the bathroom, fighting with siblings]

Where do you like to go? Children’s museum, Lincoln, church, Bobo Gigi
[zoo, children’s museum, Chick-Fil-A, Daisy’s house]

Who are your friends? Daisy, Lorri is Mommy’s friend, Andrew is Daddy’s friend, Landon, Daddy, Alastair, Eli is Zach’s friend, JackWhat do you like to do outside? Scooping snow, eat snow, swing, run

What do you like to do inside? Legos, watch a movie, not pee in my pants, open my presents, lawn mower like daddy, dancing to music

What is your favorite song? Jingle Bell Rock, Jingle Bells,
[Twinkle Twinkle, Jesus Loves Me, Go Tell It on the Mountain]

What is your favorite animal? PuppyWhat is your favorite book? Go Train, Go, Choo choo train have puppy in it
[anything with trucks and trains, superhero 5 minute stories, Curious George, Paw Patrol]

What is your favorite movie? Daniel Tiger

What is something I say to you a lot? No hitting blocks
[gentle, careful, wait a second, say sorry, no, it’s time to go potty, listen and obey]What is something Daddy says to you a lot? Let’s go!

What is something you say a lot? Umm, umm, umm

Who is Jesus? Baby is JesusWe love this active, snuggly, feisty little boy so very much. Caleb broke his elbow shortly before his 3rd birthday but has made a full recovery and had the cast removed after 4 weeks. He keeps things lively, funny, frustrating and musical in our home. We are so thankful you are in our family, Caleb Joseph!

Caleb at 2.5 Years Old

Caleb Joseph
15th percentile for weight
5th percentile for height
100th percentile for adorable, full-speed, goofball boyCaleb is such a delight. He lives life to the fullest every day. Caleb is well-liked by strangers and friends. Caleb’s charming blue eyes and smile will carry him far in life. Caleb loves playing outside in the dirt and sand and never slows down or considers how high up he is climbing. He laughs easily and naps well. We adore our sweet and short boy, even when he’s playing the “scream at the other person for fun” game. We love you, Caleb! I asked Caleb some questions about his life. The bracketed responses are my input.

What is your favorite color? Blue
[orange]

What is your favorite food? Bar
[he likes cheese and noodles above all else, crackers, eggs, chicken nuggets, bars, French fries]

What do you like to do for fun? Play outside
[play with Evelyn and Zach, build a train track, run in circles, watch shows, tickling, yell incredibly loudly]What makes you feel happy? Happy!
[vehicles, playing with family, cheese, taggies, water, funny faces]

What makes you feel sad? Oh, sad.
[when we tuck him in for nap or bedtime, when he gets hurt by a sibling, checking into nursery]

Where do you like to go? That way
[zoo, playground, children’s museum, Chick-Fil-A, pool/splash pads]

Who are your friends? Names, friends
[Evelyn and Zach, Daisy, Joanna, cousins, Eli, Jack, Daddy, Mommy]What do you like to do outside? Play slide
[swings, sandbox, slide, run, throw ball, splash in any kind of water, T-ball]

What do you like to do inside? Play house
[build a train track, run, tummy time/wrestle with Dad, watch shows, read books]

Who do you love? Love
[he loves his sister, brother, mommy and daddy, and extended family, of course.]

What is your favorite song? Daysa, daysa, daysa…
[Twinkle Twinkle, Jesus Loves Me, Hello Song, John the Rabbit]What is your favorite animal? Zoo giraffe
[fish, dog, cat, birdie, tigers]

What is your favorite book? Bible
[anything with trucks and trains, superhero 5 minute stories, Curious George]

What is something I say to you a lot? I love you!
[gentle, careful, wait a second, say sorry, no]

What is something Daddy says to you a lot? Daddy home
[hey punchkin]

What is something you say a lot?
[my turn, heyyyyy, blanket, wa-wa, taggie, watch this, see it, that way, please, uh oh, outside, where are you? Song, watch out]

 

Zachariah at Four Years Old

What is your favorite color? Yellow
What is your favorite food? Banana
What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play
What is your favorite thing to do inside? Play with rescuebots
Who are some of your friends? Eli, Daisy, Eugene
What is your favorite book? Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site
What is your favorite movie? Superhero’s
What makes you happy? Nothing
What makes you sad? Nothing
What do you want to be when you grow up? A lawn mower
What is your favorite song? Jesus Loves Me
What is your favorite animal? Lions
What’s something you’re really good at? Driving the swing car
What’s something you’re not good at? Riding my bike
What is love? Looking at peacocks
Who loves you? Evelyn
What is something Mama tells you a lot? Go to bed and sleep and get breakfast and eat dinner and say give a toy back and no eating
What is something Dad tells you a lot? Go to bed
What is your favorite place to go? The zoo
What do you like about Evelyn? Playing with her in her room during rest time or watching a show
What do you like about Caleb? No, ‘cause Caleb’s naughty
What do you like about Daddy? Playing wrestle
What do you like about Mommy? Playing wrestle

Evelyn at Six Years Old

What is your favorite color? The rainbow
What is your favorite food? Chicken nuggets
What is your favorite thing to do outside? playing with Zach in the bounce house and sprinkler
What is your favorite thing to do inside? Playing with my dollhouse that I got for Christmas.
Who are some of your friends? Ellie, Ada, Daisy, Eugene, Evelyn, baby Charles, baby Alistair
What is your favorite book? Princess Stories, Superhero StoriesWhat is your favorite movie? Llama, Llama
What makes you happy? hugs with all of my family and friends
What makes you sad? When Zach punches me in the eye
What do you want to be when you grow up? A mom
What is your favorite song? Jesus Loves Me This I KnowWhat is your favorite animal? White rhinoceros
What’s something you’re really good at? Riding my brand new bike!
What’s something you’re not good at? Trying to put my feet up on Caleb’s bike and balance
What is love? When people love you
Who loves you? God and Jesus, family and friendsWhat is something Mama tells you a lot? Don’t stay up too long
What is something Dad tells you a lot? Let’s go to the park and ride a bike
What is your favorite place to go? Chick fil a
What do you like about Zach? How he plays tea partyWhat do you like about Caleb? How we play games together
What do you like about Daddy? How I play run into him
What do you like about Mommy? How she hugs me and does my hair

 

Caleb Joseph at Two Years Old

What a little man he is! We love Caleb so much. He is such a comical kid with a great sense of humor.  He squints and smiles at us at all times of the day and pretends he’s sleeping. He has a large vocabulary and speaks in 2-3 word sentences. Some of the most common words are “wawa (water),”  “cheese,” “loader (any truck),” “rash (trash),” “ba (bath),” “bah (bar),” and “nack (snack).” This kid deeply loves cheese and any form of pasta you put in front of him. Caleb has been a sweet child who requires a lot of snuggles between 4 and 6pm. He has been to the ER at least 6 times in his life. Unfortunately he’s had croup on multiple occasions and is quite accident prone. A few scars and one nebulizer later, we seem to have things under (temporary) control.Caleb loves playing with balls and the toy kitchen. He is fascinated by choo-choos and particularly likes Thomas the Train and Chuggington. He loves playing in all sources of water, whether that is the tub, sink or water tables at the Children’s Museum. He loves playing chase and peekaboo. Caleb loves to pet/chase our two cats and enjoys dogs at the grandparents’ homes. He identifies most animal sounds in books but is particularly gifted at his “meow” and “baaa.” Caleb is a great musician! He can match pitch and echo intervals. He loves singing silly songs and playing the piano. Caleb is very interested in saying and identifying body parts on his body and then on the person to whom he is talking. “Nose” and “teeth” are mentioned every time. Caleb loves reading books that have trains, animals and trucks. He most enjoys short stories and is working his way up to longer narratives, like Curious George. Caleb takes a long afternoon nap (2-3 hours) and sleeps most nights from 8pm-7am. Caleb adores his family. He immediately asks for Daddy when he wakes up and smiles widely when he sees his siblings emerge from bed. We all enjoyed Caleb these last few weeks over Christmas while we drove in the evening. He dutifully informed us, “MAMA, DADA, MO LIGHTS!! OH, LIGHTS!!! Wooooooowwww.” We laughed a lot at his enthusiasm for Christmas lights (and the lights that were only vibrant street signs) that we passed. Caleb gets into trouble when he throws his food (at every meal), spits out his food, pulls other’s hair, or on the rare occasion bites an arm. He is really quite a docile child but does engage in toddler mischief. One of his favorite games is to throw all the toys off of a surface. He is not as good at the picking them back up game. A summary of Caleb at two years old would not be complete if I did not mention his special relationship he has with his Taggies. These small tagged blankets are his security item and he clings very tightly to them. We currently have three, one for each sleeping area and one for the car. I may need a few more since finding a good time to wash them gets difficult when he won’t let it go. I am very glad that he finds them so soothing and interchangeable! He makes groaning sounds when he’s rubbing the tags and/or falling asleep. We call it his fog horn, because it can be surprisingly loud. We love our son so much. He may be vertically challenged compared to the rest of us, but look at those twinkling, dreamy, blue eyes, people. They melt my heart every day. When asked to describe Caleb, Zachariah (3 yr old brother) replied, “Caleb makes a mess!” Evelyn (5 yr old sister) said, “He’s sleeping in his room with his taggie.” Happy 2nd Birthday, Caleb Joseph!

Caleb at Eighteen Months Old

Caleb is now eighteen months old! Caleb is such a sweet boy. And crazy, funny, demanding, loving, needy, hangry, and easy-going. He runs around and chases after the big kids as much as possible. He gives the biggest open mouth teethy kisses. Caleb can give you a slap across the face that you will not soon forget, all in love and silliness, of course (but it still hurts and we discourage it.)Caleb is a mini-Jacob. And we do mean mini. He is 30.5″ in height and weighs 21lb 2oz. Only the Lord knows how we genetically produced a child in the 6th percentile for height and 12th for weight. We’re happy to know he is healthy in all areas and there is no cause for concern with our itty bitty boy.Caleb loves swinging and going down slides at the playground. He picks up the trash he finds and hands it to a parent, usually after licking it. Caleb sings and can match pitch! He “talks” all the time and is very emphatic. He nods his head and grunts “uh” for yes. He can say Dada, Mama, no, cheese, please and all done. When he bellows at you in a foghorn level voice that means he’s thirsty and wants you to hand him his water. The foghorn does not stop until the water is attained.Caleb likes to eat all kinds of food but he especially enjoys hummus, any kind of pasta, string cheese and bananas. His favorite snacks include veggie straws, granola bars and popcorn.Caleb adores his older brother and sister. He and Zach are starting to play and interact more every day. We hear lots of giggling coming from their room at night. Zach is getting better at making Caleb laugh and sharing toys with him. Evelyn continues to treat him like her own baby and is quite good at rescuing him from ledges or other places he has wedged himself in.Caleb’s naughtiness comes out in throwing food from his tray at every meal. He also loves to play in the toilet water and toss in the battery-operated trains. He certainly does not let go when he’s got a fistful of hair. He has also been known to chuck whatever small or large object he is holding at another person’s head. This does not feel good for the receiver of the object. Overall, he’s a very well-behaved kid for his age. Though he and his brother put together without Evelyn to report on them can cause exponential trouble. I learned that lesson this last week when Evelyn was gone and the boys got into all manner of mischief (e.g. Playing in used cat litter and spreading it like confetti.)Caleb is always happy to wake up and he gives excellent hugs. He enjoys reading short books and sitting on our laps. Caleb loves being thrown in the air and hanging upside down. He laughs wildly when his tummy is tickled. He makes other smiles with his big blue eyes wherever he goes.We love you, Caleb!

Zachariah At Three Years Old

Zachariah Daniel is turning three years old! What a crazy, sweet, silly and strong boy he has become. He has so much fun with trains, planes, cars, trucks, etc. Anytime he draws or paints he always tells us that it is a bulldozer. He can name all the construction trucks that we drive past on the road. Zach loves watching all shows involving trucks and trains. He often pretends that he is an Octonaut and is playing with Quasi and Peso. He loves all Curious George stories and movies. That silly monkey makes Zachariah laugh and laugh. Zachariah loves reading books and will sit for long periods of time! He eats very little, aside from the jellybeans he receives each time he goes potty. He has made great strides in the bathroom zone and we hope in another six months we will have smooth sailing. Zach loves running, especially when he’s chasing his big sister. He runs down sidewalks, around the yard, through the house. He excels in brushing his teeth and allowing Jacob or me to brush his teeth also. Zachariah has challenged us as parents at times. We are continually learning about who he is and how to bring him up in a good and godly way. He has some extra struggles with emotional management and sensory input, but we are so proud of the ways he has learned to communicate and problem solve with us during frustrating moments. Zachariah is such an amazing member of our family and we are excited to see how he grows this year and how he likes preschool and swimming lessons. We love you tons and tons, Zachariah Daniel!The answers were ascertained by handing him a chocolate chip for each response. He very much enjoyed the chocolate question game. What is your favorite color? red
What is your favorite food? red food, more food; chocolate
What is your favorite thing to do outside? play
What is your favorite thing to do inside? outside
Who are some of your friends? Eli and me. We were pretending we were dragons.
What is your favorite book? Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site
What is your favorite movie? Curious George
What makes you happy? Chuggington
What makes you sad? ‘Cause I don’t get to watch Chuggington
What do you want to be when you grow up? a superhero cape
What is your favorite song? Jesus Loves Me
What is your favorite animal? giraffe
What’s something you’re really good at? at being an animal
What’s something you’re not good at? chocolate
What is love? that means love
Who loves you? Mommy, Eli and Jack
What is something Mama tells you a lot? time to go for naptime
What is something Dad tells you a lot? time to go to naptime again
What is your favorite place to go? to church
What do you like about Evelyn? I love her as an elephant
What do you like about Caleb? I do like Caleb
What do you like about Daddy? I like Daddy
What do you like about Mommy? I like Mom

The birth story of my new…labrum

First of all, let’s get this whole labrum thing defined, because frankly, it’s a weird and uncomfortable word to say out loud in conversation. Guess what? You all have a hip labrum too! “The acetabular labrum is a ring of cartilage that surrounds the acetabulum of the hip. The anterior portion is most vulnerable when the labrum tears.” This is another helpful description: “A hip labral tear involves the ring of cartilage (labrum) that follows the outside rim of the socket of your hip joint. In addition to cushioning the hip joint, the labrum acts like a rubber seal or gasket to help hold the ball at the top of your thighbone securely within your hip socket.”

When your hip labrum gets damaged or torn/frayed, really bad things happen. The hip socket becomes inflamed and the muscles and tissue all around the hip and groin are in constant pain. It is very unfortunate that once the labrum is torn it cannot heal on its own.

“What did you do to yourself?”
Succint Version: I had an anatomical predisposition to a labral tear due to an over-rotation of the hip socket. The bone positioning (possibly caused from and) combined with back-to-back pregnancies, running for a half marathon and breastfeeding kept my body from a period of rest and led to major irreversible hip damage during my third pregnancy.

Longer Timeline Explanation:
Allison got pregnant. Allison gave birth to Zachariah, June 2014.

Allison started training for the half marathon in 2015. She felt great, trained well, and lost lots of pregnancy weight.

Allison took a pregnancy test in April 2015 near the end of her training. It was shockingly positive.

Allison ran the half-marathon a couple weeks later and PR-ed. She felt great. She was healthy.

Fast forward to September 2015. Allison had signed up for the 5-mile Buffalo Run in Lincoln. She was six months pregnant. She ran it very slowly. Her hips felt great.

Here’s where things start to get ugly. Allison continued into her third trimester and her right hip/groin started hurting. It got worse, and worse, and worse. The night before Caleb’s scheduled water induction she was barely walking and distinctly remembers getting a couple things from Target and basically dragging her right leg behind her massively pregnant self.

I will now exit from this exciting third-person perspective.

Jacob and I thought that all the pain would go away after birthing Caleb in January 2016. Getting him out and relieving that enormous weight and pressure did help a lot. It went back to hurting badly but I could walk again.

We moved to Omaha in April 2016. There was a lot going on in our lives, to say the least. Over the next several months I sought out therapeutic treatment and nothing helped. I started with a chiropractor, then a physical therapist, then a pelvic physical therapist, then a physiatrist. The physiatrist saw me a couple times before he walked me next door to the orthopaedic surgeon. And that is where the line of doctors ended. The orthopaedic surgeon looked at my MRI, took new x-rays, read my reports and determined within a minute that I had a labral tear and would need arthroscopic surgery. We would not know until the surgery was happening whether it would be a labral repair or labral reconstruction.

On March 27, 2017, my daughter’s fifth birthday, I went in for arthroscopic hip surgery. I was under for about 3 hours. I woke up in extreme pain and felt like my body had been sawed in half. Whatever pain medication they gave me before the surgery was nowhere near enough. I was so thirsty. I must have had my mouth open with the breathing tube the entire time. My lip was fat and sore. After waking up they wheeled my bed to the recovery room. I was to move from the bed to the recliner chair with help. I was shaking in pain but the nurses called me a ” determined patient” and “tough cookie” and helped me over. I met Jacob in the room and he told me that I had labral reconstruction. Crap. That meant more pain upfront and a longer recovery and time on crutches. Perfect for my life with three little kids…
I ate a bagel and then attempted to go the bathroom. I puked. Somehow I got myself kneeling on the floor and to the toilet. I have really no idea how I did that in my condition. The nurse and Jacob helped me back to the room to get dressed. I asked for privacy for a couple minutes and then sobbed with my sweet husband because I was in so much pain.

We eventually got on our way home. I felt awful. I puked again, this time in a doggie bag the nurses had provided. The first two nights I set alarms on my phone to wake up and take oxycodone. After that I weaned off and switched to ibuprofen. I hate how narcotics make me feel sick and dizzy. I would rather have pain.

I saw pictures of the inside of my hip joint at my 2 week post op appointment. It was gross and fascinating. The labrum was a frayed mess. The hip socket was covered in red patches of inflamed bone. In my husband’s teasing words, “At least now we know you weren’t making the whole thing up!” The surgeon’s PA told me about the bones of the hip socket and ball that were shaved so they don’t have a chance of rubbing again. My new labrum was created from cadaver tissue. It looked very tidy.

Fast forward to 4 weeks post op. I still have more pain today than I did before surgery. My leg has gotten stronger but my range of motion is quite limited. It’s come a long way though from being dead weight. I could barely even step into our shower the first couple weeks. I go to physical therapy at 6:30am three times a week. The activity causes pain but it’s also ensuring that I become more flexible and stronger. The tissue massage and electrical stimulation are soothing. The hip and surrounding muscles have to relearn how to function again. I still use one crutch in the home. I can’t carry Caleb around. He’s 15 months old and quite mad about the whole event.

FAQs
When will you feel better?
– the intense pain should be better in a couple more weeks (6 weeks post op)
– it will not feel “normal” for six months.
– it will not be fully healed for one year.

When will you be off crutches?
When I can walk without a limp or pain. It’s not a matter of specific days you have to wait, it just depends on how quickly the hip socket and labrum heal. There is still a lot of fluid build-up and inflammation because of all the trauma to the area during surgery.

How many times a week do you go to physical therapy/how is physical therapy going?
I drive myself a short distance to physical therapy 2-3x a week at 6:30am. That timing assures there is no need for childcare since Jacob is still home in the morning. Physical therapy helps strengthen and my hip and increase range of motion. It hurts.

Can you get pregnant again?
Yes, in 6-12 months it would be safe to be pregnant again and the damage should not repeat because of the bones that were shaved. That said, future pregnancies are not on our calendar at this point. I’ve been in pain for almost 20 months now from this pregnancy-induced injury and the chance of messing this recovery up is slightly terrifying.

What has the doctor said?
You’re going to hurt for a long time! We really beat you up in there. – Surgeon
I would rather have my hip or knee replaced than the surgery you had. – PT
Four weeks out of surgery is like day 2 for pain recovery. It’s still really fresh. For you to be off of pain meds (narcotics) is amazing. You are tough. – PT
Motion is lotion. But don’t do too much. – PT
The numbness you feel will turn to pins and needles next. That’s the nerves waking up. – PA
You should feel great in a year. – PA
You are a conundrum. Your body is the perfect storm. – Pelvic Therapist, before surgery
Can I see your hip pictures? I would love to look at it as an example of the people who we try to help and don’t progress. (The unlucky 10%) – Chiropractor, after surgery
Are you healed yet? – husband, after every PT appointment

I’d like to express a HUGE thank you to all our friends and family who have helped us out these many weeks. We are so appreciative of all the time and food you’ve given us while I am on the mend. We could not have done this without you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Evelyn at Five Years Old

We love our beautiful Evelyn so very much. She is such a delight. I am not even kidding. Yes, she’s a child who has her fair share of irrational tantrums and such, but she is one of the sweetest kids I’ve ever known. She sings all the time. She makes up words and/or tunes. She is constantly using her imagination to interact with everything around her. The grapes (or anything in sight) become Mommy, Daddy and the babies. She frequently walks around the house talking to imaginary friends. I have not heard specific names lately. I believe it’s a mixture of animals, princesses, and whatever else is on her mind. She is completely girly girly girly. She loves princess movies, stories, dresses, etc. She gets home from school and puts on a princess dress, swimsuit, or leotard and tutu nearly every day. Her brothers adore her. Zach follows her around and mostly obeys her commands when playing together. Caleb loves playing with Evelyn every afternoon in her room. He giggles at her silliness and lets her dress him in ridiculous clothes and put clips in his hair. She can be a very good helper when taking care of him by bringing his milk, snacks, or diapers to me. Evelyn goes to preschool at Golden Hills Elementary School four mornings a week. She has a wonderful teacher and gets to work on her social skills and learn new things all the time. We love her class and are excited for her to attend kindergarten there in the fall. And I cannot neglect mentioning that our dear Evelyn is such a book lover just like her Daddy. She can “read” by herself for long periods of time and wants to bring home every book from the library. I’m so glad she inherited this quality and I hope she is a lifelong reader. What is your favorite color? yellow, and pink and purple and blue, all the colors and white
What is your favorite food? spaghetti that I can suck up with my tongue
What is your favorite thing to do outside? play with my bike in the summertime
What is your favorite thing to do inside? draw pictures and count
Who are some of your friends? Emilie and Travis and Emiliano, I think Claire, Lily, not Travis and Xena
What is your favorite book? Peter Pan
What is your favorite movie? Peter Pan
What makes you happy? hug and kisses
What makes you sad? Zach biting me
What do you want to be when you grow up? a nurse
What is your favorite song? Aurora “I Know You” and Ariel “Under the Sea”
What is your favorite animal? ponies
What’s something you’re really good at? making pictures and making get well cards
What’s something you’re not good at? by making superhero capes. It would be hard because I don’t know how to get the shape of a WonderWoman cape.
What is love? by dancing and getting married and having cake and having a wedding
Who loves you? God and Jesus
What is something Mama tells you a lot? not leaving my lamp on and wasting it. Clean up my room after naptime.
What is something Dad tells you a lot? Time for pajamas
What is your favorite place to go? Cousin Clara’s house
What do you like about Zach? he likes princesses too
What do you like about Caleb? he was so cute when he came out at the hospital and I got to hold him
What do you like about Daddy? he likes doing tummy time
What do you like about Mommy? having you read me a story and having these pictures in my room and I love how you hug me, and that’s all of my things.

A Year of Caleb Joseph

NewbornOne Month Old
Two Months Old
Three Months OldFour Months OldFive Months OldSix Months OldSeven Months OldEight Months OldNine Months OldTen Months OldEleven Months OldTwelve Months Old (and super wriggly)