Freedom is...

being able to wiggle your bum back and forth, and scratch your own kneecap!

At least that's what Miss Paige would tell you freedom is! Her cast came off last Thursday. Finally...it is behind us. Forever, hopefully.

These first few days have been rough for her - as her muscles are reacting to being out of the cast and she is having a lot of tremors. She is incredibly stiff and doesn't want to be moved around too much just yet.

And her skin is pretty gross. When the cast first came off, we couldn't even wipe it because it would peel off when it was rubbed. Now, its getting a bit crusty and crackly. I didn't know this until her cast came off last year, but skin actually regenerates inside of a cast similiar to the way it grows in the womb - a moist environment that makes it like newborn skin.

She is even covered in a fine layer of hair, like a newborn is - and its very funny, because its exactly the shape of the cast - from her ankle up on one side, from her knee up on the other. Even the little hole that was cut out for her belly is not furry, but everything else is.

She's still very unsure of herself, and is just starting to sit up - she had her first bath on Sunday, and I think it felt wonderful, because she was anxious for another last night.

She has a hard time regulating her body temperature, as the cast was sort of an insulator, so she doesn't like being cold at all!

So, next week, she will try half days at school to see how it goes. She will go in her wheelchair for now, and we are getting a walker for her, that she will be able to start using within the next few weeks. Her surgeon guesses it will be between 9 and 12 months before she starts walking independently, which I think is a good estimation - she was just, just starting to take a few steps before this last surgery.

She has been a bit tempermental, which is soooo unusual for Paige - pretty demanding and hard to please, lol. But each day is getting a little better, and hopefully it won't be long before the last two years are just another story for our family to tell.

Thanks so much for all of the well wishes and prayers - they surely helped!