The Great Castini

Come one, come all, to the greatest show on earth, "The Feat of the Feet." The famous escape artist, Niccola Castini Brown, has been dubbed by the New York Times and Vanessa's Taco Times as the "Queen of Escapology" for her skills. Her cast-defying "feets" of the right foot have shocked and amazed doctors, nurses, and family everywhere.

(Castini shows off her amazing muscles; pictured above).

Castini's most recent escape was performed after casting under general anesthesia. The audience was certain she would not be able to escape with her right foot and failed to see her masterfully slip out of the left cast.

She managed to time her escape such that her parents did not know until she was out in the desert wilderness, a place full of deception, fitting for a talented magician such as herself.

The picture to the left shows Castini and her handsome assistant, Daddino, just after her escape, removing the cast to display her handiwork.

Niccola remained cast-free over the weekend, a badge of her skilled efforts. Doctors and parents shook their heads in awe of the Queen's stunts.

Castini's current attempt will be her most trying one yet. She has already begun the process of confinement. Before the procedure she was smiling and almost giggling in anticipation of her greatest show yet.

As Stottoni locked her into her straight-jacket and new cast, Niccola looked calmly on to her female assitant, Momina, assured of her abilities.

Castini has already escaped her straight-jacket, but so far has not slipped from her most recent cast. She has until the 16th of August to complete this feat. She is under advanced surveillance by her assistants to record exact timing of her escape. If she succeeds, she will once again attempt escape using anesthesia. However, since show-business is tough, if she fails, she will have to change her act to Brace Escape, leaving behind her once famous casting show. Can she do it?

(Niccola Castini in her new casts and straight-jacket, top; Look of concentration, bottom)

SuperBaby

Well, She did it! Nicole successfully completed her surgery! Wednesday proved to be quite the long day for us, but the results were well worth it.

After not getting much sleep the night before (I think Nicole was the only one who did sleep well), we headed off to Salt Lake for Nicole's 7:45am surgery (Posterior Ankle Capsulotomy, if you want the real name). When we got there they informed us that the power was out (they were on a generator), and they would need to wait until the main power came on to start surgeries.

Well, the power did come on...then back off again. We started getting nervous because Nicole had to "fast" before surgery, and we were already an hour and a half late. Fortunately, Nicole slept like an angel while we waited. Dr. Stotts came out and assured us that they would give the okay soon and that we were first in line for him to operate. Not too long after that we headed in.

We took Nicole in to prep for her surgery and then said good-bye at the door. Here's a picture of her before surgery, looking cute in her hospital gown:



For Matt and I, it was time to wait once again, in yet another waiting room. When you're away from your newborn baby and you can't see her at all, a couple hours seem like a long time! Finally, Dr. Stott's came in to let us know the operation was successful and that the stretch was really good. He let us know that she'd keep these casts for 3 weeks, then move on to the braces!

After that, it was another half hour wait (can you tell I was watching the clock?) before they let one of us be with her in recovery. Being the one bearing milk, I got to see her first. I knew she'd be hooked up to tubes, but the view I was greeted with was a little hard to take at first. Because Nicole was congested, and perhaps her reflux played a part, she had stopped breathing briefly a couple times during surgery. They had a tube in her nose and an oxygen mask on her face to help her out. She even had 3 nurses around her when I came in. She was trying to cry, but it was a very weak, drugged cry. I had to fight the impulse to shove everyone out of the way to grab my baby.

The nurses actually were very reassuring, and let me know things looked worse than they were, and that she was doing quite well. They let me try to feed her while they monitored everything. She was still upset and a little weirded out by the drugs, so it was more crying than eating, but with an IV to supplement, it was enough.

Shortly, we were able to move to post-op where Matt joined us. Boy, was he happy to hold his little girl finally:

After that, we stayed a while longer to be sure she was fine, then they unhooked her from all the tubes and we headed home (4:30pm). Not long after she was "freed" she was awake and able to eat. She wasn't as smiley as usual (which is more than understandable), but she was acting and looking great, eating like crazy to make up for lost time!

I am happy to say our resilient Nicole is back to her usual sweet, happy self. I am always amazed how quickly she assimilates and accepts the things she has to go through! No doubt the prayers offered in her behalf were answered.

We're so glad everything went so well, and now count down to the 16th when she gets to sport the "snowboard."

Pictures

Here is the first set of professional pictures of our girls.

Surgery

So, you know how I said Nicole was pulling her toes back? She did it again! Perhaps all those smiles yesterday were because she was trying to work her way free! Well, we hit the road again today for Primary's so Dr. Stotts could decide the next course of action.

Well, he took the cast off...and kept it off, at least until her surgery next week. That's right, surgery! Nicole's feet are so short that it's difficult to keep the cast on, and since her right heel is too verticle, the best thing at this point is to clip the tendon in her heel (different from her Achille's clipped before). Dr. Stotts was even good enough to get a second opinion from another doctor who regularly treats club feet and she agreed. This means Nicole will need general anesthesia. It's a bit of a scary thought for such a little baby to go through, but the anesthesiologists there work only on children and are well-trained. The upside is, while she's under, they should get a great stretch and will not only operate on the one foot, but recast both, and she won't remember any of it.

So until next Wednesday, our Nicole is "foot-loose" (at least on one side). Please continue to pray in her behalf that this procedure will take and all will go well.

A Flash from the Past...Mexi Style

My mom recently brought back some sweet memories of my attempts at facial hair and greased up hair. Here I am my junior year in high school...pretty sexy.

In my defence, here is a picture of my idol at the time, Chris Cornell.

Sadly, I think I ended up looking more like Bob from La Bamba than Chris Cornell.

And the verdict is...

...more casts! We knew at the last appointment that Dr. Stott's didn't get as good of a stretch he was hoping for, but today fully confirmed that. I guess girls with bilateral club feet tend to more difficult to treat, and Niole's feet are fairly stiff in the toe-down position. In addition, if you look at Nicole's right foot in the picture, it looks a little more squished than the left. Soon after her last casts were changed, she managed to pull her toes up, making the positioning less effective. We'll have to re-do the cast if she does it again before our appointment next Thursday.

The good news is, after the "torture" is done, Nicole is back to all coos and smiles!

There's no place like home...

This weekend we decided to get out of the house and visit some other homes. Our first stop was a dinner invitation and overnight stay at "Fort Solitude." It is a cabin out past Heber that the credit union's attorney, Tucker, owns. He and his wife (center back in the picture below) made dinner for everyone in collections and their families.


After dinner, Vanessa cuddled with Daddy to watch "Peter Pan," one of her new favorites (and a nice break from "Cars" and "Nemo")
Nicole got some cuddle time with Daddy, too. Don't ask me how that position is comfortable!The cabin is well set up for visitors, with rooms on each of the three floors, and even toys for the kids. Vanessa (and her buddy, Klous) loved the dollhouse. Of course, she also loved Klous' toys and snagged his little orange dog you see in the picture.

Overall, it was great overnight stay. We ate tons of food, played fun games, and stayed up way too late!

The next place on our list was the Hare Krishna temple in Spanish Fork. They were having their annual "Llama Fest" (I don't know much about the religion, but I think llamas are considered sacred). However, when we drove up, there were tons of cars, and we found out we were parked illegally, going to have to "hike" up to the temple in the heat, and pay $7 just to get on the grounds. That was when we snapped this photo, strapped our less-than-happy girls in the car, and hit the road again. Maybe next year!

Our third and final stop was what we've affectionately dubbed the "Gargoyle house." I hadn't seen it before this, and since we'd already driven down this way, we stopped by. It's $449,900 for anyone looking to buy...the realtor calls it "European style!"

Our Girls

Here are some fun pictures of our two little cuties:

Since we've almost consistently had weather in the 100's, here's a couple of ways we've found to cool off...Our wonderful A/C...

And the tub!

Nicole has developed some trademark habits. She loves putting her hands on her head: playing with her hair, covering her face, trying to find her thumb.
She also loves to smile, particularly after a meal or diaper change, and especially after both. The past few days, she has been cooing a lot, too. I have it on mpeg, but you'll have to wait until I get Matt's help on that.

Nicole handles her casting well, and Thursday we hope to learn just how many casts she may have left (likely no more than 2 after these). She is such a sweet baby and I can't wait to see her cute feet!

Vanessa is as lively as ever. She is also full of smiles, but they usually disappear as soon as the camera comes out. Here's is a shot I was lucky to get. In case you can't tell, that's a burp cloth she's wrapped Marie in. Naturally, she prefers those to the blankets I leave out for her!

Vanessa's activities are better shown on video clips, so stay tuned. She loves to sing songs and has so many expressions. She is a joy, even though she is very determined to be a true two-year-old. Lately, instead of her favorite, "No," she has started saying, "Not today!"

Lastly, Matt and I have been doing well, but have managed to pack our schedules quite full. I am even getting a new calling (I'm not official, yet, so I'm not saying what). We're thinking Matt's won't be far behind.

Being the hard worker that he is, and the ever thoughtful husband , Matt made time to set up my new "home office" (left above) so I can keep track of our insurance bills and other paperwork, and someday my other projects. He also got his desk a little more set up (right above), and swears that he is happy with the smaller desk...that no longer faces the window since mine is so huge. I love you, Sweetie!

Camping in the Uintas

This summer has really sold me (and maybe even Lisa) on Utah. We have finally been able to go to some of the places we've heard about ever since we moved here. Last weekend, we went on a camping trip to the Uintas; a place we had heard a lot about. It was awesome! It really felt like we were in a different state. Our trip was filled with dutch oven cooking, neat day trips (one of which included seeing the source of the Provo river), and fishing. It is definitely a trip worth repeating. Here are some pics of our trip.

Vanessa's favorite treat...a marshmallow

This is what Nicole thought of our trip.

Bet you can't tell who got the least amount of sleep that night.

Here we are at the Provo river falls

Lisa and Nicole at Mirror Lake (this is the source of the Provo river)

Another shot of Mirror Lake

Vanessa and Daddy waiting for our fish

Our amazing catch...which we tried to throw back, but it's probably floating upside down right now

MOOSE!! This guy was hanging out right by our campsite

Me and Dan hanging off a cliff on Bald Moutain

Believe it or not, this is Utah. I never knew there were so many trees.

Our little flower girl

And last but not least, here's Vanessa's latest performance.

Fourth of July...celebrating freedom from casts

We started our 4th this year at the Provo parade. We were fortunate enough to have some friends camp out and save seats for us. It was great to get out with everyone and celebrate our freedoms.

As the day got hotter, Vanessa responded in true form by chugging Dad's pop.

Nicole responded in a more Lisa-like way by kicking back in the shade.

Nowhere else in the world that I know of has missionaries in a parade. It was awesome to see them march down the street.

After basking in the sun, we decided it was once again time to hit the pool. We were able to get in a good hour of water time before some little kid pulled a surprise out of his pants, set it by the side of the pool, and jumped back in. We decided that was a good time to head back to the car.

To finish off the day, we had a great dinner with the girls' Utah grandma (Teresa) and her family. It was really nice to relax with them and enjoy good food. Vanessa didn't respond to well to the fireworks, so we cut the night a little short, which was good considering we had an early appointment for Nicole the next day.

Here we are enjoying one whole hour of cast freedom. It was really fun to see Nicole get to stretch out her little legs. Her procedure went really well (she had her Achilles tendons cut) and she is resting very well today.

Here are some other recent highlights

It's been really neat to see how much these two little girl love being around each other. Despite the usual jealous tendencies of a 2 year-old, Vanessa seems to be developing a special bond with her little sister.

We recently discovered a gem in Spanish Fork (one more reason to move here, Michelle). The city built this reservoir a while back, which has provided us with a free way to cool off. We spent a Saturday here with our friends Brad & Cassie, and Ian & Monica.

Birthday and a Blessing

Well, 20 years after the fact, I'm finally getting around to posting pictures of Vanessa's 2nd birthday and Nicole's blessing. Both sets of grandparents, Aunt Michelle, and Uncle Mark all made the trek out to Utah to join us. We all had a great time visiting and hanging out.

Due to typical Utah summer temperatures, we decided to start Vanessa's b-day celebration at Veteran's Pool. I think it got up to 104 degrees that day, so the water was very welcomed.

Lisa impressed us all with her decorative skills in making Vanessa's Nemo cake.

We got Vanessa her own princess dress and princess bed set. It didn't take long for her to grasp on to the idea that she was a princess.

After the party was over, Vanessa was more than ready to curl up in her princess bed for a long sleep.

The next day, we all got up bright and early for church and Nicole's blessing. I felt very lucky to have such a special spirit come into our family. It was also our last Sunday in our favorite ward since we've been married, the BYU 97th ward. We will miss it, but Nicole's blessing was a perfect note to end on. It was nice to have my dad, father-in-law, cousin Ian, and mission buddies Brad, Vince, and Ryan there for the blessing.