Through this blog I would like to share my own experiences of baby DDH so it’s important that you get to know a little bit about the main players who will regularly feature in my posts.
The Mum - Jessica
Originally from Townsville, North Queensland, I moved to Melbourne in 2009 after completing law school at James Cook University. In Melbourne, I worked as a lawyer for about 7 years and got busy building a family. My eldest daughter, Chloe, was born in 2012. She is now 5 and has just started school (I still can’t believe it!). I married my husband, Rich, in 2014 and my youngest daughter, Mackenzie, was born in 2015. She is now 2 and her hips are all good.
Last year I decided to take a break from the lawyer life so I could spend more time with my family. One exciting day I went through my camera roll to delete literally thousands of useless photos that I have collected over the past 3 years to free up some storage space (so I can take thousands more). So many of the photos featured baby Mackenzie in her Pavlik Harness. I had almost forgotten (or perhaps repressed) the Pavlik Harness and so seeing the photos brought back so many memories.
Most of the photos featured Mackenzie in odd looking clothes that didn’t fit her properly. Or strange workarounds (like the time I “made” legwarmers by cutting the legs off an old pair of Chloe’s leggings – photo below). I decided to open a store selling all of the things that I wished I had easy access to when Mackenzie was in the harness.
So here we are and I am so excited to be here.
The Dad – Richard
My daughters and I are all strong willed, independent, emotional females and my wonderful husband, Rich, keeps our household sane. I won’t post Rich’s life story here (you can read about him on Wikipedia!) but I will point out that Rich’s cool, calm and rational nature helped ease the pain of our hip dysplasia journey.
The Big Sister - Chloe
Chloe is a wonderful, unique child. She is energetic, ridiculously intelligent and she is fierce. She will beat you in a standoff over yoghurt 9 times out of 10. Just don’t turn off the tv when Octonauts is on and you will be fine.
Chloe was a testy toddler during the time Mackenzie was in the Pavlik Harness which made the experience extra spicy. That being said, she was and still is a very caring big sister to Mackenzie and she would always help Mackenzie make the most of her daily hour of harness free time which regularly included a play in the bath, helping her eat baby food or teaching her to roll over.
The Star of the Show – Mackenzie
My little Kenzie is the reason I am writing this and you are reading it. She wore a Pavlik Harness for 8 months to treat a dislocated hip and hip dysplasia.
Completely unlike her big sister, Kenzie was a totally chilled baby. I would often wonder if she even noticed the Pavlik Harness during those 8 months – it became a regular part of our life so quickly. These days she is a (reasonably) chilled toddler with perfect hips, but if you put her sultanas in a bowl instead of a cup, you will live to regret it. Kenzie has no recollection of the Pavlik Harness whatsoever and for any anxious parents who are wondering, I haven’t seen any evidence of mental scarring.
Grandma – Kathy
My mum and business partner, Kathy, has a passion and talent for all things sewing and craft (a talent which I did not inherit).
I took full advantage of these skills to create prototypes of our roomy and cozy baby sleeping bags when Hipsleepers was just a speckle of an idea. Kathy also hand sews our V Shape Pillow Cases and is happy to take orders for custom prints/colours. Contact us if you would like to make an enquiry.
For more posts about life with a baby receiving treatment for developmental dysplasia of the hip, browse our blog here: https://www.hipsleepers.com.au/blog/
To view our range of specialty hip dysplasia baby clothes and accessories, click here: https://www.hipsleepers.com.au/shop-all/