Chatting

Megan has been very chatty with Will lately.  Tonight he was hanging with her on the couch and she was pointing at things around the room and making her "what is that" noise.  When she does this Will names everything in the vicinity of her hand.  At one point Will was talking to me instead of telling her what things were and Megan touched his mouth and then pointed at something.  He said she has been doing that the last couple of days.  She asked him to tell her what something was.  How smart of her.

She also decided today to point at all of her/our body parts when we say them.  She has known them for a long time but doesn't like to "show off" when asked.  Yesterday during her evaluation I told the lady that she knew them but wouldn't point to them so as per her usual reaction she started pointing to them immediately after the lady left.

Daisy & Star, discovering a whole new world

Yesterday's riding session was great.  First, it was about 10 degrees cooler and there was a breeze so no one got overheated.  During her session Megan decided to turn around on Daisy while they were moving.  It is a good thing there are people holding onto her.  At one point for a few seconds they had Daisy trotting and Megan loved it - she was all smiles.  I took my camera and hopefully got a few good shots of it.

Toward the end of the session they had Megan ride Daisy out of the arena and over to the stables.  They took her off and she stood leaning up against Margie while the volunteer got Star ready for her.  Star is the bigger horse that they were hoping Megan could spend some time on.  The rider after Megan gets to ride on Star so Margie decided to get her/him (I am not sure) ready a few minutes early and let Megan ride her back to the arena and stay on until the next rider arrived.  She ended up getting to do 2 or 3 laps and she liked it until the other therapist brought Daisy back in for another child.  When Megan saw Daisy you would have thought she was her personal pony - she did not want that other child to be on her.

Megan is continuing to stand up in her crib.  She has even managed to stand up at the back rail which is much higher than the rest of the railing.  She grabbed onto the slats and pulled up that way.  That is the first time she got up with her hands in a different position than just flat on a surface.  

Will said that bath time last night was an adventure.  He was constantly having to remind Megan that we sit down in the bath tub - she wasn't standing up but she was getting up on high knees to do everything.  This is new - she has always just reached for the ledge, etc only getting up on her knees very rarely.

Tonight before dinner Megan was riding on her trike and she has discovered that she can reach so many things that she couldn't before by standing up.  She rode over to the kitchen table, stood up and reached for items on it.  I love that she is realizing all of the things she can see and do when she is standing - I want her to get to really explore her world.

Standing up in her bed

I put Megan down early today so that hopefully she would get a full nap instead of me having to wake her up for her session with Daisy.  About 15 minutes later I heard her giggling, a lot, so I checked on her and she was standing up at the end of her crib.  I have been watching her and she has pulled into standing 15+ times. Every time she stands up she starts giggling and eventually sits down and then does it again.

This is such a huge thing for her.  She wants to be up, she is getting up by herself and she is having fun.  It is possible, like when she learned to sit up, that she will not get any sleep today but I will work with that for this breakthrough.

Moving right along

This morning started off great with Megan pulling into standing twice at the coffee table prior to breakfast.  When she attempted to pull up at the couch she was a little off balance and rolled over on her ankle and didn't make it all the way up but fell over.  After that she wouldn't even try to stand up again for the rest of the morning, even with my help.

This afternoon she was still not interested in standing up.  I am sure what she did to her ankle hurt but I don't think it is still hurting, I think she just remembers it.  I had an appointment during dinner so when I got home it was late but I wanted to get her shoes on her to see if that would help.  I put her shoes on her and Will got us the wagon.  She stood right up and ended up walking and pushing the wagon all the way across the kitchen (about 18 feet).  She fell 3 times because the wagon got away from her a little bit but when I caught up to her and held it so she could get back up she would take off again.  She walked about halfway back across by herself too.  Then she saw the trike and went all over the place on it.

Just before getting her ready for bed I worked with her for a couple of minutes at the coffee table.  She pulled up 3 times and even cruised a little bit.  I guess after this morning's incident she needed the support of the shoes.

I am so proud of her and how well she is doing.

PT Session and stairs!

Megan decided that she was going to be nice to Mandy today and cooperate.  It has been a long time since she has done anything for Mandy; Mandy has had to rely on my updates and videos to see her progress.  Well today....Megan rocked her session.  Not only did she walk behind the wagon - she pulled up at the wagon 3 times.  She also took several steps behind her car.

About halfway through the session Mandy took Megan's shoes off so she could look at her feet and ankles.  This is when the fun really started.  Megan started pulling up at the coffee table without any assistance.  She did it every time Mandy put the toy she wanted on the table.  Megan would stand up, grab the toy and sit down to play with it.  She did this 10+ times.  Until this morning Megan hadn't pulled up by herself in a long time.  At one point Mandy put a toy on the couch to get Megan to pull up there - Megan has pulled up at the couch by grabbing the side of the cushion where she can get a good grip.  I started to remind her where to hold on and she just put her hands down flat in the seam and stood right up.  She is so much stronger than now and doesn't need the extra effort with her arms.

Tonight Megan crawled up onto the landing and looked up the stairs.  She has been doing that 2-3 times a week for the past couple of weeks.  I decided that maybe we could give it a go tonight and see if she would climb some stairs.  As Mandy put it - if she can climb up onto the landing (which is a stair) she can climb stairs.  Prior to tonight Megan wouldn't even attempt to climb the stairs - she would just sit and look up at them like "no way man".  I sat on the 3rd stair and tried to entice her to come up.  She tried to climb but she couldn't really figure out what to do and wasn't making progress unless I literally pulled her up.

After a few minutes we told Sam it was his turn (no way we are having both kids climbing the stairs at the same time).  Sam climbed up to me and while he was doing it we kept telling Megan to watch him.  I put him back on the floor and had him climb up 4 or 5 times with Will pointing out to Megan what he was doing.  This time Will took Sam away and I sat on the floor behind Megan and put the toys on the 4th step.  Megan climbed right up 2 stairs to get to the toys and then I helped her safely climb down to the first stair and sit down.  She copied Sam.  She climbed up exactly as he had done.  She teaches him stuff all the time and she finally learned something from him.  Megan climbed up those 2 stairs many, many times before I decided it was time to quit.  Her last trip up her little legs were trembling and I had to help her.

She did all of this barefoot. Mandy said that sometimes the bulk of the shoes can make it difficult for kids who are just learning to do things so letting her go some of the time without them until she gets proficient should make it easier for her when she has them on.

Using her sign language and pulling up

Yesterday afternoon Megan crawled around the corner from the living room into the entry area.  I went to see what she was up to and she was holding onto the handlebars of the tiny trike.  When she saw me she tapped the handle bar with her hand and then did the sign for more.  Perfect!  We haven't taught her a sign for trike so that was very smart of her to find a way to tell me she wanted to ride it.  And she did ride it - all over the place.  She rode it everywhere again this morning, even figuring out how to turn it so she could go down the hallway; and quickly making her way to me to help me eat my apple once she saw I had it.

This morning I was sitting on the couch working with Sam to walk to me - he does better when I am higher than he is for some reason.  Anyway, while I was working with Sam Megan pulled up into standing two times at the ottoman so she could reach Will's water bottle.  This is the first time she has pulled up without someone right beside her enticing/encouraging her to do it.  I am so proud of her.

Afternoon session in the heat

Megan rode Daisy today for the first time in the afternoon.  Today was the hottest day we have had in a long time - 92 degrees.  Her session is inside an arena that only has 2 areas that are open to the outside.  The building was definitely warm.  I was a little warm sitting in front of an opening and I got a little breeze every once in a while.  Sam had a little heat rash hanging out on the blanket.  

Megan was riding a horse and wearing a helmet.  Megan wasn't warm, she was HOT.  When she was done with her session her face was bright red and she was hot.  I had them give her 2 drinks during her session but I am not sure how much she drank for them.  When she was off I gave her the cup and she drank for about 20 seconds straight.  I took her shoes/socks off of her and kept offering her water until she had finished off 1/2 of her cup.  

When we got home I turned on the ceiling fan and stripped both kids down to their diapers - something I never do.  They cooled off pretty quickly and loved being without clothing.  

Megan did great with her session.  She had so much fun and wasn't happy when it was time to get off of Daisy.  I didn't put her shoes on her when we got home because she was overheated and then it was time for dinner and bath, etc.  So tomorrow morning we should be back up and running.  

Trying to say "mail"

Megan loves getting the mail.  If you ask her if she wants to check the mail she gets very excited about it.  She loves opening and closing the mailbox and reaching in to help pull out the mail.  We usually have at least one piece of junk mail which I tell her belongs to her and I let her carry it.

Just before lunch today I asked her if she wanted to go get the mail with me.  I was holding her when I asked her.  Here is what happened:

Me: Megan do you want to go check the mail?
Megan: Mai - everything but the 'L' sound
Me: mail
Megan:Mai

We repeated this back and forth all the way to the mailbox and back into the house.  She tried to say it every time I said it.  This is the first time she has tried to say a word and she got so very close.  I tried to get her to do it for daddy when he got home but she was tight-lipped.  Will is excited for her but bummed that he didn't get to hear it too.

Needing Daisy, Cozy Coupe and remote controlled cars

For Father's Day the kids each gave Will a remote controlled car that is intended for children so that he could play with them together with the kids.  Megan loved chasing the cars around.  She isn't quite ready to control one yet but she was happy with daddy doing it for her.

I have been keeping my eye out for a cozy coupe for the kids - mostly for Megan right now but Sam will grow into it too.  I found one this weekend that was in good shape and was priced well so we scooped it up.  I cleaned it this afternoon during nap and put Megan in it for the first time when she got up.  She immediately started pushing it around and smiling.  She does much better in reverse but got the hang of going forward too.  We went back out after dinner and she had so much fun.  I think we will be spending more time in the driveway in her new car.

Megan is still spending time on her feet but I am having to work harder to motivate her.  She will be back on Daisy or the new pony in 2 days and I am looking forward to it.

Continued progress and dinner out

Megan really enjoyed eating dinner out tonight.  She was excited with everything we fed her and loved getting to eat Will's broccoli.  After dinner was over and she had finished her fruit Will gave her a piece of broccoli.  You would have thought he handed her a piece of candy or something - she was going nuts on that thing.

Megan has been answering yes more often when asked if she wants to do something.  She isn't just answering (instead of the smile/head tilt response), she is answering quickly and most times immediately.

Megan has never been one to come when called and this has gotten better this week as well.  She is crawling to her chair for meals now, most of the time just by me telling her it is time, but sometimes she still needs some encouragement like showing her the strawberries.  She is also coming to us when we call her.

Daddy, Sam and ut-oh

Megan has needed more time with Will than usual the last few days.  Every time she sees him she has been giving him the biggest neck hugs.  She wraps her little arm around his neck and squeezes hard while nuzzling him with her face.  It is so very sweet.

Sam loves it when you lay on top of him and squish him.  Megan sees me doing it to him and yesterday she started doing it too.  He was lying on the floor and she crawled over and laid across him.  He started laughing and she started laughing.  It was absolutely adorable.  She has since squished him a couple of more times and they both just laugh and laugh until Sam escapes.

Yesterday Megan and Sam had emptied Sam's toy basket.  Megan decided it was time to put everything back in and she started cleaning up the toys including what was in Sam's hands.  Every time she would take something away and put it in the basket Sam would pick up something else and she would take that too.  It was almost like he was helping, except he was trying to play.

Megan has Pooh characters hanging on her walls.  They each have cutouts in the back and hang on 2 nails.  A couple of weeks ago Megan wanted to touch one and when she did it came off of one of the nails and swung back and forth and I said "ut-oh" and the whole thing made her laugh.  We repeated this several times that day and several times since.  This morning she was playing with her laptop.  It was asking her to select a specific letter and when she touched the incorrect key it said "ut-oh" and Megan put her hands up to her face and laughed like she does with me.

A day full of fun

This morning after breakfast we loaded the kids into the stroller and walked to the playground.  Megan got to swing for about 20 minutes and then we walked back home.  She loves to swing so her day started off great (actually breakfast always starts her day off great).

When we got home Megan and I loaded into the car and went shopping - another thing she loves to do.  She loves riding in the cart over the bumpy parking lot.  She loves looking at everything in the store and just hanging out alone with mommy.  After we finished shopping we came home and it was time to get Sam up.  Megan and Sam played together for a little bit and then it was time for lunch.

After nap we put the kids in the new crabby spray pool.  After an initial adjustment to the cool water Megan had a great time.  We played in the pool for about 45 minutes before coming inside for dinner.  While she was getting used to the water Megan held onto Sam's hand - it was very sweet.  Sam had been in the pool for a while before she woke up so he was used to the water - but he wouldn't move around until after Megan got in. So he helped her be okay with sitting in the water and she helped him be okay with moving around and playing.  They had a great time together.

Megan went until about 6:30 without any shoes on and without me trying to get her to stand up.  We just had a fun day.  Around 6:30 she grabbed her shoes and I asked if she wanted them on and she said yes.  After putting them on she walked with the wagon several times, even pushing it herself.  She stood at the coffee table several times for several minutes each time and she cruised side to side at the table.  I had to hold her hips the first couple of times (it has been a while since she has done it) and then once she got her confidence back she was off and running.  She was even transitioning from the table to the wagon and then walking with it to the couch.  Will was playing on the exercise ball with Sam standing at it and Megan wanted to go over to him.  I helped her stand up using the ball and then she took a couple of steps forward and a couple sideways to get to where she could touch Will.

Right now she is laying in the floor with Will and he is blowing raspberries on her tummy and she is giggling. She is holding her shirt up so he can get her again and again.

Overpronation

Overpronation is when you stand on the inside of your feet instead of in a neutral position.  Once Megan started putting weight on her feet it became obvious that she overpronated - really really badly.  Until we met with someone about it we were afraid to let her keep standing that way because it looks so painful, though she never acted like it hurt.  We were assured by her orthopedist that it was fine for her to stand/walk barefoot if she wanted to, and that it wasn't hurting her.  In order to correct the overpronation Megan has been wearing orthotics, most recently the custom ones that provide great support.

There are times when Megan is standing in her orthotics that it looks like she is still overpronating with her right foot.  It is nowhere near as bad but she is not quite in neutral with that foot.  I pointed it out to Mandy a few visits (weeks) ago and she agreed that it was still overpronating but that she thought it was okay.  She said that once Megan starts walking her core and leg muscles will strengthen and that will pull her feet back into the neutral position.  I was happy to hear that because I don't want her to have to wear the orthotics, I want her to be able to wear all of the girly shoes that she wants.

Today is Friday, Megan started cruising behind the walker wagon on Sunday, so 6 days ago.  By the end of the day she has probably taken 300-400 steps (15ish steps per trip across the room), some days more and some days a little less.

This afternoon Megan was standing barefoot and I noticed that her left ankle wasn't turning in.  At first I thought it was just the way her weight was balanced but every time she stood up it looked pretty good.  Tonight Will and I took some pictures of her standing barefoot, not an easy task when she is not interested in participating.  We have about 7-8 photos.  In a couple of them both of Megan's feet are only about 5-10% off of neutral, in a couple one ankle is almost perfect and the other one is about 15% off.  I would rate her previous positioning at 50%+ off at least.  This is so exciting to see that they are correcting after such a short period of time, and that her muscles are getting that much stronger.

Tiny Trike

Mandy had a cancellation this morning so she was able to see Megan today.  Megan was walking to the front door with it when Mandy arrived so she got to see her on the move.  As usual Megan gave Mandy a difficult time but eventually she came around and showed off some of her new moves.

At one point she was pushing the trike across the kitchen floor and Mandy asked me if she liked to ride on it.  I told her that last night was the first time she would even sit on it but that she didn't go anywhere.  I put her on it to give it a go and after a couple of minutes Mandy had her on the move.  She went forward and had a little smile on her face but when she went backwards she looked over her shoulder and had the biggest grin.  She loves going backwards.

She walked back and forth across the kitchen and into the entry for several minutes.  At one point she went over to the table and played the piano before taking off again.

Tonight I put her on it so Will could see.  We were on the carpet and she was in her pjs so she moved a little slower and had to work a little harder but she still had fun.  Mandy said it is good exercise for her muscles so she will be spending time on it as much as she wants.

Various

Megan is a great sharer of food - she will take a bite and offer you a bite of pretty much anything she is eating.  We thought she would share anything until she had some cherries.  She doesn't want to share her cherries and she doesn't like it if you pretend you are taking a bite.

Last night before bed Will was brushing Megan's hair and when he was done he put the brush on the couch (they were sitting in the floor).  Megan got up on her knees, grabbed the brush and sat down and brushed the front of her hair.  She did this several times.

This morning Megan took 6 steps behind the walker wagon completely by herself - I wasn't holding the wagon to regulate the speed I just let her go and she did great.  She also took several steps behind her lion toy with me holding onto it.

Another great day with the walker wagon

Megan has done incredibly well today walking with the wagon.  She walked across the living room 10-12 times this morning and once into the kitchen.  Her afternoon didn't go as planned due to a weird nap - she didn't go to sleep until 3:30 so she didn't get her session with Mandy.  She woke up a little after 5 so she didn't get any time with me working before dinner.

A few minutes ago Megan was sitting in Will's lap on the couch.  She is already in her pjs so she doesn't have her orthotics on.  She reached out and pointed at the wagon which was in position across the living room.  I asked her if she wanted to walk to daddy using the wagon and she smiled and shook her head yes.  And then she shook her head, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.  So I carried her over to it and she got right up and walked all the way to the couch to Will, without stopping.  I put the jack-in-the-box beside Will as a reward and she asked for it after the hugs.

I put the wagon back in position on the other side of the room and after a couple of minutes I asked her if she wanted to do it again and she said yes.  So she did it again - all the way and stood there waiting for Will to pick her up.  She ended up doing it once more and we decided that 3 trips without the support was probably enough; though if she asks to do it again before bed we will be right there to help her.

If you ask God He just might tell you - UPDATED

I started a new, thankfully temporary, medicine yesterday that caused insomnia.  I was still awake at 5:45 am.  Anyway, since I was laying there wide awake I decided to use the time to pray for Megan.  I was praying for wholeness for her brain, strength for her muscles, speaking over her that she is walking, that she is talking and that she is potty trained (not even something we have tried but it was on my heart).  After about an hour of praying God revealed to me that He has already taken care of all of those things for Megan - He took care of them on the cross and that I was praying for the wrong things.  We have been saying for a long time that Megan  is capable of all of these things but that she just didn't want to do them.  AHA!  Desire.

So I started praying that Megan's desire to be on her feet and walk is so strong that she can't fight it.  That she is compelled to walk.  That she can't help it she just has to do it.  I prayed the same things for her talking and potty training.

This morning I told Megan about last night and I told her that it was time.  She has walked across the living room using her walker wagon multiple times by herself.  I have to get her started and I am pushing the wagon for part of it but she is walking by herself.  She is trying to fight it and get down and crawl and I tell her she doesn't have a choice her desire is so strong that she is compelled to walk and eventually she just takes off.  She has taken more consecutive and total steps this morning than she has to date.  She is doing all of this despite being awake from 3:30 - 5:30 and waking up again at 6:45.  She is tired but it is not stopping her because she just can't help it.

She used her wagon to walk across the living room into the kitchen all the way to her chair for snack. She stopped a couple of times on the way but she did it.  And she even transitioned to standing at her chair until daddy put her in it.

It is almost lunch time and then it will be nap time so we will get back to work this afternoon.  I setup the tripod and am using the remote to record her walking with her wagon.

UPDATE
Yesterday afternoon there was plenty of steps with the wagon, standing at tables and walking between me and Will.  Megan did great.

I forgot to mention that from before I even got up yesterday morning that Megan was being incredibly verbal.  It kept up all day and has been going non-stop this morning.  She can't help herself she is just trying to talk and talk and talk

Catching up

While mom was visiting Will decided to let me sleep in and the four of them went to Denny's for breakfast.  Will ordered french toast for the kids to share and he ordered an egg white and vegetable scramble.  He said that Megan wasn't really into the french toast but that she LOVED his veggies.  After the first bite of his broccoli Megan put the arm he was using to feed her in a "head lock" and wouldn't let him go to get more food.  He said she was so excited that she could have veggies for breakfast.

Radio Flyer Rocking/Bouncing Horse - along with the new/used trike I got a few days ago I also got this pony. It is bigger/taller than the one she already has and it has a safety seat attached so that Sam won't fall/dive off onto his head, plus in addition to rocking it bounces.  The first day that we had the new horse Megan asked to get it on several times.  If she slides off center her toes can reach the floor on one side and she can bounce and she loves to bounce.  As I have said before Megan knows a lot of sign language but she picks and chooses when she wants to use it.  Well, new horsey equals usage of sign language.  One time she did the sign for more and pointed to the horse.  She rarely uses this sign but it was in full action that day.  She also pointed to the horse one time and when I asked her if she wanted to get back on she shook her head yes.  This has also been in short usage lately - instead of shaking her head yes she has been smiling and tilting it to the side.  The pony that Megan already has plays music and talks when you squeeze its ears.  She has tried very, very hard to get this horse's ears to talk.  She is squeezing the life out of them to no avail.  The crinkle, but no music.

When Megan is in her jump-jump she likes to play with the toy table that is also in the entryway.  There is a piano on this table that has pages to change it from each key playing a song to each key playing one note.  She usually prefers to have it on the page that plays music but lately she has been putting it on the one that just plays notes.  There have been several times that she was playing with it that either Will or I thought it was a song we hadn't heard before and it took us a minute to realize it was just her playing the notes.  She has been doing such a great job of playing the keys that it sounds like music.

The orthopedist said it was fine for Megan to stand up barefoot, that it wasn't hurting her and if she was okay with doing it then it was okay.  She definitely needs the orthotics, they stabilize her so well; but there are times when she is barefoot because of what is going on.  Well this afternoon she was barefoot because she was with the sitter and they weren't going to be working on standing.  When we got home we didn't put her orthotics on her because it was almost dinner time and it just wasn't worth it.  Being barefoot didn't keep her off of her feet - she was standing at the couch, at the kitchen chair, at the toy table and just in front of me.  She has been continuing to spend time on her feet even though she didn't get to ride Daisy this week.  I am so very happy that she is keeping it up.