a giant step for leahkind

over the past week i could see that dd was progressing towards eventual independent walking.

it started with her crawling to the wagon-walker on her own, getting up and pushing it along. this was probably about 1.5 weeks ago. whenever she and the wagon became stuck (she doesn't know how to turn it around) she would squawk for me and i'd come along to face it another way, and then she'd be off again, on her little walk. during this period, i also saw that she was standing and squatting slowly without holding onto anything.

then about 6 days ago i noticed that dd was beginning to take a couple of tentative steps of her own, before she rushed to a nearby support (e.g. the couch or a chest of drawers). this didn't happen often - maybe once a day - but i guess she was slowly building up confidence and strength.

to help her along, whenever i led her on "finger" walks, i would only let her hold onto one hand instead of both hands. to my surprise i found her quite happy to do so. over a couple of days i began to see that she was a lot steadier on her feet and didn't falter as much, although there were times when she would stumble onto her knees. but she didn't seem to mind those 'falls' and always got up to continue her walks.

then a few days ago my parents came up. i think that the extra walking exercises she did with them and the fact that she now had a bigger audience to please, boosted her confidence a lot. in fact, she wasn't too pleased to be carried by them and insisted on walking (holding onto one of their hands).

it culminated yesterday in a real walk of 5-6 steps towards gonggong. unfortunately, i wasn't there to witness that momentous occasion, which was not repeated that day.

then today, after her dinner, i left her to her own devices while i chatted on the phone. suddenly i noticed that she was standing, one hand gripping a tv remote control, then she walked about 7 steps before she dropped the remote and stopped. she squatted, got up and took another 2 steps before squatting again to pick up the remote. then she walked another 8 steps to her step-n-play activity station!

her last 2 steps were a bit rushed and she grabbed the side of the toy for support, dropping the remote again. this time she didn't pick it up but she turned to me and did her funny face (at the moment she likes to 'twang' her lips and make a 'bunghbunghbunghbunghbungh' noise) before smiling cheekily. it was as if she was saying, see i did it!

she hasn't repeated this walking feat as it was bathtime immediately afterwards and bedtime followed.

i doubt that she would be walking on her own immediately tomorrow, as i am sure that she is still working on her balance (anyone who sees her stubby, chubby little legs will admit that her tiny feet have a lot of weight to bear and her baby fat must be a factor in why she's not walking early) and confidence. nonetheless, i am so very proud of her. (tears in eyes)