Delays

This Sunday was a bit rough in terms of Ds. I told a friend it was a tough "Ds week". I know there will be ebbs and flows, ups and downs, happy times and hard times, and thankfully, the happy times and gladness far outweighs the struggles for our family.

We have been working really hard in OT to prepare Johnny for crawling. He is great at rolling around, going from laying down to sitting up, and pivoting on his tummy to get where he wants, but we want the crawling. Crawling is so important for activating different muscle groups and for triggering the brain to work in a coordinated left/right movement.

Thus, we work on getting him up into a crawling position, we build those arm muscles, activate core and trunk muscles, entertain him so he doesn't get bored, give him rest time, dangle toys for him to reach for, and practice, practice, practice for the one day when it all connects together and he takes that first little movement towards independent crawling. I love working with him, I love seeing him struggle. I love encouraging him and seeing his frustrated crying face melt away into a smile. I love watching the progression over days, turning things he couldn't do into things he does with ease. I love when he tests me, Matt, or our OT, trying to figure out how far we are going to push him that day. We work several times a day and I love that special, deliberate time with him. It is work though and we have to be diligent about it.

Which is why Sunday was a little rough. Johnny has several "buddies" in his nursery class that were born right around him. Two of his buddies are twin brothers born 3 days before he was. It has been fun to hear the nursery workers comparing the three boys, the twins having beat Johnny in size, unless you look at Johnny's big feet! Well the twins and one of the other kids have all started crawling and are beginning to pull up. Which means they get to move on to the next class at church. I am so proud of their accomplishments and that they are doing such a good job. But it is hard to have Johnny "left behind" for the first time. It is hard to think that we are really working on the crawling and other milestones and it will still take some time before he gets there. I am so thankful that he is healthy and happy, but at the same time, I can't help but want more for him. So I get a little sad, then try to refocus on what we have accomplished so far, what we are working towards, and how happy I am with my little guy. He makes me happy, he is happy, and what more could we ask for at the end of the day. We use that hope for accomplishment to drive us in our interactions with him and we encourage him each step along the way.