Today was Nathan's first public outing with his walker, and boy oh boy, was it great! We were birthday shopping at the Learning Tree and thought it would be a safe and stimulating place for him to try his independence out on foot for the first time.
He walked from the car, to the door, through the door and down the aisles by himself. We had to do some of the steering at times because he wanted to go off of the walkway, but other than that, he did it all by himself!
Nathan's favorite toys of the day were the texture balls. He has some at home, but he was really interested in the yellow and green ones (the colors he doesn't have). Every time we walked away from the texture balls, he turned his walker around and headed right back for them.
He loved gazing at all of the games, posters, and puzzles.
At one point he signed "piano" and got down from his walker and crawled over to a little Melissa and Doug piano that was sitting on the floor. He got very frustrated because it was covered in plastic and he couldn't touch the keys. He kept turning it over while signing "piano, please".
By the end of our trip his legs were definitely tired. We ended up carrying him out of the store and put him back in his stroller. It was the longest he has ever been on his feet, walking without someone carrying or pushing him!
It was an indescribable moment to watch him navigate on his own two feet and get to where he wanted to go without having to rely on being carried or pushed in a stroller. I know that someday he will walk independently without his walker, but he will only do it when he is ready. I am elated that there is an alternative method that gives him the independence he has fought so hard for to obtain.
And yes, I am STILL a germ freak! We were right behind him every step of the way with hand sanitizer. In addition, you can see by the pictures that we were the only ones in the store for most of the time.
Oh, and one more thing...for those of you that have been asking about the baby bump, here it is. That's about all I will reveal!
Ahhh Brandi, how wonderful for Nathan! He seems quite happy and seems to be handling his walker really well. What a great place to go for his first walk.
ReplyDeleteYou look fantastic by the way, can't wait to meet the new little one- Funny how last year I was hoping to connect with you but never was able to meet up and now you are expecting this year. Somewhere , someday my friend we will meet.
way to go Nathan!!!! so proud of you!
ReplyDeleteYour baby bump looks so cute! you look great!
Look at you fly, Nathan! Sounds like this new way to satisfy your clever curiosity is a hit. Well done.
ReplyDeleteCongrats, Brandi. I know that indescribable feeling and I wish you a thousand more in short order.
You look beautiful, too.
He must just cherish the independence - choosing to go back to the green balls, following his interests. So cool for him.
ReplyDeleteAnd a big CONGRATS to you!
I love it all! The independence, the inquisitiveness, and the baby bump!
ReplyDeleteThis is very exciting. We've never met... but reading this I think just made my day. Congrats to your boy and the new baby :)
ReplyDeleteSo,so precious and giving you a new lease on life as you get ready for the new BABY!!!!!
ReplyDeleteHe looks so big! I can't believe it.
ReplyDeleteAnd he's growing up so fast. Well, it really was a good thing for him to walk all by himself, but I never thought of doing that at the mall. Still, it's good to see that he enjoyed the stroll because of the texture balls.
ReplyDeleteDanny Riddell