Momentous

Abby took her first steps last night!

The event occurred in our living room after a full day and a nice dinner. Nate and I had cleaned up the dishes and were just sitting down to play with Abby-Doodle. She has been cruising around our leather ottoman for a couple months now and has been maneuvering her push toys quite well. Last night before dinner Nate and I caught Abby taking a quick one-step as she moved toward her rocking chair. So, I suppose we weren't too surprised when after dinner she took her first steps - about four in a row - to me, while I was holding one of her board books.

Nate and I were quite ecstatic that she took some steps. We haven't been altogether "worried" that she wouldn't walk, but we have had our moments of concern. Being first-time parents, we have been following her developments with the charts and timelines that "most" babies accomplish milestones. So far, she has hit each milestone within the target ranges. Therefore, I thought she'd be walking a little after she hit one year old. Not so...she's 15 and a half months old and just barely taking her first steps.

But I'm not worried any more, and neither was our pediatrician when Abby had her 15-month appointment last week. Our doctor was blown away at how much Abby talked and all the words and sounds she can say. Abby has a vocabulary of 15-20 words (growing by the minute, practically). And, the doctor confirmed what I had also read about: children who master their verbal skills first often take longer to master their motor skills. This is absolutely in-line with Abby's personality; she's always been one to chatter or read a book than go exploring. It took her a long time to learn (or want to) to crawl. I think motivation plays a big part; she's starting to get motivated to walk, so she will. She's also more cautious and wants to be completely sure of herself before taking steps. That said, she has amazingly strong abdominal muscles and enviously muscular quadriceps.

Today, Abby has only taken a couple steps for me. The babysitters at the gym did say that she walked a little on her own this morning. Tonight when Daddy gets home I'm sure Abby will take some more steps; she's always loved an audience. And as her personality has proven, Abby will really start walking when she's good and ready. And not a minute before.