New Montessori Toy

Henry is finally walking! I will not lie; I was a little worried that he still wouldn't be walking by the 16-month mark and we would have to take him to occupational therapy (per our pediatrician's warning). He started at about 13 months and is now pretty steady at 14 months. 

We worked really hard to let him develop his movement naturally from birth. He spent a lot of time lying on his back or stomach on his movement mat, looking at mobiles, gazing at himself in the mirror, or looking at black-and-white books (instead of hanging out in infant seats or swings). He started rolling over both ways at three months, so that he could move around the room and it seemed like he was going to be advanced in his development. He started "army crawling" at five months, so that he could get to Hoss. But after that, he either hit the milestones on time or late. He had no interest in sitting up (he only wanted to reach for things, not sit and look at things), and he only recently started walking. He was much faster at crawling up on his hands and feet, so I don't think he was interested in the slow, laborious process of walking. 

I don't mean to sound like a crazy, alarmist mom; I'm just being honest about the worries I felt as Henry's younger peers starting walking before he did. In those moments, I tried to talk myself down from the ledge by reminding myself that Henry was advanced in other ways. I also reminded myself that a trained Montessori teacher once told me that Montessori babies tend to take longer to learn how to walk because the environment is designed so well to meet their needs that they have little incentive to learn how to walk.

And then I reminded myself that I was wasting valuable time worrying about such inane things. Kids advance at their own pace in their own time. (But I also have to confess that a friend and I recently made our babies watch this video to determine whether or not they have autism during a playdate.) 

Okay, I am officially a crazy mother.

On the bright side of Henry's delayed walking: it's meant that he's been using his expensive walker wagon for many, many, many months. I'm really glad we invested in such a sturdy, beautiful piece of equipment. He's been able to pull up on it independently from the beginning without it tipping over.

We also recently bought him a Wheely Bug. It's the most adorable thing. He loves playing with the antennae, flipping it over and spinning the wheels, pushing it all around the house, sitting on it, and now trying to lift it and carry it as he walks. I was delighted to see that my dear friend Kylie (all the way across the globe) also has one for her son Otis. There are many animals to choose from; it's difficult picking just one!

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REMINDER: The last Purposeful Conception Course: Preparing Your Mind, Body, and Life for Pregnancy starts May 7. Register today! We'd love to have you join us!

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