Maddie's Last PT Update

I mentioned last month that Maddie's PT suggested we meet outside of the home. Today we met at the children's museum. They practiced walking on uneven surfaces and up and down stairs.

 

The museum was unusually crowded this morning with multiple kindergarten classes on a field trip. Therefore, it was especially nice having an extra set of eyes and hands to help watch the trio.  The PT encouraged Maddie to climb in and out of seats and sit down independently. Maddie has been using chairs regularly to assist her in climbing onto tables, so this wasn't challenging. All three briefly sat down and colored.

 



When the PT walked me to the van, I sensed it was our final goodbye. Sure enough, she said she felt confident in Maddie's abilities and was declared that Maddie has graduated PT. I wasn't surprised since the therapist has been more of a friendly tagalong the past several sessions. We no longer need or rely on her expertise to help Maddie advance.

It is hard to put into words how relieved and proud I am of Maddie's progress. She began PT eight months ago, when she was nearly 9 months old. Our original goal was to tolerate tummy time for up to five minutes. Eight months ago, we were told by the neurologist that Maddie likely had mild to moderate cerebral palsy, and would probably require braces to walk. I am forever grateful for the hours Maddie's PT dedicated to helping Maddie reach all of her goals and overcome the odds.

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While at the museum this morning, an employee reminded me that the weekly craft (every Wednesday at 11 am and 2 pm) was making a gingerbread ornament and decorating a gingerbread cookie. I felt guilty enough taking the trio to the museum without Jackson; I decided to take everyone again after picking Jackson up from school. It was last year at this time when we purchased our museum membership and decorated gingerbread men. (Of course, this means I need to renew our membership within the next two weeks.)

Jackson was so excited when I told him our afternoon plans. He played in the park across the street while the trio ate lunch.

Jackson was excited to see the Christmas decorations outside the museum, especially the giant tree. I envisioned taking a cute picture of all four kids standing under the tree, but it was at a busy intersection. I wasn't confident that I could guarantee safety with all four loose.

All four kids sat with the museum worker and made their ornament. There were foam stickers available to place on the precut gingerbread man.

James has a pretty short attention span (as do most toddlers), but he was engaged for a few minutes. Then he started throwing the materials off the table.

I've been very impressed lately with the girls' concentration and ability to focus on something at a table. I should probably start doing more organized crafts at home.

Jackson was the only one to decorate a cookie, though I did give James, Amelia, and Maddie a taste of the icing.

Despite very few crowds this afternoon, I ended up running into four different friends while at the museum. It was a good thing, too, because I relied on one of them to help me when Amelia strayed from the grocery store. She was found in the doctor's office with her shopping cart.

At that point it was beyond time to go. The trio hadn't napped and Jackson didn't have any downtime. We barely avoided any meltdowns.