PT recap: Bowling and Standing up

This week Theresa had E trying to walk down the ramp with her crutches. She can do this around town, but the decline may not be as steep. One of our goals is for Elena to be able to walk with her crutches up and down hills. She's getting it. First, bowling;



Then, going down to get the balls:



Not too bad!

Later in the session E worked on getting up to standing from the floor--at mat, actually, which probably upped the difficulty. Overall she did well--she looks better than she has in the past. She is able to get the soles of her feet under her rear, shift her weight back, and start to push through the legs to stand up. Pushing all the way up, while maintaining balance, is the biggest challenge right now, as well as standing motionless once all the way up (i.e., not falling forward). This drill was done several times in succession, and she got very frustrated and started standing up quickly (to be done with it) without regard to balance, so she fell right back down (adding to the frustration). This vid is actually at the end of the trials, after she got focused.



Yay E! Practice will make perfect!

Back from Chicago

What a great city! I went to Chi-town to watch my sister run the marathon--AWESOME! And the kids loved the marathon paraphenalia I brought home.



E says she wants to run like Aunt Kate. I tell her she has to walk first! Still...one dream I have is that I run a little "race" around town, like a 5K or 10K, and E finishes the last 10 feet or so with me. Ideally she'd move independently--but even on her crutches, it would be GREAT. We'll work on that for next year! Maybe her birthday (April 30)?

Home Highlight Reel: Getting out of the car

Here's two vids of E getting out of her carseat:





We've been doing this since the summer. Having a handicap parking placard helps, as it gives you room to maneuver between cars. I have E do this whenever I can. Getting back in is another story...she has started to climb back in the car, but can't get into the carseat yet. I'll post that attempt

VID HERE

When I get it filmed.

PT recap: New challenges

At PT last week we worked a little without E's AFOs on. Sometimes this is a nice break, as it's a new challenge for her, and it keeps PT fresh. We're still trying to get Elena to understand that we want her feet flat when she steps. Reminding her about it (her right foot, especially) is like a broken record. Still, when given a voice cue, she does it.



When she's on Shoe Breaks at home, she's recently started taking some steps (maybe 3-5) to get somewhere. Walking barefoot is a very new thing for E (normally she crawls). She is completely on her toes when she does this. Still, she's never done it before..so we have to start somewhere!

One of my biggest issues right now with E's walking is since she can ambulate in some way to get from A to B, she isn't interested in doing it "better". She wants to do it her way, b/c she knows she can do it, and she's fast. I think this will be an issue, with many things, for many years to come...

Cuevas Medek Exercises (CME) Certification Course IN MY TOWN

As I posted before, there will be a CME certification course here in Charlottesville. This is a big deal, as there are very few providers in the United States. The course is for therapists to obtain a CME level 1 certification. Parents who would like their child to be a model are welcome--it will be free of charge (for parents; therapists pay for the certification course). The dates are November 30th to December 4th.

If you are not familiar with CME, go to Ramon Cuevas's website. I think this approach is fantastic. It really speaks to me, I think it makes sense to promote balance and movements this way.

Please TELL YOUR THERAPISTS about this. Encourage them to register. If you can make it, bring your child--please coordinate through the director of our local therapy center, Molly (see registration form for information). We have 6 spots available.

Just to let you know how valuable I think this is...I am considering a trip to Canada so Simona can see Elena privately.


**I am having difficulty with others viewing these links: these are text versions of the letter/form. Hope this works!**

CME 2009 Letter

CME registration form

Soccer and Slides

Today Jason brought the girls to catch the end of my soccer game. After the game was over, E wanted to go "score a goal" on the field. She did her BEST walking on grass I have seen to date. I'd kick the ball forward about 4-5 feet, help her get steady, and then she would walk to it and give the ball a kick (or, more accurately, run into the ball with her legs). She doesn't fall right away while kicking, but she always eventually goes down. I'm trying to get her to walk, stop, kick, stop, walk. That's not working too well, though.

Here is E walking on grass. I wasn't filming anything at the beginning, so this is at the end of her grass time.



After that, we all went to the playground next to the field. It's not for toddlers (steps too large, slides very tall, etc.) but we did it anyway. She did some good climbing, and at the top was a twin slide. I showed her what I didn't want her to do, and then how I wanted her to do it.

Now, I'm not sure what I did differently--but obviously something was different about today. SHE GOT IT!! A first--E stays sitting up while descending a slide!