Walking and Almost Walking

Braden started walking independently last weekend at Uncle Roy and Aunt Linda's house.  I forgot to mention it in my post from last week.  It was so exciting to watch him take those first few steps on his own.  He really seems to like it and has not looked back.  This week, every time I turn around I see him standing in the middle of a room or walking across a room.  He still walks on his knees sometimes when he gets tired or frustrated, but he is always willing to get back on his feet when I offer to hold his hand.  He is such a cutie!

Natalie's physical therapist recommended a high top shoe from Stride Rite a couple weeks ago.  I got her the shoes, and she is quickly becoming much more confident in her standing.  She loves to have someone hold both of her hands so that she can try to walk like her twin brother.  She is still pretty shaky and makes jerky movements as she walks.  But I can certainly see that she is making progress.  She will stretch up onto her tiptoes all by herself in order to reach for things.  That's an improvement for her.  Getting up on tiptoes has been one of her PT exercises for the past couple of months.  For a while I had to hold her by the hips and help her move up onto her toes.  I'm happy to see her able to do it by herself now.