Practicing high kneeling and grip strength all while enjoying the little girl in the mirror.

At the Fredrick Mijer Gardens

Today marked the half way point for our spring session here at CLC. Parker is rockin it! She puts so much effort into every day she is generally pulling down hard Zzz's by the last ten minutes of class. Her happy go lucky attitude makes it easier to wake up each day and bring her back for more. Simple motor functions you and I don't even think about, is a great struggle Parker has to practice, practice, practice to gain mastery. CLC is helping better calculate movement and gain awareness of Parker's  body relative to the space and environment around her. I see emphasis on balance this session.  I am witnessing a maturity within my sweet girl  that is beyond her years. It's crazy. In her countenance I see that she knows the hard things are worth it. That's why we are here.
This week what stood out to me in progress was her ability to isolate and differentiate body moment. (Ex: whiling lying down, holding legs and one arm still, while other arm is responding to verbal cues for up and down movement. Or legs still and grounded, where out stretched arms are  brought to midline for clapping or clanking toys together). Given Parker's current skill set it is hard to quiet the body and refrain from involuntary movement. I have noticed it less this week.
Parker loves the social aspect of class. She loves the social accountability. When the teacher is looking for someone sitting straight, etc, "oh I see Parker sitting tall!" Thats the moment you see that little girl flash a proud smile that covers ear to ear. She may be a little bit of a show boat... There are two other little one year old  girls with  their moms that make up our class. I'm pretty sure we're the cutest Parent/Child class CLC has ever had!
I can see an improved stamina and trunk  strength in Parker this session. She is gaining the skills to practice standing  longer, walking  longer, and SITTING  UP longer. I am so happy that ever  elusive ability to sit up is now a reality with  great success. Prayers have gotten her here.  If Parker  maintains focus she can sit unsupported for one to two minutes. If she has her back support it can be more like 5 minutes. It has been so fun to watch a new world unfold as she sees it literally from a different angle. Coming into mobility is so fun!

-The Vrouw