We have a crawler!!

Kaiden's been crawling now for a little while, keeps getting better at it!  He's also cruising furniture well. Yesterday he even walked behind a push-cart all by himself!! Obsessed with books, he even signed "eat" at me Wednesday morning for the first time since last summer! 

Oh yeah . . . he bites too.  But, to his credit, it only took 3 times of firm words and being quickly removed from my arms and set on the floor before he decided that biting mom (and giggling) wasn't such a good idea.  Now he'll gingerly bite my shirt and look up at me to see if that gets him in trouble (which it does).  Usually a "don't even think about it" is enough to make him stop.  But . . . he's two.  He's pushing boundries.  And that's a good thing!!

so happy!

I am finally starting to come across more and more parents of children with Down Syndrome who are doing the same things we are!  Treating the individual child based on their dietary and musculoskeletal needs instead of working under the label that is Down's.

I really dislike that label.  It comes with expectations of what a child won't do well, and that the child will be developmentally delayed.  It doesn't have to be that way, not at all!!  Yes, Kaiden is delayed - but since his seizures stopped, he has kept up with development for the adjusted age he would be if you could take out that 10 month period where he had the seizures.  Even though it was extroardinarily painful to watch him have seizures, I am so thankful for them - because without them we would never have accidentally discovered Kaiden's amazing potential to be a suprisingly absolutely normal kid.  Who knew that nightshades could make such a difference?  (As well as the paleo diet.) And the therapies he's getting . . . I know Kaiden's going to be just fine and do well in life.  He's going to need a little extra therapeutic help getting there, but he WILL get there, no doubt about that.