Earlier this week, Sonya had a terrible therapy session. When presented with a toy, she refused to engage. Rather, she turned her body toward the shelves of other toys pointing and grunting. Not this toy, that one! she seemed to want to say. But nothing satisfied her. It was apparent that she was frustrated and we were too.
During our hour-long drive back from the therapy session, I felt as if I were the one who had failed. I should have made better sure that Sonya was well rested. I should have taken the time to make her a green smoothie this morning (the only way to get Sonya to ingest any vegetable is to hide it in a sweet fruit smoothie). I should have done a better job parenting her, and it was being reflected in her ability to acquire speech.
Sonya took a three plus hour nap that day – highly unusual for her. That evening, she picked herself off the floor and started to cruise around her nursery. She has been doing this for some time, but today she strutted with such confidence. She held on to one of our wooden cube trunks (which I am replacing, by the way, as they are not baby safe – so let me know if you want them!) with one hand waving in the air.
Sometimes she makes it the entire way around beaming with pride. Other times, she trips over her own feet and drops to her knees. On a couple of occasions she has flipped over backwards and landed smack on her head. It is equally exhilarating and terrifying for me to watch. I try not to think about her hitting her head where the CIs are implanted. I want to catch her before any fall, but it seems impossible. But I know that she can/will do it. I have confidence in her abilities when it comes to walking.
I am trying to translate this confidence into Sonya’s speech work as well. I know that not every therapy session will be great. But over time, she will learn and improve. Her falling is not necessarily my failing.
On a side note, we recently celebrated Sonya’s first birthday! What a year it has been. Sonya had the best time. She received numerous baby dolls and books – her favorite things. We feel so blessed to have had the amazing support this past year from friends and family. 🙂 ❤
You can check out our photos from the event here: http://iheartnyphotography.pixieset.com/sonyasbirthdayparty/
password: bpihny
Hearing Sonya Rose 