toddler

Shortly after Jack got off his first cast at eight weeks old, I strictly enforced tummy time.  Owing to the fact that he’d lost an entire month of gross motor development, I figured he had a lot of catching up to do.  Tim remarked, “You sure are militant about torturing that kid on his belly.  Is it because he’s a boy?”  Ha!  No, it couldn’t possibly be because he was born with a bone disorder and I was desperate to help him build bone strength despite his deficiencies.  Funny Tim.

I do, in fact, find that I force Jack to do things that I wasn’t in a hurry to do with my girls.  I definitely go out of my way to allow him maximum mobility – things like not installing a safety gate for the stairs but instead following him up and down so that he is not stifled in his motor development.  Or, being extra careful to encourage a healthy diet instead of resorting to convenience foods.  Or, severely limiting exposure to screens, at the expense of getting stuff done.  Anyone who has a special needs child can tell you that it’s anything but convenient.  I sort of think that I’m finally bringing my A-game to this parenting thing and I’m embarrassed to admit it took a disability to force me into it.  Don’t get me wrong – I have always been a deliberate parent, but I definitely cut corners in certain ways for the sake of convenience.  I don’t beat myself up about it, but it does make me ponder the long-term effects that my laziness may have had.

In any case, Jack is meeting all of his physical milestones at the same time or before my other kids.  We weren’t even sure if he’d be able to walk, let alone at a time that is on par with others his age!  So understandably, we are incredibly grateful to witness this sweet boy’s unforeseen progress.  We all adore Jack.