What now?

As you read the entry today, enjoy the pics Gracie took. Wow!

Many of you have asked what it means for Gracie to be able to walk. Let me try to explain. Gracie has been able to take steps independently during therapy for a few months. It's just now that she wants to practice outside of therapy. Because of her recent interest and drive, we set up the celebration at Pet Smart last Sunday. She did such a great job! Gracie now must practice and get stronger. She's not ready to walk on her own all of the time. Her strength will allow her to walk about 50 - 70 steps before she tires out.

So our plan is to have her continue to use her crutches (pink, of course) and braces on her feet to provide support. Ideally, Gracie will not use the walker when she returns to school except for long distances and probably the playground. We would love to pass on the walker to a child who really needs it. We're encouraging Gracie to walk from point to point in a room to prepare her for this in her classroom. However, she will probably be a little resistant to this at first. Walking without obstacles is certainly different from walking in a classroom full of active children.

At therapy, Gracie is doing all of her work without the crutches. We alternate between low and high braces. The higher braces give her more support and feedback. The lower braces make her work harder and therefore build her strength. Her walking is slow but beautiful! I can remember seeing another patient walking at therapy last year and wondering if Gracie would ever be able to do that. She is actually taking steps on her own! The other day I made her say aloud, "I can walk." We both smiled with pride.

We will return to St. Louis to see Dr. Park, the neurosurgeon, one more time. Our appointment is scheduled for September 28th. He told me last year that he believed Gracie would walk into his office for her next visit. He was so right!