Way To Go Little Man!

So I think this is an appropriate post to follow the video of Jackson working so hard to stand up on his own...

Over the last week or so Amber has been getting the bicycle itch, so on Friday we went to a local Bike shop to look around. While Amber was test riding a few bikes, Abygail and Jackson were checking out all the kids bikes, with particular interest in the tassels hanging off the handlebars. Jackson was standing next to a bike (a cool red and black Schwinn trike) playing with the tassels when I decided to test how badly he wanted to play with them, and pulled the bike just out of his reach. He looked up at me pleadingly, then looked back at the bike...just out of reach. He switched his gaze several more times, finally stopping on the bike. Then it happened. He took his first step toward the bike so he could grab hold of the handlebars and continue moving the tassels through his hands. "WOOHOO! YOUR FIRST STEP! JACKSON JUST TOOK HIS FIRST STEP." Amber walked up a half second too late and missed it.

The next day while Amber was gone to the store, I was working with the little guy, which means bribing him with assorted treats to see if he would walk to me to get them. Just as Amber was pulling in the driveway, Jackson saw a treat he really wanted in my hand, so he took a tentative step towards me, then another, and another, and another. "WOOHOO! YOU TOOK FOUR WHOLE STEPS BUDDY!" I think Amber heard me outside. As she walked into the house (amidst my continued exultant praise of my son's achievement) she expressed her disapproval of my encouraging him to walk when she wasn't around because she had just missed it again; she was just upset that I finally got to see one of Jackson's first before she did. This seems fitting to me, however, since Jackson really began working on standing on his own a couple of months ago, but was set way back when he hurt his ankle going down the slide while sitting on Amber's lap, and wouldn't put any weight on it for quite a while (just giving you a hard time Honey, it could just have easily been me on the slide with Jackson).

Jackson is now standing with ease and Amber has finally (I think) seen him take a few steps. WAY TO GO LITTLE MAN!