Avery's Brace

For those of you who haven't seen it, here's Ave's brace. She's got her squeaker shoes on after Grandma Fillo got the strap lengthened...lots of squeaks now!

Avery 's Had Her Brace for One Week!

Today we had physio and the therapist was so impressed with her gains in one week. Her stance is much closer together (no more cowboy walk...well, less of one anyway,) and she is better at running, dancing and jumping. We have to work on her posture so that she is more upright (she felt more confident stooping over before the brace). In addition, we have to work on her pivots in her hips and combining moves (e.g. crouching with her hands over her head).

Next time, we are going to check her AFO (AKA her brace) to ensure she doesn't need a lift in her other shoe and get some further exercises so that she can progress at a quicker pace. In addition, we are going to start working on loosening up Avery's right shoulder (it is quite tight when putting a jacket on) and looking into occupational therapy for help with fine motor control and aides to stop all the drooling!

Lastly, we hit the orthotist so he could check on the brace itself. That was fine (save the fact that we need to check to make sure her heel is planted firmly)...he just kept commenting on what a changed girl she was this week (since last week she absolutely lost it! Even the receptionist commented on her meltdown from the week before!).

One last note...Avery needs to her work on her focus and distractability. We need her to focus on one task for at least five minutes at a time (throwing a ball, doing a puzzle, etc.) to slow her down so her movements are more in rhythm with the rest of the body. Slowing down may also aid in her cognition and visual cues (esp. given her right wandering eye. Gotta call that opthamologist!).

Avery Sings Mdrawp!

Avery's Current Addiction

Avery loves books. This Duck and Goose one is a particular fav. Today, she brought it all the way downstairs with her and then threw it at me to read. I now have a bump on my forehead...it must be dang good reading!

Ideas for the Girl's Birthday/Christmas

Crazy chick with the Christmas birthday...tut tut. When I think back to that Christmas Eve when the contractions started...ugh! Anyway, just posting some ideas here since it's easier for me and any of the relatives to be on top of her current faves.

Handy Manny

Fisher-Price Manny's Fix - It Phone
Disney 5-Pc. Handy Manny Bath Toy Play Set

Mickey or Minnie Mouse

Fisher-Price Mickey's Surprise Clubhouse 
Fisher Price Mickey's Magic Choo Choo

Elmo or Cookie Monster

Fisher Price Elmo's Super Boom Box
Fisher-Price Sing and Giggle Microphone

Other

Vtech - Baby's Learning Laptop
Little Tikes Easy Score Bean Bag Toss
Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Learning Piggy Bank