Everyone has a challenge or obstacle (or many) they must face at some point in life.  A journey, a path they must travel.  And I do believe everything happens for a reason.  Either for our growth and development, or for that of someone around us.

For our little Maggie, one journey started early- through her journey to walk.  We noticed that she was going through the stages of learning to scoot, crawl, and pull up later than she probably should.  We are super grateful that there was nothing seriously wrong, but we also knew that everything wasn’t right.  And then being the second kid, life is busy.  You forget exactly when and what happened with your first.  (Even though I’m a super stickler and did keep records of all of this.) “She’ll get there”, we thought.  The doctor had said she was good, so we kept on truckin’.

While this may seem a small challenge to most, a tiny bump in the road, isn’t it true that while going through whatever said challenge, it can seem huge??!! This was big for us you guys!! And I think that’s ok.  Live and feel what you are going through (within reason); it makes us who we are.

Around the time Maggie turned one, I could tell she was starting to get frustrated.  She could pull herself up but couldn’t balance, nor take steps without help.  And looking back, I think trying to stand was very uncomfortable, if not painful for her.  We were actually told later that this was probably the case. Broke our hearts.  It’s like her mind was telling her she should be able to move and try to walk, but her body said otherwise.  And yet she yearned for freedom through movement. Her legs turned almost completely out at this time and her feet turned in so that all weight was on the blades of her feet.  Try standing like this yourself- ouch!!

But boy, did her feisty little redheaded determination start to show through.  She kept on trying.

I knew I had wanted to switch pediatricians; for a number of reasons.  But again, life is busy going from one to two kiddos, so just after Maggie’s first birthday, we finally made the switch.  At her 15 month appointment, I asked what was wrong.  Then comes the mom guilt.  The doctor asked if the previous doctor watched her stand and try to walk.  She didn’t.  No blame, just a fact.  And I didn’t insist on it.  Sigh.

The doctor felt there was something wrong.  And Mags wouldn’t just grow out of it. So we left the appointment with a referral to Phoenix Children’s Hospital with a specialist, a PT referral, and one overwhelmed and emotion-filled mama.  Yet, at least we had a plan.

Get her walking.  That’s the overall goal, whatever it takes.

Fortunately it was determined that no surgery was needed.  Praise God!! Maggie had tendons and ligaments in her ankles and feet that never tightened up as she grew, and also low tone in her muscles.  Physical therapy once a week would be the best course of treatment.

Next we needed to decide if we wanted to use orthotics for her ankles to assist her further. The doc at Phoenix Children’s suggested we don’t.  They would be a “crutch” for her.

I was a bit stressed to say the least the first time we met Dr. Katie, the PT.  But she was more than amazing.  God hand-picked her to help my little girl.  She has a son who has similar “walking” issues and her other son is a redhead.  Boom- and I’m sold!! Small thing, but we instantly connected.  She told me the success her son had with orthotics and although Maggie was already about 16 months old, they could still be the best way to help her.  Yet no guarantee.  So, I went with my mom gut, and we decided on the orthotic braces.

From the first time we put the braces on her, she skyrocketed in her progress!  And she was so pleased with herself, it was awesome!! Warmed my heart.

I’ll never forget the first time Mags took steps on her own.  But first, a little background.  PT was interesting, to say the least.  Maggie cried though every session.  Not because she hurt, any more than usual at least, but because she didn’t want to be told what to do.  And she made that known.  LOL!! Ah yes, my fiery redhead.

So, Dr. Katie would take her and work with her without me, which was so hard in the beginning, but I had to let go and trust Dr. Katie. And Mags actually did better when she couldn’t cling to me.  So on the “big” day, Katie asked me to come closer to where they were working and told me that she would have Maggie take some steps towards me.

Now while this is ALWAYS a huge deal- a child taking first unassisted steps- for us, this had been months in the making and Maggie was over 17 months old. So there in the hallway of the PT office with other patients and therapists around, with a smile on her face, Maggie took 7 unassisted steps to me!!! I cried!! Dr. Katie cried!! Heck, I’m tearing up while writing this!  It was so amazing to have that moment I’ll never forget with my sweet baby girl, but also as a parent to watch my child overcome an obstacle.

Maggie has made enormous progress and is so enjoying being a toddler, yet we still have a ways to go.  So what’s the moral to all this?  I honestly think a lot was for me.  Maggie won’t remember any of this most likely.  Here’s what I’ve learned from all of this.

Trust your mom (parent) gut.  When something is not right, pursue it.  You are the best advocate your child has.

Pray, yes you mama bear, then let go and let others help when possible. God will lead the way.

Protect your children, but know that many times in life there are things that they just need to accomplish on their own.  I’m no expert, but I think this is imperative to set them up for success later in life.

So I guess Maggie’s Journey is really also my journey, or our family journey.

Do you have a journey you have been on or are on right now? I’d love to hear about it.

Embrace Life!