No turning back

Well Followers, it finally happened. Mommy B and I have been saying it for what feels like weeks - that li'l Alli would be walking on her own any day now. Yesterday was that day. My mom told me that walking would be just like crawling, that one day she would just up and do it. And she was right... yesterday Alli decided that she'd had enough of us helping her out and decided she was good enough on her own. Up she stood and off she went - anywhere and everywhere - without any assistance.

She was walking around the living room and kitchen so much that I had to pull out the video camera and capture the moment. I even made a comment to the camera that just a couple days ago we were filming her walking with assistance, and now she was on her own. It was such a huge milestone for her that we just marveled at it all morning. She still stumbles around like a drunken sailor sometimes, but most of the time she's full steam ahead. The funniest part about it is that she's still getting her balance and will walk around with her arms either out front like a zombie or straight up in the air like she's listening to a sermon at a Baptist church. "Hallelujah! Alli can walk! Praise Jesus!" But not in the she-was-crippled-but-now-she-can-walk-again sense. She walked around so much all morning that she passed out about 5 minutes into her stroller ride on the family walk around the neighborhood. So we brought her back to the house and she napped for almost three hours.

This is it... there's no turning back now. For over eleven months, my baby girl has needed my help getting to where she wanted to go. And now, four days before her first birthday my little angel got up and got there on her own. I know we raise them to leave, but I couldn't help being in awe of her accomplishment. (Hopefully) never again will she need me to carry her somewhere, although there will be plenty of times still to come when she'll want me to.

As I drove her to daycare this morning, I knew what was coming and I had to fight the tears back as I pulled in. I couldn't help but remember her first day there... she was barely three months old and I carried her in the door still in her baby carrier. I took her into her classroom and set her down, then had to turn around and walk away. It was one of the most difficult things I've ever had to do in my entire life. It chokes me up right now just thinking about it. But this morning was different... much different. This morning, she walked herself from the car, across the parking lot and to the door - barely holding onto my hand. Once inside, I let go of her and she walked directly into her classroom without any help.

I was so proud of her, and I wish Mommy B could have been there to see it too. I know this means that Mommy B and I have now "graduated" into the stage every parent talks about - where all their kid does is run around and get into stuff. I'm sure Alli will be like that too, given how curious she is about the world around her.

But there's no turning back now... long gone are the days of my infant lying on her back on a mat in the living room, barely coordinated enough to reach the toys hanging right in front of her. Long gone are the rolling over celebrations, endless babbling and army-crawling across the floor. Now, you have to watch your toes because she might run them over with the car she's pushing across the living room. There's no more tightrope-walking across the edge of the couch... it's been replaced by normal-walking with arms in the air, giggling incessantly across the length of the house.

This has already started off being a special week for Alli and it's only going to get better with her birthday bash coming up. I know she won't really remember these days, but I sure will. My daughter can walk, and there's no turning back. Things are only going to get more interesting from here.