Slowest Race in History

Well, it only took eight years to get the results in, but it seems that the child who walked first was...

June

Naturally, you can't know if each consecutive child will beat the previous child's record. I secretly thought to myself that June walked fairly early, and I would have been surprised if someone took her title. (Although, really this is not a contest.) Robyn was close, actually only weeks behind. And although I have heard statistics that later children might walk earlier because they see their older siblings example, the opposite has been true for us. Each child has been slower in walking. I personally think Pearl will fall somewhere in the middle, but I don't know yet. I do know however, that June was walking by now and can therefore have bragging rights.

Truthfully, Pearl can take her time. She already crawls toward the top of the stairs with a sinister smile, knowing that she gets a reaction from me. I am trying to stop freaking out and instead calmly pick her up so she won't think it is fun anymore. Babies only get faster and more unsteady when they walk, so I would be happy if she kept to crawling for a while still. June was actually a happier baby after she figured out her legs, so walking at nine months was preferable. (And we didn't have stairs then.)

Pearl is happy standing at the moment, but she is thinking about linear moment. She stands by our little piano and walks along behind it, if she can get it moving.

I will sometimes push it along to see what she does. I can already see her baby mind moving aside for more advanced thought. She will step on something and look down to see what felt different. If said object is interesting enough, you can see the wheels turning trying to figure out how to sit down and grasp it. This is hilarious to watch, because she hasn't quite figured out how to bend those legs to her advantage. Eventually, she lands with a whump and claims her prize only to realize that she wants to be standing again. She grabs the piano and battles to prevail over gravity. (I usually give in and help her to her feet.) Then she stands supreme, holding her trophy. Eventually she drops it over the front of the piano and then she stands up on her little tiptoes trying to see where it might have landed on the other side. And so begins the cycle again. It is so cute, up until she notices the stairs and makes a beeline for them. (sigh)