walking? what's that?

madelyn stopped walking. altogether. a little over a week ago (and just a few days after her walking video) she just stopped. i think that she actually had a growth spurt that threw her balance off and then got sick causing her to lose all interest in walking or anything else, but whatever happened she stopped. i was pretty sad about it because she was starting to get around really well all on her own. she wouldn't even take one step between toys and furniture. she would, instead, sit down and crawl the six inches or so and then stand up again. she could still stand up without any assistance from an immobile object, but walking was a no-go.

over the past two or three days she has been starting to show glimmers of remembering that she knows how to get around upright, so there is hope. and the good news is that her stability/balance is even better than before. she just isn't as confidant as she was before. at least i know that she can walk and that all kids walk eventually.

yesterday we went to the grand opening of our neighbor's new sandbox. madelyn wasn't crazy about having the sand on her hands (she hasn't really had the opportunity to get good and dirty outside before). but the draw of the trucks and dinosaurs was too much for her to resist. her friend, dylan, kept just walking away so maddie was left to just sit like a bump in one place (since she didn't want to get any sand on her hands) and reach for all the sandbox toys.

(don't you just love her "trouble maker" t-shirt?) love.