She's on the move!

This is a re-enactment.

Miss Marie has been playing a game with us for a few months now.  She started standing up at 8 months, and since about 10 months has pretty much refused to sit down unless strapped down.

So of course at this point the question becomes "When is she going to walk?"  Her sisters were all over the map.  Bobbie and Esther both walked at 13 months, but Linda started walking at 10 months (adjusted age 9 months--she was born early).  I really, really thought she was going to beat or tie Linda, but it became obvious that wasn't going to happen.  So I resigned myself to waiting.

Well, the month or so she's been taking about a half a step here and there.  Putting one foot forward and leaning, but never completing the step.  At the same time she's been cruising like crazy--holding on to the walls and chairs and the beds and the girls' dollhouses and taking little sideways steps.

So I've been chivvying her to come on and walk to me.  Doing the typical mom thing of standing about two steps away and dangling something she wants.  And she'd reach out her arms and lean forward and fuss a little, maybe scootch one foot forward, but then she'd always drop down to her hands and knees and crawl.  (She's fast too, which is why I think she's not started walking sooner).

And then, earlier today...We were in the bedroom.  Erik was sitting in the beanbag chair he bought with this computer in his lap, and I was lying on the bed with my iPod, and the baby was playing on the floor between us.  She stood up with this holster in her hand (it's been empty for a while), looked at her Daddy, and nonchalantly walked over to him to hand it to him.  And I'm not talking "took a step or two" and then fell over, I'm talking "took three or four steps in a row and then reached her destination."  (And can I just say how hilarious I found it that her first walk was to give Daddy something for his gun?  That's how you know you're a gun nut's daughter, folks.)

I had a feeling she was going to do something like this.  She's a careful little thing.  She'll consider something for a while before doing it, and so to see her suddenly stand up and start walking like it ain't no thing?  Totally not surprising.

Nor was it surprising when she decided to repeat her walking performance standing on the bed and going after something she wasn't supposed to have.  Guess she thought she'd be so cute I'd let her have whatever she wanted.  (Sorry, girlie, that's not one of the perks of being the fourth kid!)

So now I have a sort-of toddler.  She has walked twice so far, which is definitely enough to count, but she of course won't do it when I want her to, so I haven't been able to get any video yet.  But it will come.  I do think she'll be a lot like Linda, in that now she's got her feet underneath her, she's going to be running very soon.