It is time to feature another one of our little friends, and this month it is Willa!
Willa and her mother Hillary started attending Babies On The MOVE classes in July as a part of the summer series. She was nearly nine months old when she started to attend classes. Willa is an extremely observant little lady. She enjoyed sitting and watching the other babies and parents, but she was not overly eager to move in that first class. Some babies are movement motivated while others prefer to observe and take it all in. During that first three-month series, Willa started to move from sitting to her hands and knees! In October, they started another three-month series of classes. That first month, Willa had learned how to sit up from the floor by herself and pivot in a circle when she was sitting. The next month she was crawling on her hands and knees and pulling up to stand! This month she started standing for a few seconds without holding on to anything! It has been so rewarding to watch her go from the baby who is happy to watch everyone else into the baby who wants to be a part of the action! We have really enjoyed getting to know Willa and Hillary and are excited to have them join us for another series in the New Year! Here is what Hillary had to say about attending BOTM classes:
"As a first time mother, what brought me to Babies On The MOVE was a desire to learn how to play with my child in a way that encouraged development of her gross motor skills, but was also a fun way to set a precedent for learning together. Willa started rolling over at 5 months and sitting up at 8 months, but by 9 months she still wasn't crawling while many of her peers were standing, or even walking. She was extremely observant, but didn't really seem very motivated to actively participate in play. At 9 months we attended our first BOTM session and Willa had a blast. She enjoyed interacting with her classmates which was wonderful to see, and I felt more at ease about Willa's development after talking to Becca, Rachel, and the other parents. By the end of the first series Willa was starting to crawl and was feeling much more confident in her movement, so we signed up for another series. They did an assessment and felt that Willa's hips seemed to need strengthening, so they recommended a pair of special shorts that would help. They absolutely did, and after wearing them for a few weeks Willa stood for the first time on her own. Willa still has a way to go before walking on her own, but she loves coming to class, continues to progress, and seems a little more brave after each session. We plan on signing up for another series as Willa continues to strengthen her skills. We are grateful to Becca and Rachel for their insight and warmth and for offering an environment for parents like myself to learn from experts in their field. It has a been a wonderful experience for our family".