Hey, Look At Me Standing!

So I promised you a picture of Asher's new stander/walker, I know. It is coming. One day.

In the mean time, would you settle for a picture of Asher standing without his stander? As in ALL BY HIMSELF?!

I'll let you just stare at that picture and take in his awesomeness for a few minutes.

Done? Why don't you look a minute longer.

Ok fine, you've digested that you've seen a super hero in action. Now it's unfortunately time for some disclaimers. As you can see, he's not exactly unassisted. Those funny fabric looking things on his legs actually have some sturdy plastic in them, offering some support. And under those are his AFO's, offering his ankles and feet more support. All of the above "support" actually means his legs can't really bend.

And yes, he is also standing in a corner. I suppose you could call the walls "support" too. That said, he's not leaning on them, the corner just acts as a kind of spotter. The more important spotter however, was my voice reminding him to stand up straight, which he did every single time he started to topple.

Disclaimers done now, it's time to get back to the praise. It's got to take some serious core strength to be doing that, am I right?! The funny thing is, the question of his abs is a non-starter - the kid is ripped. It is just a matter of engaging those abs at the appropriate times. You know, like when standing. Or sitting for that matter. Pesky CP didn't get the memo about how necessary it is to use your six pack abs on demand.

The most exciting part of this new pseudo-standing ability is that with me walking behind him and holding his chest, he initiates some small steps. His brain understands the concept of weight bearing, shifting weight, and moving the other leg forward. The legs may not yet be well versed in the execution, but the motivation is there.

Asher is miles (and without being pessimistic, I do truly mean miles) from walking. But these baby steps keep the glimmer of hope alive.