Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Livin' La Vida Vertical

Lily in her "Stander"
I keep Lily in her Stander about 20 minutes at a time, 2-3 times a day. In fact, it's a great precursor to a nap or bedtime since it usually leaves her pretty exhausted. She hates getting into it (it's one of the few times she ever cries), but once she's all strapped in, she loves it! I turn on Sesame Street or Yo Gabba Gabba! and she'll watch it while she shakes her head along with the music. She loves books (mainly just turning the pages), so I pile them on and she plays away. The Stander also has a bowl that I sometimes fill up with cereal or crackers for her to practice her self-feeding skills and to munch on. With all these fun distractions, she usually forgets that she's even doing therapy. The Stander helps her in various ways, mainly to help strengthen her hips and thighs so they don't atrophy since she obviously doesn't use them all that much. But most importantly, the Stander helps Lily get a feel for how awesome the vertical world can be so that hopefully her little body will decide it wants to join the rest of us in it for more than just a few times a day.
It's just right for looking at books.
Oh, no! Not the view from behind, Mom!
I pretend to play preschool with her.
She practices with finger foods - her 
favorite therapy!

Even in her Stander, Lily knows 
how to work the camera. :)