Emma walks, then doesn't, then does again . . .with an asterisk

Chapter I "Walk On"

About a month ago Emma began to show an interest in walking on her own. She still preferred to crawl or walk along the furniture, but if we stood her up and coaxed / encouraged her, she would take a few steps on her own. And boy, were we proud. Emma seemed to like it and got a little better at it the more we practiced. Then one day, she just stopped. We would prop her up and balance her, but when we let go, she'd just sit down right where she was. Even funnier was when she was 'onto' us trying to trick her into walking: we'd pick her up off the floor and try to set her on her feet, but -- not to be outsmarted by two college graduates -- she would bend her legs back so that it was impossible for us to even set her on her feet. The reason for the sudden refusal to walk remains unsolved. Some would say that the emergence of her first molar had something to do with it. Others would say that other cognitive skills were emerging at that time. Still others would propose that high carbon monoxide levels in our home meant that we only dreamed that she had been walking. Others would say that we were thinking of someone else's baby.

Chapter II "Enter the Croup"

This past Friday night, Emma developed a wee little cough, which by Saturday turned into a cough, and by Saturday night turned into a . . . well . . . honk. Saturday she did not sleep well, and the more she cried, the more she honked, and the harder it was for her to breathe. On Sunday Lauralee called the doctor, who asked her to "describe the cough" over the telephone (it's a good think Laura was making this call; she handled it much more professionally than I would have done after a question like that). As Laura flipped to "cough" in the thesaurus and attempted to describe in words the exact sounds coming from our baby's mouth, Emma had a well-timed cough in the background which was audible to the doctor on the phone. "It's croup," the doctor said saturninely (the thesaurus is still sitting by the computer). The throat inflammation / blockage caused by croup can cause problems breathing for little kids. The doctor called in a prescription for a 2-day supply of a steroid that helps keep the windpipe open, allowing unrestrained breathing. We started Emma on the medicine on Sunday morning, and saw a noticeable difference.

Chapter III "The Integrity of the Record"

Emma had a good morning nap on Sunday, and her steroids did a great job of keeping her breathing problems at bay. With these things in her favor, Emma decided to break her month-old ban on walking, and actually (of her own accord) decided to walk from the coffee table, across the room, to hand me something on the couch. I couldn't believe what I saw, so I attempted to duplicate the results, and sure enough: Emma had not only decided that walking was fun again, but that she was going to do it on her own, and -- come to find out -- she is so much better at it now than she was when she abruptly stopped over a month ago. She could also stand and balance in place. We were so excited; we got out the video camera and recorded some of it, when it dawned on me: this doesn't count. These can't be Emma's first real steps. She was on performance-enhancing drugs. I suppose we could include this day in her baby book as "first real steps," but if we did, it would have to have an asterisk after it.

*First steps came during the steroid era. Record is therefore suspect.

Quinn