With that said, she is scooting everywhere on her bottom and crawling on all fours, she just cannot pull to stand or walk. The Doctor did multiple x-rays and Avery's hips and spine look great (praise God). The knee is hard to tell on an x-ray because the knee cap will not show up until a child is 3 or so. With that said, our Doctor, who is known to be the "best" in Birmingham, recommended we begin Physical therapy as soon as possible and if we do not see any progress we will do an MRI of her knee.
In short, he thinks it could be that the tendon is not attaching the muscle to the bone, therefore she has no extension or flexion from her quadriceps. If this is the case, we are looking at some reconstructive knee surgery and much more PT down the road.
I met with the PT on Monday and she is fabulous. Avery is a determined, spirited little girl and I believe she will walk. She is so strong and wants to do it. With the PT, we also have to work past the issue of her will!
She has an extremely strong will and if it is not her idea to do something, she is mad and shuts down. She will scream and scream and arch her back and just lose it! I am hopeful that the more comfortable she gets with Mrs. Patrice, the more willing she will be do to what is asked of her.
At home, my job is to exercise her legs, encourage her to pull up (even just for a little) not to carry her on my hip, but out front with her legs together. She also wants me to start binding her legs together at night! (I haven't got around to that one yet).
We brought out Kate's old ride on princess toy and sat her on it so she could push with her feet. She was so mad at me for putting her on that thing because she could not get off, but I persevered and with help from the kids---lots of cheering and clapping--she started to move and she hasn't stopped. She will just wheel herself all over the house now! It is so cute.
So, I am going to spend the next few months doing lots of appointments for the PT and for early intervention program. It should be an adventure for sure!
Glad the x-rays were good and that you like her PT. i pray that much progress happens in the near future. She is in such good hands.... How adorable is she scooting around on that toy with pigtails...love it.
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