Guess whos crawling?! Well, sorta

Being that we are fast approaching Jaylyn's 1st birthday, we now have more to celebrate than ever! During my pregnancy I had joined an online pregnancy group and all the mamas that were due in September had all formed a separate group. Of course Jaylyn arrived 2 weeks before her due date, but that did not interfere with the bond and friendships I had formed. As I saw these other moms excitingly posting about their baby's milestones, I became more and more discouraged. There were some days that I didnt speak to anyone at all for days at a time, and these are women I had interacted with daily, for several hours a day throughout my pregnancy,  labor, delivery and throughout Jaylyn's early weeks and months. I was definitely grieving for the child we were expecting and did not have. Yet, we were given so much more. I never would have thought I could learn so much from such a little person.
Jaylyn gives me a reason to celebrate every single day! As bad as this sounds, I was so glad that some of the moms in that group had said their baby couldnt do certain things like clap, why?!? Because Jaylyn can! It was the one thing she can do that some of her little online buddies couldn't do. It brought me a sense of normalcy and accomplishment. No she cant do most of the things other babies her age are doing, but shes definitely making progress with physical therapy! Just last week her therapist had said that she will most likely be a "tripod" crawler. Sure enough, Jaylyn uses her left side to the max, uses her right arm minimally and drags her right leg,but she is moving!  She is "crawling". The intent is there, she wants to move! Due to her disabilities,  she is either held, carried, or in some sort of sitting device most of the time while awake. Lately, when being held, Jaylyn is often trying to wiggle away to the floor in attempts to do her own thing. She wants so badly to move independently. I couldn't be more proud of just her desire and will. She is a fighter, and although we have a lifelong fight ahead, she is the strongest, toughest and most determined person I know. Just because shes still in diapers, does not mean she cant be an inspiration.  She is definitely mine!