I was concerned when my boys turned 12 months and still were not walking (or at least VERY little). In my mind, I associated walking as more advanced than crawling. So I thought that the sooner a baby walks, the sooner his/her brain is developing optimally. I think many mothers assume this same thing.

What I learned is that crawling is actually a really important step in the process of brain development. Cross-crawling (where the left hand is moving in sync with the right knee and visa versa) helps develop brain pathways! Super cool, huh?! HERE is an interesting link on the benefits cross-crawling even offers adults!

So while it’s normal for all mothers (and father) to anxiously await their child’s first steps and the freedom that walking will bring, my encouragement to you is to not rush it. Let it happen naturally. As long as the other developmental milestones are in order, there is no need to panic if it seems your child is not walking quickly enough.

That said, we still long to see our child’s development when we feel it’s the right time. My sons are identical twins, so while they are two very different people, they share identical DNA. So when my son, Joshua, was showing interest in walking at least a month before his brother, I wondered if there was anything I could do to help David.

I respect their differences. What I observed, though, was David wanted to get around as quickly as he could. And he’d mastered crawling, so he did not want to take the time to learn how to walk at first. I also think his weight is distributed differently in his body, and he’s slightly taller than his brother. I think this made it slightly more challenging for him to balance his weight than it was for Joshua.

I talked to our pediatric chiropractor, at Exodus Health Center. (My sons get adjusted by her every week.) She said they looked great and healthy. But she also gave me homework. She instructed me to purchase a crease eyebrow brush and swipe it along David’s feet ten times, three times per day. I started at the heel and brushed it up to his toes on both feet. Gently swiping the eyebrow brush along David’s feet helped his brain to connect receptors and helped him get more comfortable with stepping down on his feet.

I observed that within a week of doing this simple activity, David began to walk! He’s now quickly catching up to his fast brother! They are both still more comfortable with crawling, and walking still takes more effort, but they are gaining momentum and confidence! I’m so proud of both of them. It’s fun to see how they each excel in different activities at different paces. How uniquely God has created each of us…even identical twins!!!

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