11 Months 2 Weeks - Little Land-Sharks

When I was in college, one of my summer jobs was teaching swimming lessons at Sherman Swim School. One of the activities we'd do with the children to bridge the gap of concept to practice of swimming was to hold the child 3-7 feet away from the wall and, after practicing blowing bubbles and putting their face in the water, encourage them to swim to the wall. The kids were never sure they were ready, but, after realizing they could, they'd want to do it again and again.

This week, I felt like I was teaching those same lessons on land. The "lessons" paid off; both girls outdid their first steps and have officially graduated into walking. The little land-sharks didn't realize they were ready and didn't think they could do it on their own, but, when left balanced in the middle of the room, each of them walks with ease the 1-3 yards to me or the coffee table. It was fun to send them to Daddy at work. Boy, did he have a lot to say when he came home from work. Proud dad wanted show off and to go right away next door to show Nonno and Nonna (who were equally impressed!). Here are a couple video-links to witness first-hand(just hit the play arrow to start the video stream): Ava:
and Bettina:
The girls want to walk all over the place now, however, most of the time they insist that I stoop over so they have a finger to hold. I hope this phase passes quickly as it's killing my back!! In an effort to expedite, we practice our independent walking daily and their confidence is growing. Perhaps by their birthday party, they'll be toddling along, no longer on their knees (although Ava still refuses to crawl). The last video is of the girls enjoying another great toy I found at the last San Francisco MOM sale (biannual fundraising event for the club). Ava, who likes speed, prefers to push while her sister giggles and enjoys the ride.
This whole change has effected our usual play-date structure. I have typically gone walking in the stroller for a few miles to give the girls some air for their activity. However, we now need to find little places where they can get out and walk as just watching the world go by isn't good enough anymore. So, we are exploring the neighborhood and noting places that are safe and interesting for the kidlets on the move. So far, we've found that the little park next to AT&T Ball Park, along the Mission Bay Creek, is very nice.

Enjoying the sunshine at Mission Bay Creek park with Hayden the dog
The girls like to run along the terraces and tumble in the well-maintained grass. Since it's on the water, the breeze is really great on warmer days. Farley's Coffee shop is still a hit. They enjoy running along the bay window and watching the activity on the street (they love the dogs) when we're able to get a booth seat.

Favorite Spot at Farley's: the booth at the bay window