Wonky feet

Ivy's feet are still a bit wonky.

My Alexander Technique teacher Jane met the girls yesterday, and she agreed that Ivy is a little wonky in her gait. Jane said that their shoes were awful, and I must say she was right. Terrible broken sloppy soft-sole sandshoes. So the old broken shoes are in the bin, and I bought new shoes today.

Jane liked that Ivy climbed up on the play equipment at the park, and tottered around on the top of things. All good practice as she learns to use her body.

Jane also suggested dance or movement classes, and I will vaguely investigate this idea. However, I'm over the whole one-mummy-with-two-toddlers-at-a-class. The music class was such a trial, and I'm not keen to embark on a new burdensome event. I do not like being the only one there with twins. I don't like hearing "Oh I don't know how you do it" and "My you have your hands full" and "I could never do what you do" and the rest of it. I also don't like forcing the girls (but Hazel in particular) to conform to the class's requirements. She's a bit of a free spirit is Hazel, and she resists attempts to get her to do what the rest of the group is doing. So I hate the idea of more fricken classes, but there you go. Maybe this is just because I am a tired grump this week.

Today's shoe-buying went well. We visited Bilby Shoes, which is run by David the Pedorthist. Last time we visited, he said to keep the girls barefoot or in soft-sole shoes for a while longer, so we did. He pointed out some aspects of the girls' gait that showed that they were too little. The only thing I can remember is that they both still walked with their arms bent and hands up. Now they don't do that any more, so he was happy to find proper shoes for them.

Trudi and I think Hazel walks just fine. David agreed and said she is very strong. I would expect she would be - she practiced standing for nearly a year before she walked!

Ivy is slightly wonky though. Her left foot turns out a little, and she seems a bit unsteady. When he watched her walk, David told me a bunch of things that she was doing, but I could not pick up on any of it. He is a fluent reader of gait, and I am illiterate, it turns out.

David feels there there is nothing seriously wrong, just a few small tendencies that we can do something about. Better now than later, I say! He suggested that we take her to an osteopath, so we're off to see the person he recommended, Dr DeFazio in Heidelberg, this Monday arvo. Then he got out some white sneakers, and when she walked in them, he was happy to see an improvement. That means that some of her issues do come from her feet. The osteo might unkink something in her legs or hips as well - who knows!

Hazel has the same shoes, but Ivy's feet are a little smaller, so her pair have insoles in them. Unfortunately, their new white sneakers have pink flowers and hearts, and (wait for it) the hearts light up when they walk. I mean, really.