hands

My Mom stayed an extra day in Austin so that she could play developmental games with Alice. Mom taught Alice to grab toys with her tiny right and left hand. Then Alice learned to bring her hand + the grasped object to her mouth, therefore crossing mid-line, which is a sign that she is using both hemispheres of her brain. Which is very good for baby brains.

I really enjoyed sipping coffee, eating biscotti, and watching Grammy act as Alice's personal trainer and snuggle factory.

Mom went home on Tuesday morning (thanks for driving 24 hours Mom!) and by Tuesday afternoon Alice had already gained noticeable improvement in her hand motions. For the first time tonight Alice turned the pages of her favorite book ("Moo, Baa, La La La") without our assistance or prompting. Now Alice's hands act as her familiars, fluttering around her body and doing her bidding without her acknowledging their service. They remind me of Odin's ravens Hugin and Mugin (thought and memory) who travel everywhere collecting information about the world and returning to whisper into Odin's right and left ear.