Big day in the Batt household!

I'm not quite sure who this was a bigger day for - Justin & I, or Hunter. When doctors tell you that they aren't sure if your baby will ever walk unassisted, you start to think about those kid milestones you look forward to as a new parent, and wonder if you'll ever experience them. We were overwhelmed when Hunter took his first steps at 19months old. Soon we realized that despite medical issues, walking was not going to be a problem! Last summer, we watched Hunter score his first soccer goal, and it felt like we were witnessing him conquer the world...

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In January, we decided that a quadriceps lengthening surgery was the next step for Hunter. It was a long, difficult recovery, but here we are four months out and he's walking and running without any kind of brace. Due to the amazing amount of flexion that was achieved as a result of the surgery, we realized that Hunter might now be able to ride a real bike. This is something that might seem silly to some, but to us, is something we thought Hunter might not ever be able to do. We had Hunter try out a friend's bike to confirm our suspicion that he had enough range of motion to pedal, and sure enough, he did it! It was amazing.

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So Justin and I decided that today would be Hunter's very special day :o)

First stop, Denny's for breakfast - because going out to breakfast is fun!

After Hunter finished breakfast, he still didn't know what the mission of the day was. We got in the car and went to Toys R Us - we parked, and he didn't really know what to think about an unexpected trip to the toy store! So Justin and I explained that how proud we are of him, and all of his hard work post-surgery, and that we were here to buy a bike. I wish I would have had the camera ready for the look on his face - you can just imagine it :o)

So we went inside, headed straight for the bike section, and set to work measuring and testing out the appropriate sized bikes...

The bike in the picture above is the bike we decided on - after the purchase was made, we headed over to the mall for a bit, where Hunter and Justin took a ride on the merry-go-round.

When we got home, it was nap time for Hunter, and assembly time for Justin -

As soon as Hunter was awake, we took him outside for an afternoon I will never, ever forget.