Two big events occurred when my daughter Lily was 4 days old.

The first was that we learned she would need a shunt to relieve the pressure in her brain from hydrocephalus. We knew this was likely, but it was still hard to hear.

The second was magical.

She kicked her legs for the very first time.

It was subtle, and I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. In fact, I was a naysayer at first. I didn’t want to open the door to that hope unless it was real. But it WAS real. She moved her legs. And… She moved them at the hip AND the knee!

Knee movement is a big deal. A really big freakin’ deal. Especially considering we weren’t sure she would be able to move her legs at all.

Since that day, we have done everything we can to encourage our girl to move (while having fun), so that she maintains as much movement as possible as she grows.

One of the best, most thoughtful gifts we received was a pair of socks. Our friend MJ sewed jingle bells to the toes of the socks so that Lily would get a happy jingle reward every time she kicked her legs. Simple, but super effective.

So, if you want your child to exercise their legs, put bells on their toes!*

* Bells can potentially be a choking hazard, so affix them to the socks securely and supervise playtime.