Tiarnan walks downstairs, unassisted

On December 4th 2006, I caught sight of Tiarnan walking down the stairs unassisted. He stepped carefully from step to step and showed no evidence of fear - just an intensity at each movement, always appraising the steps with an attentive eye. Tiarnan is ten months old, so this is unusually young to walk downstairs. Needless to say, he didn't fall. Incidentally, for those who don't know babies well, walking downstairs is much harder and requires much more control, than walking upstairs - which he has already mastered.

At times he wants to climb into his cot - just like his elder brother Ainan used to do when he was eight months. He has long wanted to do this. When we catch sight of him, we stop him from doing so - for we are more concerned for the dangers of falling. It would be interesting to see, however, if like Ainan, he was able to do such a thing.

Tiarnan is proving to be very athletic and attempts things that show a certain bravado. Part of our apartment is split level. Tiarnan has devised a unique way of travelling from one level to the other: climb over a wall that divides them - and drop down into a couch, before proceeding to the ground from the sofa. He has done this quite a few times. At first I was wary, convinced he would hurt himself - but now that I have seen him do it several times, without mishap, I just watch and let him do it. He is happy to do so. He first did this when he was nine months old.

(If you would like to read more about Tiarnan or his gifted brothers, including Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, or Fintan, three, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, intelligence, IQ, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, baby genius, savant, the creatively gifted, gifted adults and gifted children in general. Thanks.)