8 & 9 months

I can't keep up with how quickly the time if flying by. I've been meaning to post something about you turning 8 months, but I missed that, and now I am almost two weeks late for your 9 month post. Nine months - that's like how long you were in my belly! And that blows my mind. Even more so is that now, when I look at you, you aren't a baby anymore. You're a little boy (although, you'll always be my baby).

You have accomplished so much since over the last couple of months - adding to the list each and every day. You started saying "mama" more deliberately and I love it. Sometimes, I still get a little confused if you are doing your normal "mama babba dadda tehessess" rambling or if you are really saying "mama". Then one day, while Nancy was holding you, I came downstairs and you reached for me and said "mama". It was so precious and made me not want to go back upstairs to work! We're still working on "dada"; you are almost there.

You also clap your hands, do "so big", dance to music, shake your head "no" almost constantly. Are you really saying "no" or do you like the way the world looks when you shake your head with your eyes open? Whatever makes you happy. You are also cruising like crazy - sometimes, you surprise yourself because you aren't holding on to anything. When it dawns on you, you either fall down and cry or you wobble and frantically grab hold of something... anything. It's really quite entertaining.


Right before you turned 9 months, we discovered you could walk behind your scooter. We were so excited for you - funny thing is, I bet if we did this "experiment" a couple week earlier, you would have been able to do it then, too. Regardless, it was so fun to watch your little legs walk your little body around. And you looked so proud and independent - now when you do it, you do it with a purpose.... like you are actually going to go somewhere. Too bad it is the same route every time - living room, through the dining room and into the kitchen and back. You don't go straight very well - when you hit a wall or a chair, you keep pushing until someone comes to redirect you.

You've become a pretty good sleeper. Don't get me wrong, you have your moments. But generally, we've been putting you down around 7:30 and you sleep until 6 or 7:00 AM. On occasions, you wake up in the middle of the night for a quick feeding - which I still give into, because it is just easier then letting you cry it out. I know if I go and pick you up, feed you and rock you to sleep, you'll be sleeping again in no time. And you will usually sleep a little later, too. If I don't, you'll cry for at least 30 minutes - waking up the entire house.

You love bath time, although you are a handful. I've passed this "duty" off to daddy. You are all over the place, trying to crack your head of the faucet (if you aren't tyring to suck on it) or the side of the bathtub. You splash like a manic. We but bubbles in the tub one night, and you didn't know what to do. You sat there and stared at them for the longest time - then you tried to eat them.

You still put anything and everything into your mouth. I guess this is normal.... and probably will be for some time, since you still only have one tooth. And the chanced of you getting the rest of them in the next month is slim to none. But, I have to admit, I LOVE your one-tooth-ness. It's so stinking cute when you give me your big gummy grin and scrunch your nose up.

You love to play peek-a-boo and chase. I have calluses on my knees from all the games of chase we play, which usually consists of me saying "I'm getting outta here!" and you cracking up and chasing after me. Sometimes I'll say "I'm going to get you!" and you start to crawl away - but usually you end up coming after me anyway. Recently, you start to incorporate the stairs into our game of chase. This is usually the only time you'll let me chase you - you go all the way to the top, at warp speed - doing a quick turn of the head every step to make sure I am still behind you. (Little do you know, your new found step climbing scares me to death, so I hoover on top of you in case you slip. We're ordering gates ASAP.)


Eating - you love it. You love everything. And I love introducing you to knew foods. You name it, you eat it (except for those foods on the restricted list). You had your first lick of an ice cream cone the other day - as soon as I did it I thought to myself - "Oh no, what did I just do?!" You really liked it, but not enough to beg for more.... yet. I am sure this will happen in the next couple of months - and definitely come summer, when ice cream comes become a must in mommy's diet. You are also still a huge fan of nursing. To the point where I think I can't keep up with you. Right around your 9 month birthday, I started to give you formula once a day. I am not sure why I was so against this - I only wanted you to have my milk - but between work, travel, leaving you for extended periods of time and the dwindling frozen supply in the freezer, I had to do it. And man, has it made my life easier and you almost just as happy. (Although, you aren't a fan of taking the bottle from me. )

When you eat, you put your foot up on the tray - seriously, at like every meal!

You are doing great with Nancy. She adores you and you're pretty smitten with her. I can hear you guys play and dance while I work upstairs. I would be lying if said I didn't wish every single day that it was me downstairs taking care of you. And it would be me, if I wasn't able to work from home. While I still feel like I miss a lot, I am still a huge part of your day - we eat lunch together, I come down and play when I need a break, sometimes I put you down for your nap or get your out of your crib when you wake up. We also go to music class together on Wednesday. It's a pretty awesome gig with a team of people who are all parents and all about work-life balance. I hope one day you will appreciate why I worked while you were so young - your daddy and I are doing it all for you and your future brothers and or sisters.

I love you more and more every single minute. I can't image my life without you.

Love you,
Mama

9 Month Check-up stats: (1/21/10)
Weight: 19 pounds (24%)
Height: 28" (41%)
Doctor's comments: "Perfect!"