Holy moly she's 9 months old- I know it's cliche to ask "how did that happen?" but seriously how did that happen??? I'm still constantly sleep deprived so the days just sort of...run together and now all of a sudden she's not this tiny, squirmy newborn, and her first birthday is right around the corner. Let's talk about the last three months...
Growing at a slower pace now, so I can keep up a little better. She's still very tall- pants are always too short for her- but she's not super chubby like she used to be. Now that she pulls herself up to stand (!!) it's always so shocking to see how tall she is.
Eating breastmilk still, and she's really gotten the hang of solid foods. We had sort of a relapse with our bottle feeding problems after Christmas break- 2 weeks of just nursing whenever she wanted spoiled her a little bit, and she really fought the bottle on her first day back at daycare. She's back in the swing of things, though, and will drink the whole bottle without a fight (so long as the right person is feeding her- literally only one person in the world can give her a bottle without her fighting it- and so long as it's the exact right temperature and so long as she's allowed to hold the bottle but the person feeding her is not allowed to let go and so long as...) She doesn't have time for your spoons and purees- if something is being served with utensils, she'll hold them, thanks. She will tolerate applesauce in a pouch, but only if she's allowed to hold it. She likes things she can gnaw on, like carrot sticks and broccoli florets and even pizza crust. She really likes picking up those little star-shaped puffed rice snacks; she'll concentrate on it and pick up one in each hand, pinched between tiny fingers and thumbs, and then hold them out and show them to you. And then she'll giggle and put them in her mouth and crunch with her two tiny, sharp teeth at the front of her mouth.
Talking a lot now, surprisingly- at least a lot more than her brother was at this age. She loves to whisper "dadada", but she'll also say "nuh nuh nuh" while you change her diaper and "guh guh guh" while she plays with her siblings. She doesn't blow as many raspberries nowadays, but when she does, she seems to be timing them for comedic effect. There's still lots of squeals and sometimes she'll just sit in her high chair at the dinner table and just...yell. Just open her mouth and scream one long, continuous sound, like the lead singer of a metal band. You will not have a conversation without her.
Making facial expressions like the little clown she is. She got to play with her cousins over Christmas, one of whom is just over a year old than her. He scrunches up his nose when he smiles, and I guess she liked that so much that she's started doing it, too. If she does something mischievous or otherwise thinks she's being particularly clever, she'll scrunch up her nose and squint her eyes and smile with her whole face, just like her cousin. It's a purposeful expression, different from the way she smiles when something makes her happy or when she laughs.
Listening to every word her siblings' say, studying the sounds they make and the way their mouths move. She's not quite parroting them yet, but any minute now I expect I'll be hearing her repeat them. For now, she's definitely taking notes. She also pays attention when we say family prayers; she definitely recognizes Grace Before Meals and will get excited because it means food is coming, but she also likes when we say bedtime prayers. She doesn't seem to mind when I sing to her anymore- for a while there she seemed to not like it, but now she just laughs.
Sleeping at daycare for naps, but not at home. At home, she'll only nap if she's being held, and we're still struggling through the night 2 hours at a time (sometimes 3, but that's it). We're full time co-sleeping again because it's just too much of a hassle to get out of bed so many times during the night. Surely, one day she'll sleep through the night. Surely....
Loving her singing red panda that was a Christmas gift from her big sister; the multitude of teething toys she now has at her disposal; standing up; crawling away too fast for you to catch her; feeding herself; her two older siblings.
Hating diaper changes; putting on clothes; getting buckled into the car seat; bedtime; jackets.
Much love,
The Geeks
