My Little Man is 9 Months Old

...And I cannot believe it. I started missing him as a small and sweet little baby when he was about 4 months old, and now here he is at 9 months! Oh my. We've had quite a journey over the past 9 months, and I grow to love him more and more everyday. I thank God often for such a wonderful blessing. I look forward to coming home every day to my family.

Milestones:
We found a second tooth on January 5th. Now, both of his bottom middle teeth are coming in strong. In fact, the second one we found seems to be coming in faster than the first one. He still has a hard time with the pain, and I know it's only going to get worse because my parenting advice books all point to molars being the most difficult. Something to NOT look forward to!

He is eating more solids every day. I finally learned how to use my Baby Cook machine, and I love it! His very first taste of Mommy's homemade food was bananas and cherries, which he loved! Since then, we have also made other items in the machine: carrots, sweet potatoes, apples & pears with cinnamon, and corn with a little butter. He seems to gravitate towards fruits. Maybe he has a severe sweet tooth just like his Mom and Dad. Mark can eat candy like it's going out of style, and I can eat chocolate non-stop if you'd let me. The Baby Cook is so rewarding - I feel so good knowing that he is getting wholesome food with no preservatives. It was difficult to use at first, but now I've got the hang of it, no problem. I dice up all of his food, fill the water reservoir up to the 2 or 3 mark depending on the type of food, put the food in the little steamer basket, wait 7-10 minutes, keep some of the water for nutrients/flavor, and pour the steamed food into the processor to puree. Sometimes we'll add a little of his formula into the mixture or butter (fat is good for babies -- wouldn't you know?) Yay me! I'm so proud of myself.

He had his 9-month Well Baby visit last Friday. He weighs 19 lbs and 13 oz, and he is 29 3/4 inches long (so that 20 lb estimate from last month was wrong!) His head is 18 inches. Must have a big brain. No shots this visit because he was sick, but he does have to catch up on one shot that he missed from his 6-month visit (she was out of the vaccine), so we have to go back in a few weeks for another Prevnor. We discussed 2 things that she recommended we stay away from: Shoes and 1st Birthday Party blow-out bashes. She said that babies outgrow shoes every few weeks, and we'd be better off putting the money towards a dinner out to eat for me & Mark (ha! yeah right). And I guess there is some sort of 1st Birthday blow-out bash trends that's been pretty popular that she doesn't quite understand. I'm in agreement with her thoughts. As long as Alex gets to shove his face full of icing sugar goodness on his 1st Birthday, that's all that matters to me. She also recommended to try and ween him off of the 4th bottle he takes per day by eating solid foods in combination with his first 3 bottles of the day. Another wonderful idea because his formula cans are about to make me go broke. At (4) 7-8 oz bottles per day, and a can is 23.4 oz of power, I feel like we're always buying formula. Not to mention after using the Baby Cook, I realize how cheap an organic bag of carrots is compared to us supporting Mead Johnson Nutritionals' business conglomerate.

Learning:
It is so sweet to watch him learn about his world and immediate surroundings. He has so many toys, and he just looks fascinated when he plays. I like to lay on the floor and look up at him while he watches his toys make noise, rattle, and shake.

I think that he knows his name because he turns his head when you say "Alex".

We also witnessed him clap his hands 2-3 times after we said: "Alex, clap your hands". So adorable.

We also enjoy listening to him babble non-stop. Before we go to sleep, sometimes we take him to our bed and listen to him while he rolls around and says "Da-da-da-da-da-da-ba-ba-ba-ba-ahhhh-" and of course the high-pitched shrieking. He really makes us laugh now, so I cannot imagine how cute it will be when he actually starts talking.

And he has realized how to bite ME! We have been victims of his little nipping "vampire attacks". I don't know when or why he started this, but he likes to nibble on my chin and nose, and I've seen him also do this to Mark and Grandma Candi. Hope this is a habit that we can break before he starts playing with other children. I've read that it is quite common for pre-schoolers to bite their friends.

Development:
Alex has settled into a rather predictable napping routine. He usually takes a morning nap and an afternoon nap. If we can avoid it, we try not to let him sleep after 5-6 pm in the evenings, but sometimes he gets so grouchy, and all he wants to do is sleep.

He isn't quite crawling yet, but rather he will guide you until you realize that he wants you to stand him up so he can practice walking down the hallway. I have a feeling he is going to completely skip crawling and go straight to walking. He likes to lay on his belly, and instead of crawling to something, he rotates himself around in a 360-degree circle using his hands to move himself. He looks like a fish-out-of-water when he does this. And finally, he can sit-up about 99% unassisted.

He is getting so long that I am relishing these last few months when I rock him to sleep in our glider. When I sit down, I always realize how quickly this time is going to pass and that someday I will not be able to hold him and rock him to sleep anymore. I love to put my hand on his forehead, kiss his cheek, listen to him breathe, and yes -- even the times when he fights me against going to sleep. I'll never get these days back again until he has a little brother or little sister someday. For now, I will savor every last moment and enjoy my time while he is still small enough to slumber in my arms.

Nana and Pepaw are supposed to be coming up for a visit next weekend. I know they want to get together with Grandpa Greg and Grandma Candi too, so I am looking forward to next weekend. Let's just pray for good weather and no snow!!

Happy New Year!

We've made it through the holiday season! Every year, it is a busy whirlwind, and this year has been no different.

First, let's start with another milestone: We noticed Alex pushing up on his hands and knees on December 20. He's getting ready to crawl!

So, 2009 was our turn to rotate Christmas in Indiana, and it was most definitely the best car ride with Alex to date. We decided to leave at nighttime with the idea that Alex would sleep most of the trip in his carseat -- and it worked. We left around 7 pm, and he slept until Columbus when we stopped for dinner and to give him a bottle. Back on the road, and he fell asleep again after a small extended period of crying. And he slept another 3 hours until we arrive in Oaktown about 2:30 am. Then, we were up until 4:30 a.m. waiting on him to go back to sleep.

It took Mark and I the entire next day on December 23 to get rested up and back on track. As Mom and I were making about 10 dozen cookies that night, Mark says: "Steph, I feel a tooth!" And so it was... Alex's first tooth was poking through on the lower front (his right) side. Of course I cried because it was yet another milestone reached in just a few days. My Dad made fun of me, (even telling Mimi!)

We spent Christmas Eve at Mimi's house. Alex sat mostly on Auntie D's lap while he opened presents. He loved opening them because of the noise from the paper. He received a musical stacker, Fisher Price Stacking Blocks set, tennis shoes, books, & bath toys from Mimi/Aunt Barb/the girls, and cute clothes/onesies and a stacker from Aunt Julie & Uncle Rich. Alex hardly napped on this day, and therefore, we skipped church service thinking he would go to sleep soon at Mom & Dad's house. But nope... none of us slept well at all on this entire trip.

Christmas Day/my birthday: We started the morning by opening presents from just our immediate family: Mark and I, Nana, Pepaw, and Diane. Alex had a blast! We got some of the action on video. He was so excited when he opened a learning caterpillar from Nana & Pepaw. He also received a Christmas train set, bath boat & toys, couple of outfits, 2 outfits from Maui, a tractor ornament, and snack trap cups. Auntie D got him a dinosaur outfit and a Wonder Pets Save the Dinosaur DVD. That evening, we took Alex to see Missy & Molly, and played a scrabble game. Alex was a very good boy sitting on my lap for almost the entire game without crying or squirming.

On December 26, Alex was 8 months old. I cannot believe he is 8 months old already. He weighs 20 1/2 lbs, and he eats 7.5 or 8 oz bottles 4 times per day. We are trying to get him to eat more solid foods, but we have realized there is a fine line between him being "not hungry yet, and therefore will not eat much of the solid food" and "starving for his bottle" around the 3 1/2 to 4 hour mark. To date, he has had rice cereal, applesauce, bananas, pears with blueberries, sweet potatoes, and peas. A few words about baby pureed peas... they are gross. Stinky, green, oily, taste yucky (according to Alex), and did I mention green? Our experience with them is enough for me to banish them from his menu forever if he so chooses. Ick. When I bought them, I just wanted to grab something new. Bad idea. This coming weekend, I want to read my baby puree book and open the Beaba Cook processor we bought from Williams Sonoma. Can't wait to try making nutritious, wholesome baby food for my sweet boy.

On Sunday Dec 27, we had breakfast at the Cracker Barrel with Tiffany and Spencer. We recorded the funniest little video of Alex & Spencer laughing at Mark. It's crazy what you will do for the sake of children's laughter. I find myself doing silly things over & over again just to keep Alex laughing. Mark, Dad, & Jeremy spent a snowy & early part of the afternoon moving Diane into her new place, while I watched Alex. We had barely enough time to check into our hotel room before rushing off to the Colts/Jets game. Alex stayed at the hotel with Nana & Leah, while everyone else in our family (including Mark in his Dallas Clark jersey - woop woop!) watched the team sit the starters in the 2nd half and opt to not go for a historical NFL and team record. It was disappointing, and I hope they play well in the playoffs. Otherwise, there will be a lot of backlash... ok enough about that. Moving on...

We journeyed home on Monday morning, and we were so ready to sleep in our own beds. Sleep was limited on this trip, and we didn't get much of it. Alex opened more presents from Mark and I when we got home: 3 in 1 sports center, toy toolbench, and an electronic story book. He had already opened Chuck the Truck and his toy cell phone while we were in Indiana.

On the next day, Alex and I both developed a cold. Nasal congestion mostly. We had dinner with Aunt Jan and Uncle George on Tuesday night, and we really enjoyed our visit with them. Alex opened a few presents from them as well: a little dump truck that he LOVES, a Christmas ornament, and a cute little outfit.

On Dec 30, we had our Christmas celebration with Mark's family. And Alex opened more presents. I hope he doesn't remember that he opened presents nearly every day in 2009 when Christmas returns in 2010. Otherwise, we may as well just celebrate Hanukkah. He received a walker and an outfit from Grandma and Grandpa, and a toy snail and outfit from cousin Joee. Mark and I had a combined birthday cake that evening, which was delicious!

And finally, *drum roll please*, on the 10th day, we rested. That's right, 10 straight days of holiday crazy and commuting chaos. Even though it was Mark's birthday, I still somehow managed to go grocery shopping and make him a special dinner & dessert for his birthday on Dec 31. We did absolutely nothing for New Year's Eve despite 3 invitations, and me & Alex being sick, and it was great. Pure exhaustion, but Mark and I lived it up with champagne anyways.

One last thing about Alex before I close: For the past few weeks, he has developed an extreme fear of bathtime. Not sure why, but he screams even though he used to love it. We have tried a variety of ideas, and finally it worked when Daddy got in with him, played with a ton of toys, and we let him stand up. We had to warm him up to the tub, even letting him play with his toys at the side for a few days in advance of his bath. I hope that was the end of his fear because Mommy loves bathtime, and so Daddy and I just have to remember to: MAKE IT FUN!!!