nine months

dear cecilia,

today marks the day you've been on the outside just as long as you were on the inside. (although, technically, pregnancy is closer to ten months... but i digress.) and every week this month, you've been growing and changing. you are crawling everywhere, although you tend to keep one knee bent underneath you and scoot along that way. you pull yourself up to stand, and you're so pleased with yourself every single time that we can't help but cheer for you. you're starting to cruise along the coffee table, although at this point it's pretty uncoordinated and you don't move very fast. 

your new mobility has its good points and its challenging points. of course, you are very excited to explore the house, and you entertain yourself for long stretches of time just crawling around and seeing what fun discoveries await around the corner. one downside is that you do not like to be contained. you immediately roll and try to crawl away whenever we change your diaper, and you squawk in protest whenever i put you in the pack and play so i can cook dinner or take a shower. but your naturally cheerful disposition always wins out, and after a little yelling, you're all smiles again. of course, you've acquired some scrapes and bumps -- sometimes you get going too fast crawling and faceplant. but you brush off these little interruptions and just keep going! 

you and Greta now have to navigate these changes in your relationship, as you want to do whatever she is doing and be wherever she is. most of the time, she's happy to share with you. if she takes something from you, you squawk at her and make your displeasure known. we talk a lot about treating each other with kindness, taking turns, using gentle hands, and remembering that people are more important than things. she makes you laugh harder than anyone else can, and you both love when she feeds you dinner! 

this month, you moved into the convertible carseat. overall, you do pretty well in it. i thought you were going to love sitting more upright and being able to see better, but if you drop your toys, you can't reach them easily like you could in the infant carrier seat, so it hasn't been the overwhelming hit i anticipated. i think you're used to it now, though, after we made the 1400 mile round trip journey to New Hampshire this month for my cousin Raychel's wedding! you've been to other weddings before, but this is the first time you got to stay for the reception. you were a little overwhelmed by the lights and music, but you loved visiting with all our family, and meeting the Killian clan (including your Great-Gramps Wayne, Janeen, Auntie Kris, Auntie Karla, my cousins Brinkley, Kerryn and Karrah, and your second cousins Naveigha and Leighla). as part of our trip, we also visited Auntie Kira in New York City. throughout the whole trip, you slept like a champ in the pack and play, with the sound machine blaring white noise by your head (although most of your daytime naps were in the Ergo or the car). 

you still have just the two teeth on the bottom, but this month you've started eating more textured foods. you're working on your pincer grasp. you especially love to eat your crunchies (Greta likes them too). on our trip this month, you ate a lot of baby food out of pouches and loved it! i think you were excited to have some pouches of your own after watching Greta eat applesauce almost every day. 

i think you have officially said your first words: "dada" and "mama". you've been babbling those syllables for months now, but this month you will look directly at one of us and say the appropriate name. at the very least, if i ask you where Daddy is, you point to him and smile. the other day, you crawled over to the pipe organ in our living room, pulled yourself up to stand, banged on the pedals and said "dada! dada!" soooo i'm pretty sure you're a genius. 

you still drink four to five 6 ounce bottles per day, and eat solids twice a day with some snacks in between. you take two good naps (ninety minutes to two hours in the morning, and at least an hour in the afternoon). sometimes you take another short nap before dinner. if you don't get that third nap, you're ready for bed by 7:30 or 8, and you typically sleep for 12 glorious hours.

you are wearing 9 month clothes and size 2 shoes. you weigh 16 pounds 13 ounces (25th percentile), and you are 28 inches long (62nd percentile). you're such a snuggly baby, and i probably kiss your cheeks and squeeze your little thighs hundreds of times each day (no exaggeration). 

we love you so much, kiddo. happy nine months!