Happy 9 months, Olive!

Age: 9 months

Weight: 21 lbs. (84th percentile)

Height: 27.75 inches (57th percentile)
Clothing: sizes 9 & 12 months and some 6 month onesies.

Head circumference: 17.91 inches (88th percentile)

Sleeping: Again, many nights this month have been spent on the glider. I think her teeth have been irritating her and she wakes up screaming in the middle of the night. Naps are still taken in mama's arms and kind of off schedule. I used to know when nap time would be, but now they are kind of all over the place.

Eating habits: Nursing. She is eating solids twice a day (lunch & dinner) with snacks in between. Right now she prefers fruit over vegetables and prefers cut up fruits/vegetables over pureed food. I don't blame her.

Favorite activity: She loves "walking" around the house, biting on everything and her stackable cups. She enjoys playing in her PNP. She loves Murray from Sesame Street and Po from Kung Fu Panda. She enjoys petting (a little too hard sometimes) her siblings and chasing them around the house.

Cutest Moment of the Month: Walking and seeing her face light up when she takes those steps. Fake coughing to get attention from somebody and laughing out loud because she thinks it's funny. And when she pulls my shirt out and looks inside or bites the outside of my shirt to let me know she wants to nurse. :)

Milestones:

Begins crawling

Pulls up to standing position from sitting

Sits for a prolonged time (10minutes)

May develop a preference for use of one hand

Uses thumb and index finger to pick up objects

Responds to simple verbal commands

Comprehends "no no"

Increased interest in pleasing parents

Puts arms in front of face to avoid having it washed

Firsts: She got her 1st tooth at about 8.5 months and the 2nd bottom one came out today. She fell asleep on her Papa for the 1st time and has done it a few times now. And you took your 1st unassisted steps last night, but we didn't get it on camera. Next time! She pulled herself up to the ottoman and is continuing to practice pulling herself up on things.

Updates: Olive is a talker. I think she's going to be a lot like her daddy and will enjoy making me laugh. :) She started cruising this month and actually took her 1st unassisted steps last night (1 day before her 9 month birthday!). She stands unassisted for a few seconds. Thanks to the help of her mama, her dinosaur walker, her walking wings and Olive's determination I think she'll be walking really soon. Aaaah! My anxiety level went up a ton. Now that she knows she can get around by "walking" she absolutely hates her RNP which is where I used to have her sit while I bathed. I think it's the reclined position that she hates which is one reason we switched her to a convertible car seat. She prefers it over her infant car seat right now. She is beginning to sit up from a lying down position. She still has not crawled, but has begun putting one knee up kind of like in a frog pose if that makes sense. My mom said I didn't like putting my knees on the ground when I was a baby and Olive is the same way. She started clapping and dancing and it is absolutely adorable. She waves hi/bye. She loves to cough to get our attention and when we respond with a cough she just cracks up. Her laughter is amazing and contagious. She's a mama's girl. Even though it wears me out at times I kind of love it because I know that one day all she'll want is daddy. I'll enjoy this moment while it lasts. I just love this little girl and can't imagine my life without her. It's amazing how much she has changed in just one month!