ellie: 9 months

happy 9 months, elle.  i feel like this was a huge month for you, filled with lots of changes.  i cannot believe how fast you are growing and changing.  

... the biggest change this month is that you are full on crawling.  you started right after your 8 month 'birthday' so by now you're not only on the move, but really fast, and really good at it.  you crawl 'normally' and have officially mastered the cross-crawl.  you are literally moving all over the house, from room to room, eating all the dirt you can find and messing with your big sister any chance you get.  i thought that crawling would make you a happier baby and i was right, but man it is exhausting chasing you around all day.

...  you're also pulling up on anything and you even try and stand on your own, which hasn't been successful for you yet but i can't believe you're even trying.  you like to try and stand from a sitting position and you also love to pull up on all furniture and people.  

...  your sleeping sucks.  i started having you sleep in your crib for at least the first portion of the night right before you turned 8 months and i really didn't think that you would be screaming your face off a month later.  i will nurse you and rock you and then put you down in your crib and about 50% of the time you'll wake up, pull up on your crib and scream for a while.  i've tried going back in to rock you or pat your back but that never worked because you never really fell back asleep and would always start screaming the second i left your room.  ugh.  i hate this part of parenting but i know that you need your sleep and letting you cry a bit before you fall asleep on your own seems like the only thing that's going to work for you.  one thing that's slightly hilarious/annoying is that you almost always fall asleep sitting up and holding onto the crib.  it drives me nuts that you won't lay down to sleep after all of this but i've learned that going back into your room to try and lay you down only makes things worse.  you're napping twice a day.  the morning nap is often on the go but your afternoon nap is usually your longer one at home.  you prefer that i lay with you for this nap and i really need to work on getting you to nap alone so you don't develop the same bad habit that your sister had of needed to be held through her entire nap.

...  you have a tooth!  finally.  and i actually thinking you're working on more with the crappy sleep and the constant chewing on everything.  

...  you're eating just about anything these days although i've been much less structured about feeding you than i was with feeding avery.  you don't really like purees from the spoon so all of that baby food that i made is still in the freezer.  luckily avery likes it so i know it won't go to waste.  you love eating solid foods and i can usually feed you some chunks of whatever we're eating.  you also have started to like pouches, so i've been buying those too since it's easier to get more fruits and veggies into you that way.  you're still nursing approximately a million times a day/night so i know you're getting a lot of nutrients through that, too. 

...  you took your first road trip this month and did pretty good.  you slept terribly, but did pretty well in the car although we did have some rough moments.  feeding you puffs seemed to keep you entertained for a bit and you eventually fell asleep, too. 

...  you are one determined child.  you know what you want and you're going to get it.  you will throw a fit if we take something away from you and you have no problem attempting to push avery around if she's in your way or not 'sharing' with you.  i actually have to watch you two pretty closely because you're officially into everything and she officially hates it.  

...  but despite that you really love your sister.  your face lights up when you see her and you love to touch her, play with her, wrestle around with her, and basically do all the things that she's doing.  she's actually not all that into you at the moment with is a little heartbreaking as a parent but i'm hoping she'll warm up to you more once you can actively play with her. 

...  you are a physical kid.  your favorite game is to flop around on our bed and wrestle with your dad.  you'll throw yourself backwards and you think it's the funniest thing ever.  you're constantly banging your head on things and scratching yourself.  luckily you seem to be pretty tough and get over things quickly.

...  you're getting to be weary of strangers.  you like to people watch but if they make eye contact with you you'll start crying.  i think you prefer me to other people but you really love your daddy, too.  i'm so thankful that you're so into him at this point.

...  you love baths.  you will seriously throw a fit if i don't get you in the tub fast enough and you always scream when i take you out.  you splash around like crazy and love all of the toys that we have.  this is actually one of the few times that you and your sister play nicely together. 

...  you also started climbing stairs this month.  woah kid, too fast.  our house in telluride had two stairs from the den to the kitchen and you quickly mastered going up those but would then face plant down them.  uh oh.  you haven't attempted to do this since we got home but it's only been a day.  :)  i think we might have to invest in some baby gates for you.

happy 9 months baby girl.  we love you!