What have you been up to???
I won't be able to get you to the pedi for your 9 month appointment until sometime next week, but it looks like you are somewhere around 28-29 inches long and you weighed 18 lbs. 10 oz. on December 12.
You were wearing size 3 diapers, but we found a bag of 2's stuffed in the back so we're back to those until they run out. They still fit you fine, we just moved up because we thought we had run out.
You wear size 6-9 and 6-12 month clothes. Most outfits are too short in the arms and too big in the tummy though!
You go to sleep around 8 or 8:30 and sleep about 12 hours. We started keeping you up later so Daddy could have more time with you at night which I think y'all both enjoy. Now that you don't get rocked to sleep, his nighttime routine with you is pretty short, and I think he was missing that special Daddy/Liam time.
You take a morning nap, 11-1, and an afternoon nap at 3:30 or 4 until 5.
You nurse twice a day, morning and night, and take two bottles during the day, one formula and one breastmilk. I really want to keep nursing until your first birthday, but it has been really tough lately. You have been really disinterested and will only spend a couple minutes on each side before you begin to fight me. Then you start biting/chewing and it hurts! I went down to just mornings and evenings because those are your most cooperative times, but it's still rough. My book says you only need about 16-24 oz. a day at this point so that makes me feel better about your super short sessions, but I sure wish you would hang on just a couple more months!
Eating solids has been so fun this month and you have really loved finger foods. You still eat oatmeal and babyfood everyday, but you also have finger foods with all three of your meals and some snacks.
You are a sippy cup pro and love drinking breastmilk and watered down apple juice out of it.
You are SO wiggly! Especially when you get excited...you start flailing your arms and wiggling your legs. It is SO hard to get smiling pictures anymore because they're all blurry!
Example:
You finally decided to move! We have had an official army crawler since 12.18 and you can get around really well!
You say "Dada, yeah, buh-bye, hi" and a bunch of non-words like baba, yaya, gaga, etc. pretty much all day long. You also have a phrase you say that sounds just like "I love you." I'm sure it's not, but everyone that's heard it says it really sounds like it so I don't know. You do hear it a lot though! Will and I also thought we heard you say "mom" one time, but I'm refusing to acknowledge it because I am not ready to be mom, just mama or mommy please :)
Here's an old video of Liam saying "I love you." It's at the beginning around 9 seconds. Do you hear it?
You have two teeth now! Your second bottom tooth came in about 2.5 weeks after your first one. They are so cute! (But painful for Mama.)
Your hair has started getting a lot thicker this month. Your bald spots on the sides have filled in and you have tons of little baby hairs growing in under your long hair. We've decided not to cut it again and just see what happens. I trim the back though so you don't have to rock the mullet. Right after a bath it's so fluffy, I love it!
Things You Love:
Feeding yourself! You will sometimes refuse when I try to feed you babyfood because you would rather do it yourself.
Giving kisses, giving hugs, shaking your head "no," and waving though not specifically for hi and bye. Your head shakes are clearly when you don't want something thoug
You also love to do this...
I don't know what to call it, but it's just a funny new trick you learned and you will do it with your hand or any toy you can get to your mouth. It's so funny!
Two things that make you laugh hysterically right now are: raspberries on the back of your neck and playing airplane. You just die laughing!
(The photo shoot temporarily came to an end at this point!)
Your favorite toys this month were still your walker, any type of book, and your car/steering wheel toy that makes a lot of noise. Now that Christmas has happened though, you have way too many toys to choose from. We haven't even opened half of them, and I plan to introduce them slowly.
Things you don't love:
This month you have been a MAJOR Mama's boy and haven't really wanted anything to do with anyone else. You have started crying hysterically a few times when I've passed you to your Daddy. It hurt his feeling a little, but it's okay because he knows it's just a phase. If you will let someone else hold you, you keep your eye on me and cry if I leave the room.
Firsts:
First finger foods! Between Christmas cooking and wedding showers, you have tasted tons of fruits, veggies, and meats. Your favorite finger foods this month are string cheese, scrambled eggs, and pasta. (FYI: I started with just the egg yolk, but Liam's been eating whole eggs for weeks and hasn't had any kind of allergic reaction. Doctors are now suggesting introducing the entire egg as long as there is no history of food/egg allergies already known. But it's up to you!) Your least favorite finger food is broccoli. You spit it out every time!
Army crawling! You started slowly on 12.18 and can now cross the room!
Pulling up! 12.19 you pulled up from sitting to standing on your own for the first time! It's still a work in progress, and most of the time you get about half-way up and then fall back on your bottom, but you have successfully made it up a few times! Your favorite thing to pull up on is your toy basket of course, and you throw out all your toys.
Yesterday, Daddy changed out your car seat to the big convertible one. No more infant car seat for you!
First Christmas! You were very spoiled loved by all your grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles, and of course mommy and daddy. You also did wonderfully during Christmas Eve service and didn't make a peep. The only time you talked was when everyone was singing. I think you just wanted to join in the Christmas songs!
We could not love you more, baby boy! You are such a joy!
