9 MONTHS!!!

What a difference 8 months make.  Those pictures don't even look like the same baby! I can't believe my sweet girl is now 9 months old.  She has officially been outside more than she was inside.  She's getting sooo big!  We haven't been to the doctor for her 9 month check-up (that's scheduled next week), so I don't have any stats, but I'll be sure to update when we do.  I noticed this morning a 3-6month old size dress was a little tight across her belly, so maybe we'll be moving into 6-9 month clothing soon!

FOOD:
She's still taking 5 5oz bottles a day, but for the last 3 weeks we've had to use formula for one of those bottles.  When I had mono the beginning of the year, my milk supply tanked and I wasn't making enough to sustain her.  So formula for a bottle it was.  I'm getting back to where I was and we should be able to stop the formula completely soon.  We tried carrots again a few nights ago, and they were a success.  We have also tried quinoa, which the texture through her off a bit, but mixed with some veggie or fruit puree it was fine.  We added in baby yogurt (pear flavored) and while the first night she wanted nothing to do with it, she's taken to it fine since then.  We're going to try egg yolk, pasta, mango, and blueberries soon. 

ACTIVITIES:
She's still crawling like a champ and pulling up on things with ease. She's also getting pretty good at getting back down to her knees/seated position after pulling up on things.  She can push her ride on car across the floor walking behind it (although I'm not sure she does this on purpose to move it, just she likes leaning on it and playing with it and ends up pushing it along).  She is also quite good at patty cake/clapping.  I'm still trying to get it on video, but its definitely so cute to see!  Still only babbling and no real words yet, but I am still working on that "mama"!

SLEEP:
Still on the same sleep cycle.  Going down between 8-9pm and up between 4-5am to eat.  Weekends its back to bed, and during the week if she wakes up closer to 4am its back to bed until time for Kris and I to start getting ready for work.  We're working on naps in her pack and play, and have a few successful naps, but I'm still pretty content on cuddling on the couch with her for naps.

TOYS:
She's still really partial to her bath toys and her ride on car.  We started introducing a small stuffed Hello Kitty when we're trying to get her to go to sleep at night.  It calms her down to just lay on us and feel it/play with it quietly on us.  We're hoping this can become a calming bedtime toy for her.

Happy 9 months to me!

Patty Cake!