9 months

Luc Gabriel,

You are nine months old today... As I type those words and think about how you've grown and changed over the last 3/4 of a year, I feel so proud to be your mama. You are such a joyful little soul! And I love you more than words.

You really are a very happy, easy going baby. Everyone who meets you notices that right away. As long as you are part of the action, you are content to observe and quietly interact with the world around you, especially when you're in the sling or the Ergo. Those calm, connected moments are some of my absolute favorites.

Especially since, you know, you can be a real handful sometimes! You love to explore, pulling things off shelves, opening and closing doors (especially the french doors to the laundry room), crawling around the room and reaching and pulling up on new objects, banging on new surfaces (the more noise they make the better). You love to play with curtains, wires and cables, cell phones, the camera (all sorts of things you probably shouldn't play with). We let you investigate these things sometimes, practicing a variation of the just say yes method, when we can supervise you and make sure you don't fall/ choke/ strangle yourself/ damage whatever it is (though you did drool on Daddy's cell phone last week and it stopped working, temporarily). You are often content to just sit there with something interesting in your hands (the playstation controller- wires and all, for instance) and investigate it for the longest time. You'll pull and twist and stare at it very intently. Then once it's time to put it away and move on, you seem genuinely satisfied. And so am I. Your curiosity and wonder are inspiring!
You haven't cut any new teeth this month, still just the two bottom ones, but they are really showing now! I'm not sure if you're teething, though you did spike a fever in the middle of the day yesterday, but I couldn't be sure why. You've been crankier than usual some days, but blissfully happy most others.

We were both sick this month (your third cold), but you breezed through it with almost no problem. I just hate when you're sick (especially when you have a fever), but I know it's good for your immune system to fight off germs now and then, so I don't worry about it too much. I am much more relaxed about germs in general now that you are so mobile (I have to be!). I just make sure to wash your hands on a regular basis and (try to) keep you away from really gross things (like Kelly's butt fur, shopping cart handles, floors at public places, etc.). By the time you are old enough to know what this means, I'll probably be completely rehabilitated (especially because hopefully by then you'll have some brothers and sisters too), but your mom is a recovering germaphobe.
This month you tried a few new foods: chunky applesauce (Braeburn, Fuji, and Granny Smith!), sweet potatoes, carrots, and lots of combination creations. Your favorites were a green gooey concoction of peas, green beans, and avocado (surprisingly!), sweet potatoes and applesauce, green beans and applesauce, and now that I think about it, pretty much anything and applesauce. We made our first foray into the world of (chokable!) finger foods (cut into teeny, tiny, minuscule pieces). You tried (plain, brown rice) pasta pieces (fun to play with, but not so much to eat), banana and peach pieces (yum! but I had to help get them to your mouth), and a barley teething biscuit, which you sucked on for a few minutes, then threw across the room. You attempted to bring banana from your tray to your mouth a few times, but you were successful only once (with a lot of fan fare and celebration!). You'll get there soon enough. The major change with solid food feeding this month has been that we've been doing it on a more consistent basis. You have cereal and fruit, or just fruit, almost every day at (approximately) lunchtime, and vegetables, fruit, and sometimes cereal again for dinner.

Oh, how you love to drop things. Especially when Daddy picks them up over and over again! One of your favorite activities is to drop things out of your crib. You'll haul huge heavy toys up and over the edge like it's nothing. You'll also push a blanket out, inch by inch. You just love to watch things drop. Sometimes we play drop and pick up. And you giggle uncontrollably!

You are still cruising, but cruising for you isn't really like walking while holding onto stuff anymore. Instead, you are just about running while merely tapping your fingertips on tables, walls, etc. for balance. And lately, you've started to let go and fall towards your next target object (or person, or dog). You have absolutely NO fear. You are just like your Daddy in that way. Just yesterday, you let go and turned toward Granny, and in your excitement, your little feet moved a bit just before your hands met her knees. And this morning, you were standing at the back of your co sleeper, and when I reached for you, you took two steps toward me, not holding onto the side! Your first steps?! Maybe.

You still like to use your walker push-toy, because to your delight, it lets you get anywhere! Your favorite thing to do is to push it until it hits something, then scoot around to the other side of it and push it back in the opposite direction until it hits something else, then repeat. You also really enjoy the ride-on Corn popper toy that Ethan lent you. You can't climb on and off of it yet, but you love to hold on as we push you around the room, or to push it yourself using the handle. And recently, a woman from the church bought you another one (a shopping cart), which we're going to keep at Gran Nan and Pop Pop's house.

And speaking of Gran Nan and Pop Pop, you just love spending time with your great-grandparents. You and Granny meet Pop Pop for coffee at least once a week, and he has a blast with you! And Gran Nan is just tickled with you too.

You also love to crawl and boy are you good at it. Sometimes I just watch you fly across a room and I have to sit back and catch my breath. I mean, not because I'm tired from chasing you (though sometimes I am), but because I'm just awestruck at the things you are able to do. I close my eyes and remember you as you were just a few months ago... you are growing up so fast!

Daddy is teaching you to come when called. Yes, just like a puppy. It's so funny. You are really good at it. You'll crawl from one room to another following the sound of his voice. And you like being chased too. I'll say "I'm gonnagettcha!" and you'll squeal with delight, usually very clumsily scrambling to get away, then almost immediately turning around to come back and get me instead. It's so cute!

You are a born climber. You encountered stairs for the first time this month at Aunt Sarah and Uncle Tim's house. You made it about half way up before we even realized what was happening! Luckily, Aunt Sarah was right there behind you, because eventually you did topple backwards. You were completely unphased, of course, and continued to climb. Also, you like to wedge your foot between the bars of your crib and struggle to hoist yourself up. Thankfully, you aren't able to climb out yet, but you're seriously trying to figure it out. And I'm sure it's only a matter of time before you do.

You are also practicing crawling and climbing in your sleep! I didn't even recognize that's what you were doing, until I read about it on another blog. You half wake up and hurl yourself over onto hands and knees, then launch yourself forward like you really have someplace to go! Then, unfortunately, you really do wake up and usually are quite upset when you realize you are already standing or that your face is pressed up against the mesh side of the co sleeper. It's pitiful, really. And often too cute for me to keep a straight face.

Bedtime has become one of our favorite times of day (perhaps because we're all so darn tired?). We try to get you into bed between 8-8:30pm, but that doesn't always happen. I find myself wanting to spend extra time with you at the end of the day, and not always wanting the day to end at 8pm, especially when we get home late. After your bath, Daddy gets you into your pajamas and reads you a few books (we always read Goodnight Moon last, and often we recite it from memory after the lights are out). Then I nurse and cuddle you to sleep. Lately, as I nurse you to sleep, you toss and turn and roll over and crawl away, then fuss when I'm no longer within reach. I have to put you back into position, usually two or three times before you fall asleep! Then Daddy places you ever so gently into your bed (you are still sleeping part of the night in your co sleeper play yard, most nights). But sometimes when he eases you onto the mattress, you wake up rolling and fussing and kicking your legs and flailing your arms! That's not pretty. You've become a very light sleeper.

I worry about you getting enough sleep (you are supposed to get 11 hours at night plus 3 hours of naps during the day- but you don't always get that much). You sure don't like to take naps! You still sometimes fall asleep on your own at nap time (usually after long periods of quiet time in your crib), though not nearly as easily as you used to. And you often wake up whimpering/ crying/ SCREAMING after about 30-45 minutes, which is very unusual for you. I think part of the problem is that you've been experiencing some separation anxiety lately, and when you wake up alone (in addition to the crawling in your sleep problem), you tend to get very upset.

You are talking a lot these days. You jabber and jabber sometimes, practicing all kinds of sounds. You say things like yayammmm, ayeyaya, yeadida, abaga, eh, oooohwa, sheeeee, yadyda, iggeba. You shreik when you're excited and you whisper when you are concentrating (sooooo darn cute). Sometimes we have conversations where you'll yell aaahhhhhrrr! And I'll say "really". Then you'll say ehhhhhhiii. And I'll say "tell me what happened next". And you'll say eeeeeoooowww. And I'll gasp! And you'll reply, very matter-of-factly, eh.

You say dadadada a lot, mostly when you're playing, and mamamama, mostly when you are tired or fussy or upset. Last night when I came in to nurse you to sleep, Daddy was holding you and you were fussing a little, then when you heard my voice, you wailed mamama as clear as day. Do you associate the word with me? I don't know. Maybe? I'd like to think so!

You've been nursing well lately, on average a little longer than usual at each session. Sometimes you'll just nurse and nurse, even when you aren't really getting any more milk (and this, plus extra pumping, has helped return my milk supply to normal, after a scary low point at the beginning of June). Most times though, you are still very easily distracted. Sometimes to keep you latched on and focused, I'll blow on your fingers or pbbbllltttt on your palms. I also invented a song I call I like milk. Here are the words:

I like milk.
Yummy, yummy milk.
I like milk!
Yummy mommy's/ yumma mama's milk.
(repeat)

Yeah, I'm pretty creative, huh? I also sign the word for milk while I'm singing. This often makes you smile, which is the best part. Seeing you smile while nursing is like... utter happiness... it's like everything else in the world just melts away and I feel totally peaceful. It's like in that moment, my purpose in life is entirely fulfilled. It's truly indescribable (though I gave it a shot).

And speaking of signing, I swear I've seen you make the sign for milk a couple times in your highchair. It really looked like you did, but when I asked you if you wanted milk and took you out of the highchair and over to the recliner to nurse you, you weren't interested. So, you have yet to reliably sign any words back to us, though we still use some signs when we talk to you. We frequently use milk, water, eat, thank you, all done, mommy, and daddy. And we infrequently use a few others.

I've noticed in the past month that you like to rub something between your fingers while you relax/ when you are falling asleep. So, you love your taggies blanket (and have only ripped one of the tags off, so far). I'm really glad that you do have a comfort object, though you don't seem overly attached to it (probably also a good thing). You also sometimes rub your hair, my shirt, your shirt or the edge of your diaper. And another sweet thing you've started doing recently, when I pick you up to comfort you or just to hug you, you often pat my back. Awwwww!


We started cloth diapering you at the beginning of this month, and I've been very pleased with how easy it is to use and wash the diapers. I love that it's soft cloth next to your skin instead of stinky chemical weirdness, and I love that we're not putting all that diaper waste into the landfills. But I'm not too fond of prefold + cover style cloth diapering, which is too bad because I bought a ton (!) of prefolds. So we're still using disposables on occasion, mainly because we only have four of the pocket style diapers (which are much better for nighttime and for going out). Also, so far Granny refuses to use cloth. But I'm working on her.

We've done so much this month! We went to the annual SPCA adoption reunion and you spent most of the day hanging out in the Ergo. You loved seeing all the dogs and helping judge the contests (like highest jumper and best tail wagger). We also went for a ride on the carousel that day. You sat on the horse (a white one with black spots) all by yourself the whole time as it went up and down (I also held on to you, of course). What fun! We also went to mama's cousin Kimberly's wedding and Aunt Rachel's high school graduation and graduation party. You had your first taste of alcohol at the wedding reception. Yeah... Granpop let you suck on a lime that had been in someones (one of my aunts?) drink (vodka and tonic? gin on the rocks?). Sigh... I kept telling people that we were lucky he waited that long to introduce you to the sauce (see definition 1.). Heh.


This month, you are really truly interacting with your friends for the first time. You played a version of peek-a-boo with Ethan, as he ran around and around a table, laughing each time he appeared and passed you. You shared toys with Kemper for the first time, passing things back and forth. You also seemed to really take note of Niko and interact with him the last time we visited. However, Julia (your second cousin, who has an older brother and sister and is much more forward in her style of play) scared the crap out of you when she reached for your face. You took the safe route and approached her to investigate only after she fell asleep. Smart boy.

You went swimming in a pool for the first time this month, once in North Carolina (also your first ever beach vacation!) and once at Niko's house. It was really exciting for Daddy and I to introduce you to the water. It's really important to us that you learn to swim at an early age. And we really hope you share our love of the water. You did seem to enjoy yourself, kicking and splashing, and even putting your face in a few times. We hope to join a community pool once we move into a new house so we can take you more often.

Unfortunately, we aren't any closer to knowing where that new house will be than we were a month ago. Choosing a house (a neighborhood, a school district) is so much tougher this time around, knowing that it's where you'll grow up, where we'll raise our family, the place you and Daddy and I and Kelly (etc.) will call home for years (at least ten) to come. It's heavy... But we are trusting that the right house will come along at the right time. When it's meant to be, it will happen.

I adore you, my baby boy! A very happy nine month birthday to you!

Love,
Mama