Happy 9 months!

As of approximately two weeks ago, Sarah has been out of my belly as long as she was in my belly. In some ways it makes pregnancy seem super long, while in other ways time has definitely flown by. Life is certainly much different than it was 18 months ago (back when getting in and out of the car was a simple task), but I would rather have her to hold in my arms any day.

Weight: 21lbs 1oz (85%)
Height: 28.75 ins (90%)
Head: 18.25 ins (97%)
Diaper: Size 3, but I think we will move to size 4 when our current package runs out
Clothes: 9, but mostly 12 month
Likes: shoe strings, sitting in a parents' lap, crawling quickly, playing in her crib/pack-n-play, stroller rides, watching someone clap, chewing tags (still)

Dislikes: "no, no, Sarah, little girls don't...", she's not sure she likes the grass, getting stuck halfway up the step

Schedule: With the end of our weekly meetings, I hope we won't miss so many naps! While most of what she is eating has stayed the same, we are giving her bigger portions.

7:30 Nurse and rice cereal and apples/pears

9:00 Nap

11:30 Nurse and sweet potatoes/squash/green beans/peas/carrots (usually pick 2)

1:00 Nap

3:30 Nurse and oatmeal cereal and fruit (with florid drops)

7:00 Nurse and straight to bed

Solids: We added a few new foods (split peas and carrots) to the line up. These are both a little more textured and have taken some adjusting to for Sarah. We have also starting to delve into the realm of finger foods. This is really intimidating to me, as it is much messier and seemingly a choking hazard. Of course, Sarah has loved it and does really well with what we give her. She has been gobbling up apple cinnamon Gerber puffs for a while now, but is just figuring out what to do with the green beans and sweet potato fries. Who wouldn't prefer sweet puffs to chewy green beans?!

Crawling: Sarah is on the move. It is fun to put her in a spot other than her designated play area and watch her explore. I am always amazed and usually surprised by what she finds most fascinating. For a while she was doing a few feet of real crawl, but then she figured out how to really move by alternating with the army crawl and much prefers that method. It certainly gets her where she needs to go, though she can't get herself in a sitting position and doesn't pull to standing yet. She does pull to her knees and gets just tickled about it.

Teething: Nothing new here. She has been doing some funny things with her tongue lately, so something might be happening soon.

First word?: I don't think we have heard this yet. She cries "ma-ma" when she is sad and "da-da" when she is happy, but I think they are still just sounds without true meaning for now. Sarah is a huge fan of a bouncing song and likes it best if you sing the same one over and over.

Bed time routine: Bath (every 2 or 3 days), pajamas, book, prayer, song, and down. We're like clockwork around here.

Sickness: A couple of weeks ago Sarah got a stuffy nose, which turned into a yuckier nose, which turned into a bad cough. We called the doctor about coming in and they said not yet, but gave us lots of things to watch for. One was waking herself in the night. At that point they said we should bring her in. After giving her a once over (particularly in her ears) they said that she probably had a sinus infection that she wasn't able to kick. They started us on amoxicillin (1 teaspoon, 2xs daily) and she slowly started to improve. She was instantly more relaxed and one week later she is as good as new. For a girl who doesn't like to have her nose wiped, she is glad to be well!

At the appointment: Sarah had her finger pricked and blood drawn to test iron and lead levels. Iron was fine and they will call us if there are unusual amounts of lead. She was also given a TB test, which we are thankful has not flared up. It was nice to have a break from vaccinations this visit. We go back for the one year visit on July 18!

Sarah loves propping up on our step...until she remembers that she can't get down. (She is starting to figure it out!!)

On the move!

We can always make time for reading the book Grandma Vicky made us.

First bump. It was over her right eye and was gone by the next morning.

Sarah loves grocery shopping! At least until we get too far into nap time and she gets super sleepy.

Sometimes a little girls just doesn't want to wear pants. End of story.