9 Months Old

Here we are at 9 months old - it happened in the blink of an eye!!!!

Stats: We had Knox's 9 month check up last week and he weighed in at 19 pounds, 12 ounces and is 28 inches tall. He is around the 50th percentile for height and weight. This cracks me up because almost everyone who sees him comments on how chunky he is - I wonder what they would say about all of the babies who are in a higher percertile?!?!

Development: Knox is a very fast crawler and we think it will only be a matter of time before he picks up walking. He pulls himself up to standing at every chance he gets as he prefers to stand. He also cruises around the ottoman and the length of the bathtub. His gross motor skills are developing so nicely! Also in the fine motor skills department, he is perfecting his pincer grasp and can easily pass toys back and forth between his hands. If we cover something up or hide an object, he is aware that it has been hidden and will try to find it. He is very verbal and makes lots of noises all day long. He hasn't put too many consonant sounds on his noises yet, although we have heard a -y sound a few times (ya ya). He can finally hold his own bottle to feed himself too!

Loves: As I've mentioned almost every other month, Knox loves to eat. He hasn't refused any foods at all! Now that we are giving him more table food (more on that below), he gets really excited when it is time to eat. And of course, he still loves his sister. When we go to pick her up from school, I always see him trying to lean forward in his car seat so he can see her when she gets in the car. It is adorable. He prefers to be around his sister any chance he gets.

Dislikes: The boy is consistent, the two reasons he will get fussy are when he is tired or hungry. Other than that, he is a pretty happy baby and doesn't dislike much else.

Sleeping: His sleeping has improved drastically. He is a more consistent napper now and usually takes a really good nap in the morning followed by a shorter nap in the afternoon. He occasionally needs a quick cat nap around 5 p.m., but it doesn't happen everyday. His bedtime is anytime between 7 and 7:30 p.m. and most of the time he will sleep until 6:45 or 7 a.m. Every now and again he will wake up crying around 5 a.m., but he is getting better at putting himself back to sleep.

Diapers: Size 3 Pampers Swaddles are what he is currently wearing. I think he will be in this size for awhile.

Eating: As mentioned above, he loves to eat. He hasn't refused anything I've given. I can definitely tell if he doesn't like something as it will take him longer to eat, but he will still eat it (this is true for green beans). We are giving him table food as often as possible. He devoured some chicken spaghetti and broccoli cheese soup. I think he really likes that we are giving him more food that we eat! He's unsure if he likes bananas and avocado; it might be a texture thing for him. We had pizza the other night and gave him some bits of sausage that he really liked! He still drinks a bottle of breastmilk four times a day, but the amount is decreasing as we continue to give him more table food.

Clothing: Size 9 months and 12 months are what he wears mostly. But he can actually still fit in a few 6 month pieces. Since we have had a lot of really cold days, I keep him in fleece pajamas as much as possible. They help to keep him warm and also make it easier for me to change him. I haven't put any shoes on him yet, but I think I will start since I'm sure he will be walking soon.

Miscellaneous: The kid is constantly on the move and does not like to sit still for anything. Diaper changes have become increasingly hard because he doesn't want to hold still for any amount of time. I keep reading articles that say separation anxiety will start to develop around this age, but Knox continues to love people and has shown no sign of just wanting to stay with me. He is very similar to his Daddy and has not met a stranger. Knox especially loves men with beards as we think the beard reminds him of his Daddy (and it is also something he can grab onto!).
It is amazing to me how different my children are. Knox is VERY curious and gets into everything unlike his sister when she was this age. He touches anything in sight and recently pulled a lamp off a table and knocked over a vase. Luckily he didn't get hurt by either incident, but he is keeping us on our toes.