9 months up
Arabella is now 9 months old. The time has flown, I think. Was it all the way at the beginning of school that she made her surprise appearance? Or was it after Christmas? Or maybe after Easter? Time, as all parents comes to know, is a funny thing. And even though the hour before supper is the longest hour of the entire day, the long hours of the night fly by between one more drink from Bella, a nightmare from Henry or sleepwalking from Miranda.
Bella is crawling around. She pulls herself up and today she even plopped down on her bottom a few times. On purpose and without crying. Bella cried so rarely the first 6 months of her life that when she did cry, I took her to the pediatrician. She had an ear infection. At 6 months, she figured out that she had a voice and she might as well share it. She doesn’t cry all of the time, but she does squeal, yell, and even cry with big fat tears whens he wants to make her wishes known. Like, I am hungry.I am tired. I bunked my head again. I can’t keep up!
She has started smacking her lips. She puts her hands out to the side and shakes them when she is eating and thirsty. Or wants more/different food. She is determined to control when she drinks. She nurses at night and usuallya t nap times without a problem. But if I offer her a drink when she doesn’t want it, ouch! She bites. She will drink a bottle when Grandma offers it and she is thirsty. If not, she makes a big slobbery mess down her front. I think day weaning would be nice. I am fan of child led weaning, but Miranda and Henry liked bottles more than Bella. Scratch that, they both liked liquids more than Bella.
Whereas last month, Bella was content to crawl across a room, now she wants to circle the house. She wants to keep up with the big kids. And mom. And Papa. And Grandma and Grandpa. She is gettign pretty fast. 9 months is bringing out the imp in her. she thinks plugs and cords look like FUN! She slows down for No! althought today she grinned at me with full dimples when I said it. Redirection works to a limited extent – there are things plugged in every room of the house it seems. And she knows where those plugs are.
Bella pulls herself up to standing over and over. Up to the TV. Up to her toddler ball toy chute thing. Up your leg. Up to Henry’s table when he plays Pokemon cards (is is in the water? his DNA? How did Pokemon draw him in?) Up, Up, Up. Rob and I took Miranda and Henry to see Up the weekend it came out. It was a good movie. Henry climbed up Rob’s lap when he got scared. Miranda just seemed to enjoy it straight up. And I cried and cried. I couldn’t get over the love and loss story.
After being shy and having the big quivering lip when we hung out with new people around 5-6 months, she is starting to get more social. Or she has me finally trained to go slower. She likes to pull hair. To scratch faces. In happy parenting speak, she likes to explore us. But she hurts.Her nails grow quickly.
The latest thing is that she wants to let go with one hand while standing. She doesn’t have her balance yet. But the desire is there to let go of the couch or my hand or her toy. Which means 9-10 months might be very interesting around here.
Bella is still incredibly sweet. She likes cuddles. She wants her brother and sister’s attention. She had adorable dimples. She still naps 1-2 times a day and sleeps pretty well at night. With her resistance to drinking, I am encouraging her to nurse at night, at least until I am sure she is growing well. At 9 months, I measure her at 17 pounds and 28.5 inches.
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