Dear Elijah,
9 months! You are 3/4 of the way through your first year. May seems right around the corner! We like to say "Nobody loves life more than Elijah!" You live life with a big smile on your face and throw your hands up in the air with a loud yell to celebrate with us multiple times a day! Coming home from work is still one of my favorite parts of the day because you always have huge smiles for me and crawl at warp speed right over (unless something distracts you along the way). You love your daddy so much and stop everything when you hear him somewhere in the house. We are very sad because Nanny Amanda found a new job and we only have two more weeks with her. She has been a great nanny for our family this school year. I love my job and I am passionate about all I do, but I really wish I could stay home all the time with you! Your curiosity about everything constantly amazes me. If you hear a sound, see something new or notice something, you look intently and study whatever it is. I wish I knew what was going on in your head all day!
Weight: 21 pounds 15.5 ounces (so probably 22 by the time he ate lunch that day!)
Height: 29 inches
Clothes: 18 months
Diapers: Nothing new
Sleep: Oh boy. It has been rough lately. We think that you have some more teeth coming in. It is a good night if I get 2-3 hours in a row. Though I am a bit of a zombie during the day, I really do look forward to the cuddles in the middle of the night. You eat and then go to bed around 7:00. Usually around 1-2 you come into bed with us when you wake up. You squeeze up right next to me and sometimes I almost fall off the bed! When you come in bed with us, you wake up to eat quite a bit, but we barely wake up. Sometimes you wake up and are really sad until I stand up and then you lay your head back down on my shoulder. You usually take about 2 1 hour naps during the day (sometimes a 2 hour if it is a good day!).
Eating: You are starting to eat a lot more! You like to have options and are eating a variety of purees and real foods. You have been chowing on a lot more real foods now. You also LOVE to drink water in a cup and will sometimes cry until we give you some of ours or your own water cup. Water sure is yummy! You believe that eating is a sensory experience and like to make sure you feel all your food and rub it everywhere while eating. You also like to pull a Hulk and squeeze your food to smithereens! You are really good at drinking out of a straw cup and also pretty good at drinking out of an open cup (sometimes you insist on it!)
Likes: Life! Hummus, blueberries and meat. Throwing food over the edge of the tray. You also think bath time is a BLAST!
Dislikes: FACE WASHING. Laying still on your back. Diaper changes sure are interesting!
Health: You have your two top teeth. They were pretty painful and also a big secret. Now you finally let me feel them and I even got a picture this week! It seems like the ones on either side might be thinking about coming in too. Right now I am pretty scared about the Measles outbreak happening. I am so afraid of my wonderful little baby getting very sick.
Communicating: You say "Mama", "Mom", and "Mum" all the time. Especially when you are hungry or sad. I am waiting for you to look at me and say it before I admit you really know it is me. Right now I think it means you are hungry and want comfort. You babble all the time now. We love when you say, "Ah-bah!" We say it all the time back to you. You babble lots of different sounds. You also love to yell and thinks its hilarious when we yell back! You have been reaching your arms in the air and squeezing your hands when you want to be held. It is so sweet! You understand "all done" because as soon as we say it while you are eating, you stop your fussing and get calm. When you are waiting for me to get ready in the morning, as soon as I say, "Are you ready?" you calm down and look right at me and get ready to get picked up. You are SO interested in everything around you and watch every single thing that happens.
New Tricks: You continue to try to stand up all the time. You pull up on EVERYTHING! And you are cruising around a bit on furniture. You've even stood for a few seconds a few times.You have discovered your tongue and love to stick it out. When we throw our hands in the air, you do too! You also babble reciprocally with us all the time! You put your hands in the air and squeeze them when you want to be picked up. Firsts: Blizzard! You weren't a fan of being stuck in the snow in a snowsuit!
