Eli + Maddie :: 9 Months

Eli & Maddie, 

Nine months! How on earth is 3/4 of your first year already done?? This was such an exciting month for you two! You are both fully sitting up on your own, and you have started crawling...we are officially on the move! In some ways, life is a little bit easier now that you are a little more independent. But in other ways, we have some new challenges as you are still learning how to move and aren't fully stable. Like everyone said, you are always headed in opposite directions :)  You started taking baths in the big tub, you had your first swim, we had to lower your cribs because you have both started pulling up, and we made a trip to San Antonio to meet your great grandparents. You seem less like little babies and more like little people. Which sounds silly, but your little personalities just keep blossoming, and it has been so fun to continue getting to know you. You are just so fun! You are starting to play games with us and each other, and your giggles still melt our hearts. Life is always busy with you two, but it is always exciting and fun!

Love,

Mama

E L I J A H      W I N N

Stats :: 19 pounds, 30.5 inches

Loves :: Sasha {you try so hard to get her attention!}, your little stuffed black puppy, reading books

Dislikes :: when sister takes a toy from you

Eat :: you are still eating 6 to 6.5 ounces five times a day. you are also eating solids for breakfast and dinner, with a snack {usually teething wafers} for lunch. but you're probably close to having full solids for lunch. we tried a whole bunch of new foods this month! broccoli, cauliflower, plums, chicken, turkey, mangos, beans. and your absolute favorite? yogurt. buddy, you can pound the yogurt haha. you also tried a pickle once {and loved it}, but then mama realized it probably had too much salt for you right now, so we'll bring those back a little later. you also started holding your bottle on your own {yay!} 

Sleep :: you are still sleeping consistently through the night {yay!} naps are starting to even out a little bit, but you have recently been going through some nap strikes. that has been really hard because you are just SO tired by the time bedtime rolls around. you have completely dropped that third nap, only taking a morning and afternoon nap now {when you're not on strike}, but it can be a little bit of a stretch sometimes to make it to bed time even when you nap well.

Play/Development :: you are officially crawling! for a long time, you were doing what I call "leap frog" crawling, where you would rock back and forth on all fours and then do a little leap forward in an effort to crawl. a lot of times it ended with a face plant, but that never seemed to deter you. you just got right back up and tried again. while your crawling is still a little rudimentary, you can get from point A to point B pretty quickly, and when you see something you want, there's no stopping you! we have started using the word "no" more often, as you tend to beeline to wall outlets and opening dresser drawers. right now you think it's funny and aren't really deterred yet. you just recently started pulling up on things, but aren't really standing yet. you are banging all of your toys on everything, loving all the loud noises. you really enjoy music, often moving along to the beat in what looks like early hints of dancing! you definitely seem to be "talking" more. you seem to have more purpose in what you're saying, and are having more and more babble conversations. we THOUGHT you were teething, and we can see the bottom ones under the gums, but they haven't come through yet.

Unique to You :: sweet boy, we think you are going to be our overly friendly but sensitive soul. everyone you meet is a friend, and you share your smiles freely. you are still bouncing ALL the time, and we are amazed at your endless energy. you are a typical boy and already think that toots are funny; you will toot and then look around with a smile on your face to see if anyone else heard it haha. you are SUPER ticklish on your inner thighs, which is so random, but you just cannot contain your giggles! you have become a bit more clingy this month and have started whining a bit more, sharing your displeasure over things, but you have become the BEST little snuggler. seriously, you will lay your head down on our chest or shoulder and just snuggle in close...it's SO sweet and we LOVE it.

The only shot we got with him actually ON the blanket haha

This is what the photo shoot looked like most of the time :)

M A D E L I N E      G R A C E

Stats :: 22 pounds, 29.25 inches

Loves :: splashing in the bath, making raspberry noises, playing with your tongue, eating books :)

Dislikes :: when brother takes a toy from you

Eat :: you are still eating 6.5 to 7 ounces five times a day. you are also eating solids for breakfast and dinner, with a snack {usually teething wafers} for lunch. but you're probably close to having full solids for lunch. we tried a whole bunch of new foods this month! broccoli, cauliflower, plums, chicken, turkey, mangos, yogurt. and your absolute favorite? beans! you also tried a pickle once {and loved it}, but then mama realized it probably had too much salt for you right now, so we'll bring those back a little later. each time you try a new food, you make an unhappy scrunch face, like you don't like it. you literally snub your nose at it...but then you eat all of it haha. so I think you are just wary of anything new, then realize it's not so bad :)  and girlfriend, you have adopted the shovel-as-much-as-you-can-all-at-once method of eating, and it's super entertaining to watch haha. 

Sleep :: you are still sleeping consistently through the night {yay!}, and you are still our early riser, but are also still content to talk and play quietly in your crib until it's time to get up. naps are starting to even out a little bit, with a consistent morning and afternoon nap. you haven't quite dropped that third nap, still requiring a little bit of quiet time in your crib before dinner. sometimes you catch a catnap, sometimes you just lay quietly in your crib.

Play/Development :: you are semi-crawling haha. you definitely can, but tend to move backwards more often than you move forward, and often scoot along the floor on your belly rather than actually crawl. kind of like an army crawl. but you still get where you need to go just fine. we started doing baby races {where mama sets up a tower of blocks and lets you both crawl to it to knock it down}, and that has helped you practice crawling a bit more. you also were the first to start pulling up {but are not quite standing yet}. you love to drop toys and let us pick them up for you...over and over again. you are making more and more sound effects, and seem to interact more deliberately in "conversations" with us.

Unique to You :: sweet girl, we think you are going to be our little ham. you love all the silly noises your daddy makes, and you are quick to try to mimic them. you have the most adorable scrunch faces...one for when you're unhappy and one for when you're happy. you are making all kinds of sound effects, and you just love goofing around. which is funny to me, because you are so serious around other people. all new people are suspect, and they have to prove that they are safe and worthy of your smiles and affection before you will offer them. you outgrew your infant car seat and are now in a new convertible seat. you also have A TON of hair, which is super fun and really cute...but you also have a legit cow lick, front and center on your forehead. which makes for a lot of crazy hair days and mama wondering what she's going to do with it :)

We're on the move, so gone are the days of simple photo shoots :)