9 Months

Our little guy is now 9 months old!  He's on the move, so this is the best photo I could get.  We had his 9 month checkup yesterday, and Sam did great.  He endured a toe prick and 2 shots pretty bravely, and he greatly enjoyed sucking on one of his Band Aids for a while before Mom noticed.  (Oblivious Mom of the Year?)  He weighed in at 16 lbs. 15 oz, and he's 28 inches long.  Both his height and his head circumference are in the 50th percentile (woohoo!), and his weight is in the 10th.  He's a little anemic, so we're working on increasing his iron, and it's possible he's sensitive to dairy (just like his dad).  Other than those small issues, he's a wonderfully healthy boy!  Here are some highlights from the last month:

- We had a great visit with Grandma (Carol).  We're so happy she's willing to come visit from so far away!  We also had a wonderful time in the mountains with Honey and Poppy.  Sam loved being a mountain boy!

- Sam is on the move!  He has perfected his army crawl and has started rocking on his hands and knees.  With a LOT of encouragement, he can pull himself up on a chair or the couch, but it's not a regular thing yet. This week at Bible study, he went to the big kids' crawler nursery and did great!  His favorite "toys" are doors, Dad's briefcase, cords, and the blinds.

- He's more and more aware of things around him.  When he's going down for a nap or bedtime, he knows that he goes in his crib when Mom's song ends or when she says goodnight.  He also recognizes me when I come to get him from the nursery.

- He knows - recognizes - a few words and signs.  Some that I can remember now are eat, more, bath, come here and all done.  We're working on adding no to that list.

- We often hear him babbling babababa or mamamama, but they don't seem to mean anything yet.

- Sam is a great eater!  He eats 1/2 cup of rice cereal for breakfast, 1-2 jars of baby food at lunch, and 1-2 jars for supper.  He can easily feed himself Puffs or Cheerios, and he continues to love fruit.  Per our doctor's visit yesterday, he'll now be enjoying rice cereal twice a day; we'll see how well that goes...  We're still nursing 4 times a day, although his interest in it seems to waning a bit.

- He continues to be easy-going, happy, and a delight to his parents and grandparents.  We love you, buddy!