About the Kiddo: One post at a time: Nine Months Old

In the home stretch that one year mark, eh?

We're still breastfeeding. I got asked this a lot this past month. People are obsessed with breastfeeding here. Like, perfect strangers in the store will in a casual manner ask, "How old is your baby?" Followed immediately, without shame by, "Are you still breastfeeding?"

I can't believe I have just a few months left of it! It's always been the plan to have Nolan weaned by 12 months. I told my husband and by best friend to cut me off - and they're sticking to their ends of the bargain ;)

Everyone has their own opinions about breastfeeding, this is just mine. I believe that as a child enters toddlerhood that they should be receiving their nutrition from solid foods. I don't think the argument of whether or not breast milk is still nutritious is that big of an argument that I took into consideration. Because of course it is. It's packed with all kinds of goodies. Having said that, grown adult people could receive some nutrition from it, but you don't see them consuming it.

It's a wonderful thing to do for your baby, and I'm proud and happy that I got to do it for mine. And though breastfeeding has truly been an amazing bonding experience, and a comfort to both of us at times, I've always used it as a food source and not much more. That's why I adopted the structured eat-play-sleep schedule as suggested in the Baby Wise book.

Speaking of, Nolan's schedule finally changed. He now has an hour and half nap in the morning and again in the afternoon and that's all. He dropped the evening catnap, though we do still bundle him up and he has some "quiet time" around 5pm. Ha!

He's doing well with it, like always he's pretty darn whiny by the end of the day. The last hour and a half are push and shove.

A new thing that started happening over the last few months is that he joins us at the table during our dinner time.

He receives his dinner at 5:30, but Cory doesn't get home until 6pm, so Cory and I don't have dinner until sometime between 6-6:30. If we're having something that can easily be put on Nolan's tray in bite sized pieces, then he has exactly what we're having as a snack/2nd dinner. If it isn't, then he get still gets some other finger foods that he can easily feed himself.

It's nice.

His sleeping has changed a bit over the last month. He's still waking up a few times with the night terrors (we're guessing here, but he seems hysterical and scared). It's baffling.

It's never a real big deal, I usually just have to go to his crib and rub his little face while shushing him and he's back out in a matter of seconds. Still it's a weird thing for a baby who's been sleeping through the night since 4 months of age.

His bedtime is still 8pm and he sleeps until 8am. Since I don't nurse through the night, and to keep my supply up, I do still do a dream feed at 10:30pm.

I figure at the 10.5 month mark is when I'll drop the dream feed, as a bigger act of weaning. We haven't decided if we're weaning him to cow's milk, goats milk, or soy/rice milk yet. The Pediatrician seems to support whatever we decide and will help us accommodate appropriate nutrition through solids depending on the choice.

It helps a lot that he's been taking a multi-vitamin since he was a month old too. The big thing, would be to watch protein intake.

Of course, Nolan had his first Halloween!

So dang cute!

Cory's work had a Halloween party and I thought it was adorable to see a new side to Nolan: a shy one! Wasn't so much a stranger anxiety thing (which he also has), but people would talk to him and he'd squish his face into my (or Cory's) shoulder, hiding it. It was precious, and it also made for a super cuddly baby :)

He also had tons of fun "helping" carve pumpkins (ahem, playing in and eating pumpkin goo) and painting his own pumpkin.

He did not go trick-or-treating. Coming from the mom that won't give him juice because it has too much sugar in it... we didn't give him any candy ;) So I figured if we took him Cory and I would end up eating it and we don't need it either. lol

I'm still not use to have a mobile baby. It's weird to put Nolan in the living room, go start doing dishes, and then look down and see him getting in the dog food bowls.

He can crawl "normal" now, but still largely prefers the army crawl.

He can pull up on things. He hasn't quite mastered pulling up on furniture, but he has managed it a couple of times on the chairs in our living room. But, some of his toys, his bouncer, shelves, us (if we're in the floor)... he pulls up on those all the time.

I personally think it's adorable when he pulls up on us and holds onto our legs. Slightly inconvenient, but adorable.

He doesn't seem very close to standing up by himself yet, though he's great at walking if you hold his hands or on the little push walker toys (with assistants).

Babbling. What can I say, one day at dinner time he just spewed out a string of babbles like he'd been doing it every day of his life thus far. Wasn't gradual at all, just let 'em out.

We've heard: buh, duh, da, yuh, yie, ma, mum, muh, tuh,

He does it all the time now.

It's my favorite when he's saying dadadada or mumumumum. Because we like to pretend he's saying "mama" and "dada." Of course, we know that he isn't because the part of the brain that develops conscious language isn't fully developed until around 12 months. But, we know he tries to mimic the sounds that he hears us say and so we like to pretend he's saying those things anyway ;)

We added a new color to our sessions. Blue. It threw him off a bit and he hasn't quite grasped it that well.

We did start shape sessions as well. He's done much better with those and is on his way to mastering circle and square.

Sorry no new videos on that yet.

But, there are few new ones up on the YouTube (click here).

He laughs so much these days. Especially at daddy. I think it's ridiculous how hard I have to try to get him really cracking up, when all daddy has to do is smile big and say, "boo." He definitely finds daddy much funnier.

My cousin Kim witnessed during a Skype chat once how ridiculously cute Nolan is when Cory comes home from work too. He stiffens up and squeals delightfully while giggling. If Cory doesn't come get him right away, that will quickly turn into tears.

He's so great at feeding himself finger foods. We haven't given him any real attempts with a spoon yet. Though, he does grab it and 'help' us feed him sometimes.

Still no chompers though ;)

I think he's just messing with us on sippy cup stuff. He can drink from both a tilt sippy cup and a straw sippy cup. The game he's doing though, is taking a big drink and then letting about half of it run back out of his mouth. Little stinker. He's still given one to drink from several times a day and manages alright with it.

We all did just recover from a terrible congestion attack. Nolan started it with a real snotty nose. It was pitiful. He quickly got so stuffed up he couldn't breathe from his nose at all. That makes for one irritable baby that can't eat (even worse when the poor guy takes a pacifier). Cory got it, then I got it, then Nolan got it again. We passed it back and forth like that for about two weeks! Nolan ended up with a terrible chest cold as well. It was not a good time. And so sad.

It's amazing how much the little things hurt. Just watching my baby suffer from a cold was heartbreaking.

I've started planning Nolan's first birthday party! Cory keeps making fun of me when I say there's only 3 months left to plan it, but I'm serious. It's going to be epic. And I'm not giving you any clues ;) We'll do a small party here for him on his actual birthday and then will be in Missouri the 1st weekend in March (I believe) for his big birthday bash with family/friends. So... mark it on your calendars and save the date! Pretty sure it'll be March 1, 2014 (what can I say, I'm a planner!). I'm also quite sure it'll be in Poplar Bluff instead of Cape (sorry, Cape family :/).

Here's the 9 month old birthday boy :)

He's pretty obsessed with his new light-up toy

Sometimes, when he's tired, he lays stuff on his face

First grocery shopping trip with daddy

Crazy about those boys!

Thought this outfit was so dang cute :)

Don't be fooled, he's not great at this yet and face plants off of it often... but loves it anway

Cannot keep socks and shoes on this kid

There it is, yep, this kid is ornery. Mama will not fib for you, buddy.

He is obsessed with his bouncer

He frequently climbs in (and falls out)

Also pretty obsessed with the dog food bowls. I totally let him really go for it one day (just not letting him eat it) thinking he'd be over it when it wasn't so forbidden. Wrong.