9 months old

Rachel here. My baby is growing up. I know this because she's heavy as all get out. :) We have her appointment. later this month (all the docs must have been on vacation), so we'll have real numbers then as far as her weight and height go.

Now for everything that is new! Well, I think I mentioned this before, but we lowered her crib because she's been pulling up. Bryan has apparently been having nightmares about her safety, so he undertook that chore. I helped, but there were tears. She's figured out how to pull up on everything else imaginable, so NOW we have our hands full. I'm sure I will say that exact same thing in the coming months when we have a cruiser and then walker. :) I, on the other hand, have been having nightmares about her car seat. It's no secret... our baby is a big baby. She's just on the brink of growing out of her infant car seat (she may have one more pound to go), so we broke down yesterday and bought her a "big girl" seat. I thought Bryan was going to cry, but we made it through without all the extra waterworks.

I posted a few days ago that Reese had learned how to crawl up one step over the 4th of July weekend. Well, upon returning home, we mastered two... count then two steps people! In the recent days, however, we became a marathon climber and can successfully scale the entire staircase.

The waving thing is a hoot! She's waving all the time now... honestly I think she just likes that movement of her wrist. The other day, she had her maraca in her hand and hit herself right in the face with one little flick of her little wrist. She occasionally waves back at you if you wave to her first, but mostly... she just waves. Last night at Red Robin she waved at the big red bird and the ceiling fan. Good times.

We are STILL searching for the perfect sippy cup. Last night we purchase our third and hopefully final "model". The sippy nipples just tend to be to thin. Reese always wants to put it in her mouth perpendicular to her lips as opposed to horizontally (if that makes any sense). At Target we found a sippy cup though that has a rounder nipple, so hopefully that will make for a smooth transition.

Her food is getting more interesting as well. We're moving away from the lovely world of smooth purees and making things a little chunkier. Finger foods scare me. We've been giving her a small variety... puffs, shredded cheese, small wheat bagels... I picked up some mushier fruits for her to try and some pastas. I'm just so afraid she is going to choke beyond repair, and then when I submit my name for "mother of the year"... the editors of "Ladies Home Journal" will scoff.

This past month has been full of new things... and now we prepare for this month. Will we have a cruiser? Perhaps teeth? Could she find the cure for the common cold? Or maybe she'll actually get her first cold? Stay tuned...