9 months!!!

9 MONTHS

Weight: 17 pounds, 4 ounces, roughly 30th percentile
Length:  27.5 inches, roughly 37th pecentile
Head: 43.5 cm - I forgot the percentile. I think in the 30s now!
Clothing size: Miraculously still in 9 months - almost all of it, from regular pants, shirts, etc. You are starting to dabble in 12 month pjs, but 9 months still fit. I thought for sure you'd be in 12 months by now (although leggings are definitely 12 months, and sometimes 18 months. Why do they have to make them so tight?!).
Eye color: More and more brown everyday.
Hair: Longer, ridiculously so. All of your hair almost fits in your piggy tails now!
Nicknames: No changes here. Looks like boocakes is here to stay.

EAT
No changes. If you don't like food, you scream at it. If you like it, you'll eat it even when you aren't hungry (I'm lookin at you, puffs). And yes, I have used food as bribery before (most notably on Halloween when I just needed you to stop crying so I could get ONE good picture). But I try to save that for only special occasions (re: holidays and public displays of OMG).

We (okay, just me) have started to wean you. Actually, in just 3 or 4 short days you will be completely formula fed. You started taking your bottle again and stopped screaming at your sippy cup. I've been dropping one nursing session a week and you have adjusted well. I have to admit that I am going to miss this bonding time with you dearly, and I never saw that coming. But you are showing less interest in nursing and I think it's time. All of a sudden my little baby is getting to be a big girl!

SLEEP

Same. 12 hours a night, getting up probably about once a night but falling asleep ten minutes later. I'm trying not to bring you into our bed anymore, since that means no sleep for me or your daddy, but its so hard when I just want to snuggle you all night!

LIKES

New found love for lunchbox. I think because you've finally figured out how to lift up the sandwich part.
Puffs. Really any baby snack food - puffs, lil' crunchies, yogurt melts. You'd have them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if I let you.

Sit to stand walker. Standing in general. You get a huge smile on your face whenever you stand up - and you do it all. the. time. You're pulling yourself up on everything - chairs, toys, tables, people. 

Miranda. More and more everyday. And now Miranda constantly tries to give you her gross, drooly red ball so you can throw it to her.
Peekaboo. Never gets old.

Books. Not reading them, but more like playing with them. You like the regular books over the board books now and that causes a major problem with destroying pages. When I try to read them to you, you ignore me and crawl on to the next book.

Rider toy thing. I had to hide it from you because you were constantly trying to stand on it and over it. This wouldn't be an issue if it didn't have wheels.
Mom's phone. I'll admit it. I let you chew on it.

DISLIKES
More or less the same as last month.

Apples. I get it. I don't like them, either. Too tart. But unfortunately, like every baby food fruit medley has apples in it. Your face is priceless when you eat them.
Getting dressed. Still a struggle.. only now you try to crawl away from me every time I try to dress you in the morning.
Diaper changes. UGH. Like putting on a clean diaper is a crime.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Pulling to stand. I know you've been doing this, but now its constant. If you aren't being held, you are standing yourself up. I'm watching for when you start to stand on your own and take your first steps!
Walking (ish) with walker. Just happened. You're always holding on to moving boxes and pushing yourself across the room!
Putting yourself in sitting position. I've been waiting patiently for this. You used to hate sitting. You were fully capable of sitting on your own, but refused to do it. Apparently, it was better to crawl. But now you've figured out that sitting frees up your hands more, and one day you were just crawling... then sitting without me forcing you to. Amen.
Understanding words. But giving me a big smile when I say "no" , pausing, and then doing whatever it was you were doing anyway.
Climbing stairs. The horror. 
Crawling with belly off the ground. After months of the army crawl!
MAMA. (and baba). YEEEESSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mama was your first word. I was changing your diaper one morning, you looked at me, and said, "mama." You haven't stopped since, although now its more like "mamamamamamamama" when you are playing or "MAAAAAAAAAAAA" when you are crying and calling for me. "Baba" is also very popular right now. No signs of "dada" yet.
Shaking your head "no." That was interesting. I gave you a sippy cup, and you shook your head no. I thought maybe it was just a fluke. So I said, Jordan, do you want your sippy? Again, shook your head no. And then screamed.
Sharing. Not with mommy yet, but you have fed your precious puffs to daddy.
Hugs and kisses. I LOVE Jordan hugs. Two tiny arms around my neck and snuggles into my shoulder. They come at unexpected times. Kisses are rare, and they are more like drooling on something, but they happen. If I ask you to kiss your doll, you might crawl over to it, take it in both hands, and plant a big open mouth kiss on it. But that's about it. I usually can't get you to give more than that. You have your kiss quotas for the day (and its usually only one).



DEAR JORDAN

Dear boocakes,

I used to hold you in your glider to put you to sleep, and each night I would look down at you and think, "she will never be this little again." You grow everyday. And now I look at you and see this little girl with the attitude of a 5 year old, the smarts of a 1 year old, and the physical agility of semi-skilled acrobat (bumps, bruises, and falls included). Now when I hold you at night, I look at you and think of how little you used to be. We've been packing up the house (read: mom has been packing), and the other day I came across your newborn hospital bracelet and the little red hat you wore on Valentine's Day in the hospital. It is surreal how tiny you used to be. You left the hospital at under 5 pounds. We've come a long way, baby.

You won't remember your first home at all, and will only know it through the pictures we have taken of it and of you in it. I have bittersweet emotions about this: I want our "forever" home, our next home, to be the one that you remember and look back on. But at the same time, this home holds so many precious memories. Your nursery will be the hardest room I have to say goodbye to. You learned so many things in this room - how to crawl, roll, stand up. You said your first "mama"in this room. I rocked you, nursed you, put you to sleep in this room. This room is huge and was able to double as your playroom. As soon as you got up in the morning, we played in your room. I spent hours planning your nursery theme, and your daddy and other people spent days working on paint, crown molding, and a closet organizer. This room used to be your brothers' room, and in some ways you shared it. I'm packing up your room last.

Your little hands are exploring everything, and your little legs are climbing over everything (people included). I cannot believe how time has flown, or that soon I will be writing about your first steps. I can't wait to see the little person that you become, but right now I love having you as my baby.

We're planning another cruise trip to the Caribbean, this time with your grandparents, uncle, and cousin. Time to test the waters again, babes. I must admit that even though we just went to the Caribbean, I'm looking forward to seeing you at the beach when you are 13 months old. I wonder how much will be different then. Probably a lot. But no matter how much you grow, no matter how old you get, just remember that my love for you never changes. So when you are older, and you're reading this, and you wonder why sometimes I just want to hug you or kiss your little cheekers, it's because I still think you are my baby.

Love,
Mommy

MONTHLY PHOTO DUMP

Halloween is not your thing. But you are the cutest Buzz Lightyear ever!

Halloween basket and book!

First Trick or Treat!

Snowmen pumpkins!

Mom! Don't eat dinner! LOOKATME!!!

The question is - who is behind bars? You or the dog?

This is how we go down the slide, right?