Eleanora | 9 & 10 Months Old

Well, I missed another month again! And I quit doing the numbers, because it just got to be too much. Our poor other babies (if there is one or two…hopefully!) might not have much at all if I’m already not doing to great keeping up with Elle’s updates! Moving on now…Who is this big baby anyway? Goodness! Only 2 weeks until we’ll be throwing a party for serving a WHOLE YEAR! What is this craziness? These past two months have flown by especially fast. Suddenly Elle isn’t such a baby anymore and is more of a big girl. I have SO MANY images to share here. Actually, I have lots of images to work on period! (But a post about being a working mama will have to come later.) I know I’m two days early posting this, but if I don’t do it right now while munchkin is napping it probably won’t happen.

Development/ Things I want to remember: The biggest thing is that Eleanora started walking this past week! (Lord have mercy!) She has been doing really well holding one finger for about a month or two now. Slowly she’s become more and more independent. She can pull up and walk along the walls and furniture, climb stairs and she finally started crawling around 9 months. But the moment we’ve been waiting for (or dreading?) came yesterday when she got brave and took off on her own! It is the cutest thing to watch her wobble towards me. I really can’t believe she’s decided to walk now. She also loves to stick her feet over the side of her carseat while we ride in the car. It is the cutest thing. She can say “Dada” and “bye bye” but is still working on “Mama”…hopefully soon! She claps her hands and can wave “hi” and “bye” to us. She certainly keeps me on my toes! We’ve entered the always-on-the-go stage and it’s all I can do to keep up with her already. (I know it’s just starting though.) Throwing toys and dumping books off the shelf is her new super fun game. It’s mostly cute. It also looks like I may have gotten my wish for a curly-headed baby! The hair cannot be tamed anymore, and I’m ok with it! The later in the day, the more crazy the hair gets. I need to snap a good photo of her awesome bed-head. It is spectacular.

Weight: She’s was up to 17 lbs and 29 inches at her 9 month check up…50th and 95th percentiles respectively. She’s tall and somewhat lean right now, although that isn’t for the lack of food she consumes! She’s definitely lost a lot of pudginess and I miss all that baby squish like crazy!

Clothing: E girl still wears all of the same things really. GAP’s 6-12 month clothes have plenty of growing room. She’s in anything from 3 month dresses (as tops) to 9-12 month outfits, depending on what fits. I won’t lie, baby clothes are so fun.

Sleep: Her naps have changed a good bit in the last 2 months. We’ve gone from one long mid-day nap to 2 hour-hour and a half naps in the morning and late afternoon. They’re pretty reliable, except for when she’s teething…then naps are a nightmare. She still wakes up anywhere from 6-8am, but that mostly depends on how early we get up. If there is something going on, she wants to be a part of the action.

Eating: There isn’t much Elle doesn’t eat these days. With 4 teeth on top and two on bottom, she can bite a piece off of just about anything. She eats a whole bowl of oatmeal for breakfast, bottle before nap, veggies for lunch, cheerio snack, bottle at nap time and whatever we’re having for dinner. She’s easy in the food department, as long as she can eat when we’re eating.

Personality/ Mood: She’s happy most of the time. She is really into toys and her play house. Don’t even get me started on spoons, because apparently they are the best things in the world. She seems easy-going as long as there are things to see and play with around. She’s still a fantastic traveler and will ride in the car or stroller for hours on hours. I don’t know if it’s just a baby thing or her preference, but little lady will find any tag that there is to find on ANYTHING. She’s found tags on things I didn’t even know had tags. Oh, and she can find any dead bug or little piece of trash in the house. I keep a clean house, but she still finds them. It’s gross. She’s started “singing” and jabbering more lately. It’s adorable. Going outside will fix almost bad mood too. Grass and birds and dirt…oh my! What fun.

Loves: We’ve started bathing Elle in the sink, because well, it’s easier on my back and she loves it. She loves to make the biggest puddles all over the kitchen. My favorite is when she’s all done and we walk her to her room with just the hood of her chicken towel towel on her head, like she’s a little caped, naked, chicken-super-hero baby…my finger in one hand, her bath toys in the other. It is the most darling thing you’ve ever seen. She also loves playing peekaboo now. I’m pretty sure she’d giggle for as long as I would play. (My longest stretch is probably 25 minutes.) Any kind of tickle, peekaboo, I’m-going-to-get-you game is her favorite these days. I’ve started taking her on some bike rides now that we have her a seat and she smiles almost the whole time.

Doesn’t love: She doesn’t love being told no. Since she can move just about everywhere we’ve had to start some small disciplinary measures. She’s doing great so far. I don’t know if it’s our tone or what, but she listens and stops what she’s doing for the most part. We try to praise her a lot when she obeys. Of course, we have NO IDEA what we’re really doing or what will work, but maybe starting to teach her early will pay off. We think she’s pretty independent (as most firstborns) and that is great, but there also need to be boundaries. I want her to explore her freedom, but also know where is too far. We’ll see! It’s all such an adventure and we pray for wisdom. She also doesn’t love getting her diaper changed anymore. I have to employ as many tricks as I can to keep her still.

Boy, she sure is a cutie! Can we all just take a moment and swoon over how her headband matches her lips and eyes. How did I get so lucky? Mamahood is no walk in the park, but I’d sacrifice anything and everything  just for her. Learning how to work the job I love and care for her (even with a nanny!) is such a juggling act, but it’s stretching me and growing me into someone better. I’m thankful for how God is using her in my life to help me be more disciplined and passionate. We love you Eleanora!