10 Months

Bella,

You have officially been here as long as your were in mommy's tummy. At 10 months:

~You continue to grow. We haven't weighed you lately but my guess would be that you are ~21 lbs. I swear you have also grown taller, but haven't checked that either.
~ You are still wearing some 6-9 month clothes and some 6-12 month clothes. You are about to outgrow the 6-9 month clothes. We have added your 9-12 month clothes to your wardrobe so we should shift here pretty soon!
~ You are eating 24 oz of formula, 3 meals, and a couple snacks. You are eating mostly finger foods and self feeding, which is awesome! You love fruit, pancakes, waffles, potatoes, and squash the best! You are such a great eater!
~ You are an okay sleeper. Typically, you sleep 9-11 hours a night and have a couple of naps. You do great during the night. Naps are much harder... I think it's cause you don't want to miss anything! You still aren't a huge fan of your crib but you will stay asleep once we put you down (most of the time anyways).
~ You are talking up a storm nowadays! You started saying "mama" and it seems like you haven't stopped since you figured it out.. There goes the days of Dada having to go get you since that is what you were saying ;)
~ You are crawling all over the place now. You are so fast! You are pulling up and walking with assistance. You are also standing by yourself. We know it's just a matter of time before you start walking.... Take your time, please... You are fast enough crawling!
~ You have travelled all the way to Boston to visit your aunt and uncle. This included stops both ways in Washington DC. You went to Fenway Park, on the Freedom Trail, and to the Cape! among other places... You played and played with your aunt and uncle. It was so good to spend time with them. We are planning to visit them early next year in their new city of NYC...ohh the fun we will have!!
~As mentioned above, you made it to the beach FINALLY!!! We swam in the Atlantic! You enjoyed the sun, sand, and ocean for a while, but it was hot there!
~ It also wouldn't be right to mention that trip and not mention that you managed to get Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease 5 days before the trip. Luckily you were almost done with it before the trip started...daddy was not so lucky (but this isn't about him, now is it?!?!)
~ While in Boston, we celebrated your first 4th of July (and great-granddad's birthday on the 5th).
~ This month you also celebrated your mommy and daddy's wedding anniversary..but you were busy teething so you might have missed it! ;)
~ Speaking of teeth, your second one popped thru this month!

Bella,
Oh how this first year seems to be flying by. It seems like you are getting bigger each day! You are growing and becoming such a funny little person. Your daddy and I have a hard time telling you "No" when you get mischievous (which you are doing more and more) because you laugh at us. We continue on because it is important you understand us (or try to learn to...). You are such a sweet, cuddly baby. I enjoy your hugs and all your cuddles! I hope this never changes...even when it seems like you have become just an extension of me because you won't let me do anything without you in my arms or touching me. You are starting to only go to certain, familiar faces which provides some entertainment for us. (I'd could call it frustration, but we like to think positively!) However, you love daycare and do such a great job there! In the last month, you have been spending alot of time at home with daddy while he is "off" for the summer. (You will learn soon that daddy doesn't really get much time off..) We had a great first family vacation with you (besides daddy's hand-foot-mouth yuckiness). Even though we have gone on short trips, this was the first extended trip with you. We can't wait to take you to more new and exciting places!! We are loving you at this fun and sweet stage f life where you crawl all over the place and are curious about everything! It is fun to watch you figure things out! You are also having fun watching us make goofballs out of ourselves. We look forward to seeing what each day, week, month, and year with you will look like! We only hope they are filled with the love, joy, and happiness the last 10 months have brought us! We love you so much, even more than yesterday! You are the best!

Love always,
Mama and Dada

9 months

Belle,

You are 9 months old today!

~ You are growing each and every day! At your check up, you were 26.5 inches long (20%), 19 lbs 2 oz (50% based on height) and your head measurement was in the 90% for your age.
~ It appears you may be destined to be short like your mom! Though, you had grown 2 inches in 3 months! We will take it!
~ You take 24-30 oz of formula each day and eat three meals. We have just upgraded you to a full container of fruit/veggie, puffs, and some of why we are eating per meal. Daycare feeds you lots of yummies as well! They have started feeding you big kid food! You love it!
~ Speaking of daycare, you have moved up to the older infant room which is one of those bittersweet milestones.
~ Another milestone you have reached in the past month is that you are now crawling. At first, it was just one or two steps, but now you are all over the place!
~ You are also pulling up on EQVERYTHING! We know it's only a matter of time before you are standing on your own and taking steps.
~ You are still wearing 6-9 month clothes, though I have been throwing in the 6-12 month stuff as well! I tend to think you are one of the best dressed kids that I have ever seen...not that I am biased...
~ This month you have FINALLY cut your first tooth! Hallelujah! We thought we would never see the day!
~ You are starting to become clingy and selective about who you will let hold you. I'm not sure how I feel about it, yet.
~ You wave bye to people and will blow kisses on occasion! You look so sweet doing both.
~ You say "ba-ba" and "bop-bop" for your bottle. You also say "dada", "bye bye", and occasionally "paa-paa". Still no "mama"...
~ You went with Mama and Dada to Hot Springs for Memorial Day weekend where you had your first lake experience. You played with your friend Vonni and her parents who joined us for the weekend.
~ You also rode on a Duck for the first time!
~ During the month, you also had your first pool experience. Based on the lake and the pool, I would have to say that you are a water baby! You enjoyed both of those adventures!

B,
You are 2/3rds of a year old! You have grown and changed so much in the last 9 months from this tiny baby to a little person full of energy and spunk! We are so amazed by you. You are very smart, probably a little too much for your own good/our sanity. You are so curious and anxious to discover new things. Watching you find something new is an experience that makes my heart melt! Your smile and happy-go-lucky attitude and outlook make our days full of fun and joy! We look forward to each and every day that we get to spend with you! We are blessed beyond imagination that you are our child. Our love for you continues to grow as you do. Just when we think we couldn't love you anymore, you give us a smile, do something cute, or give one of your priceless faces that makes us love you
that much more! We love you to the moon and back!

Love Always,
Mama and Dada