Madi: Nine Months

- Your vocabulary has grown and you make all sorts of sounds! Your favorite word though is still Da Da. However, you can also say Ba, Ma, Hi, Mmm (when you are eating), and even Daddy! We still don't have a Ma Ma though. :-(
- You got two more teeth up top! That's now a total of six teeth missy!
- You began your swim lessons this month and are enjoying them! You are not a fan of having water poured over your head and you cannot stand laying on your back in the water (although to be fair you've always hated being on your back, even since you were really little!). However, you love "swimming" to the toys and grabbing them.

- You now understand the concept of peek-a-boo. You liked playing last month, but now you will hold a toy, blanket, or hide yourself when we play peek-a-boo! It's adorable to watch you play. You are just too smart little one!! :-)
- Crawling. You are super fast when you want to be now! You still sometimes crawl a little funny like you are trying to stand.
- You have begun dancing this month. You will hold onto something and move up and down. You've also started to shake in your high chair when you're sitting and wave your arms around. You are too funny!

- You've gotten very good working your finger and thumb to pick up things. Particularly your favorite new snacks - puffs! You adore them and are so cute to watch picking them up and eating them. :-)
- Walking. Fortunately, ahem, you have not yet taken actual steps. But you have gotten a little too close for comfort. It's a regular activity for you to barely use something to stand up and will stand alone for a good 20-25 seconds. Once you realize you are standing without holding on to something you will then either squat down or grab a hold of whatever's nearby. You also have become quite the expert at walking with a walker and most recently walking holding on to just one finger of Mommy, Daddy, or Grandma.

- Tickling. You aren't super ticklish, but if we can catch you at the right moment, you laugh and laugh and laugh. You seem to enjoy being tickled for a few seconds and then you are over it and stop laughing. Almost like you are just enduring your silly parents... ;-)
- It's a good thing you have all those teeth because you're still enjoying meal times with Daddy and Mommy in the evening and every meal over the weekends. (Part of me wonders if your teeth coming in was a result of you chewing on real food as part of the baby-led weaning...like your body sending the message to go ahead with the teeth because you were attempting to chew). Anyway, you love steak, chicken, and all carbs. We're still giving you vegetables, but most of the time you try them and throw them to the side and find the meats and breads. We love that we've chosen this method and that you enjoy it because it's so much more pleasant than one of us having to spoon-feed you and take turns eating. :-)

- Speaking of Grandma, we got a semi-last minute visit from her this month! Sally, our nanny, had to fly back to Australia to be with her family. We couldn't take off work, but Grandma was able so she flew out here on Monday to play with you for the next week and a half! You two are having a blast together and I know she's cherishing this time with you.
- We moved this month and have gotten settled nicely in our new home. You love having two playrooms and more space to walk and play.

Madi -

You have blossomed into such a fun, active, happy, smart, and beautiful baby girl. There are definitely more outtakes than usable pictures this month because you do not want to be sitting still, haha! We love hearing you laugh and we can't get enough playtime with you. You definitely wear us out in the evening and on the weekends, but it's so worth it! (And we know it's only going to get worse when you officially start walking!) It's so neat to see your sweet personality developing more and more each month!

Love,
Daddy and Mommy