9 months!

BIG boy we have here... not that we needed numbers to prove it, but it sure backs up our theory that we have a big boy!
Had his 9 month visit with Dr. S yesterday and it was pretty quick and straightforward. I won't say short and sweet though (I'll get to that in a minute).

Stats:
22 pounds 7 ounces (80%)
30 3/4 inches (98%!)
He's been very consistent on the charts.
They did the fingerstick to check iron and lead levels... but the results weren't back yet while we were there and he said there wasn't any point of waiting for them - he'll call if anything is off.

The nurse asked us all her questions... does he wave? "no" does he say mama/dada? "no" (insert strange look from her) does he clap his hands? "no"... at this point she takes her hands and claps them for me (Thank YOU! I didn't know what a clap was!)... she says "he can't do this?" I said ... I'm sure he CAN, but I haven't seen him do it. Ugh. Then she started to ask about feeding him... Is he breast or formula fed? "breastfed" How often? "every 1-2 hours from 5pm-7am and 13-20ish ounces a day at daycare" What's he drink at daycare, formula? "breastmilk" (didn't we already answer that question?) ... her tone was just a tad off with me, I wasn't a fan of this new nurse. Then she asked about table foods... (oy!) She asked how much he's eating and when I replied "he's pretty much not doing any solid foods on a regular basis" ... her eyes popped out like "WHY NOT!?!" She said "no veggies, no fruits, no meats..." I said, he ate an inch or so of asparagus the night before and he likes cheerios. I made sure to tell her it's not for our lack of trying that he's not munching down on tablefoods. Sheesh.

Here's how the conversation went with Dr. S... How's he doing with eating? "Not really interested yet" He chuckled and said "He'll figure it out when he's ready". I really like our doctor :)

What else is happening at 9 months old?

He's trying to stand without holding onto anything... the longest we've seen him do is 4-5 seconds. He'll take steps if someone holds both of his hands. He can cruise along furniture for a short bit, but then drops to the floor to crawl (at an amazing speed!) across the room to get what he wants. He really likes crawling down the hallway and parking himself in front of Laura's toy/book shelf.

He has the most piercing beautiful blue eyes.

He has 4 teeth now. The spikes of the top right and the one next to the bottom left poked through last week. He chomps them together and you can hear them grinding a bit... eek! Hate that sound! He enjoys scooting around the house with a sock in his mouth. I'm not sure if it's the size of it (it's usually his own!) but he'll just tuck it into his mouth and go about playing - not sure if he likes it as a drool catcher or if it feels good on his gums?

At night, he goes down to bed really easily. He typically nurses before bed in the living room and then stays awake and everyone gives good night kisses. I then pop in a pacifier and lay him in his bed and he usually goes right to sleep without a peep. Occasionally he'll make a few squalks but nothing I'd even call crying.

His sleep overnight is getting worse instead of better though. The past week or so, he's been up (it seems) ever 1-2 hours. We're all getting less sleep now than when he was a newborn. I've been putting a baby sized fleece blanket in his crib over him and he does well with it (doesnt' put it over his head) ... but it definitely doesn't stay over him. I've been thinking that maybe part of the reason he's been waking up is because he's getting chilly... his room is so hard to control the temperature in (electric heat!) .... so last night I tested it out - I shoved his really long body into the zip up sleep sack so he'd have that extra layer over him even if he rolled... and he slept pretty good. Up every 3 hours. (10:30, 1:30, 4:30). I think I need to get a pattern (make one?) and make a longer sleep sack for him.

He's ready for his 4th haircut...but we haven't done it yet.

He likes to make noise... growling, sucking in air to make a deep growly sound, babbles. He's still a very mellow tempered baby, but getting louder at daycare too. He's keeping the other babies up during the afternoon :( The other day, Lynne said she was in the kitchen and heard "the boys" being loud in the living room so she told them to quiet down. "They" didn't listen and kept being loud... banging things around and yelling. So, she went into the living room to see why "they" weren't listening to her... and she found Carson standing by the coffee table banging toys on it and happily yelling. He's one of "the boys" now.

Laura is so totally in love and protective of "her baby carson". She is always making sure he's okay and wanting to check on him.

One of Carson's favorite toys right now is the (toy) fridge magnets. My least favorite is that he likes to pull them OFF the fridge and leaves them all over the kitchen floor. Ouch!

Nothing to report on clothing/shoe/diaper sizes... same as last month. I did have to pack away one of his (non footed) onepiece Old Navy rompers though...sized 12-18 months... it stops midway between his knees and ankles. Also, his Carter's fleece zip up pj's (12 mos) are getting really tight. The one he has in 18 months fits so much better.

I touched on food briefly, but there are some things he'll eat... he really enjoyed the sweet potato bean burritos I had the other day... and he also gobbled down on cream cheese, meunster cheese, and tomatoes from ithaca bakery!