Walker, 9 months old

Every Mom needs a picture of her messy baby, right? Here he is, happy as a clam...no bib, yogurt on his hands, the remnants of peas, carrots, Puffs, and banana cookies all over his shirt and pants and chair... He got a mini-bath in the sink right then and there. :)

This smile melts my heart. So cute!

"Who, me? I didn't make this mess!"

Reagan is so funny. She is in a lot of our pictures as part of the "scenery." She has gotten very good at finding food that Walker (or Lainey, for that matter) has dropped and since he's in the phase of dropping everything on the floor, Reagan has learned to just sit back and wait for the crumbs (and/or chunks) of food to fall. She's silent and very fast - a deadly combination.

Clapping! Walker has learned to clap his hands! He started about 2 weeks ago and would clap most often with one hand open and the other in a fist (like in this picture). Anytime we start clapping or ask him to clap his hands, he'll start clapping. :)

However, lately, he has started opening up his fist and clapping with two open hands. Yay, Walker! (Lainey has been quite proud of him and his clapping success!)

As a 9 month old:

Doctor's Notes

• Weight: 18 pounds, 15 oz. (25th percentile)
• Height: 27 -1/2 inches (25th percentile)
• Head: 47 cm (95th percentile) Haha -- cute baby boy has a big head. :)

Likes

• swinging on the swings at the park
• doorstops
• balls
• getting tickled between his shoulder blades
• being social and getting out of our house
• exploring any available shelf or open cabinet
• Miss Heather in childcare at the gym (she's his favorite person there)
• getting stuck in tight spots (like under tables and chairs)
• grabbing for things on counters
• necklaces and earrings and watches and bracelets
• the iPad commercial (the one with the piano playing)
• remote controls
• cell phones
• being rocked to sleep
• having his back patted and "shushed" when he's cranky and all worked up
• mealtimes (just so he can play with the pieces of solid food on his tray and watch Lainey)
• most baby foods...his favorites are definitely sweet potatoes and anything with apples or bananas
• Gerber Puffs (His favorite flavor of Puff is sweet potato.)
• Gerber Yogurt Melts (any flavor works)
• popsicles (He's only had a few licks. But he loves them.)
• the camera
• being held
• his sister and her dollhouse (particularly the kitchen)
• his sister's binkies
• his dog, Reagan
• his mom and dad (we hope!)
• his big-boy car seat (except when we're strapping him in)
• empty soda bottles (he'll chase them around the hardwood floors)
• being outside (he'll sometimes cry if we let Reagan out and then shut the door afterwards)
• army crawling everywhere...and he's gotten so fast! He "crawls" on his elbows and knees. So funny!
• throwing anything and everything on the floor during mealtimes (spoons, sippy cup, food, etc...)
• the toy kitchen and the pretend food (especially the plastic carrots)
• biting our arms/legs (due to teething...but we're trying to tell him "no bite" when he does this so that he starts to understand...hopefully...!)

Dislikes

• getting his sleep sack zipped
• having a sensitive tummy
• swallowing real food (he likes to put it in his mouth, and then he spits it out)
• his ear plugs
• when he can't find us...if we leave the room for any reason he gets distressed and starts scooting around, trying to find us
• sitting in his high chair at restaurants for any extended amount of time -- same goes for the shopping cart
• not getting fed in the middle of the night when he awakens and wants a bottle :)
• bibs
• car seats

Accomplishments

• clapping his hands
• holding his bottle (when he's in the mood to do so, that is)
• sleeping "through the night" more often...but he still has some nights where he's up a time or two
• good at feeding himself small bits of table food (he just rarely swallows the pieces...but they usually make it into his mouth)
• pulling up on people (like if we're on the ground he'll use our bodies to pull himself upright)
• pulling up on other things (and sometimes succeeding)
• cruising (a little bit) along furniture