Nolan's Nine Month Update

I may be biased, but I'm pretty sure we have the cutest 9-month old EVER!  This boy is a ham for the camera, and knows exactly what to do when he sees the lens pointing at him, while I'm saying, "CHEEEEEEEEESE!"  He makes it so easy to take great pictures, and I'm so thankful for such a happy little guy.  Nolan continues to be full of energy and has turned into 100% BOY.  He is all over the place, cruising furniture, using his push walker, and scooting on his butt.  He refuses to crawl and has learned to get around pretty much every other way but on his hands and knees.  Poor kid won't know what to do at the playground or play gym when he needs to crawl somewhere or through something!  Nolan has also mastered standing alone and can do so for minutes at a time, with the proudest look on his face!  We are constantly on the move around the house, finding new things and places to explore.  The wall outlet covers and baby gates have made their appearance in our house, and we are constantly finding things to "baby proof" around the house now that he is so mobile.  

Nolan loves being outdoors and now that the weather is starting to cool down, we try to get out at least everyday, even if it's just in the back or front yard.  Because the house is decorated for Halloween, we spend a little time outside everyday where he can look our picked-pumpkins, orange string lights and pumpkin lights and spiderwebs hanging from the front door.  He screams and talks to them and absolutely loves our daily tradition.  He likes to go to the park and swing, go down the slides, but mostly walk all over the playground holding Mom's hands.  

Nolan has learned a TON of new stuff this month, and can now say Mama, Dada, and Dog along with his constant babbling.  He will say these things mostly on his own time and will only sometimes repeat when asked.  When asked where the dog is, he looks around the room until he finds Harley.  He can identify toys that are Harley's and will say "dog" when holding his toys.  He likes to say Dada mostly at night during our bedtime routine, and Mama is only spoken when he is upset or when he needs or wants something.  Nolan learned how to clap this month as well as wave!  He can do both on command.  He loves to read books and has learned how to turn the pages when asked, also.  His favorites are still The Wheels on the Bus, SnugglePuppy, and a few Halloween books that we have out on the coffee table for the season.  Nolan has also learned to follow a point, when showing him something or getting his attention to look a certain way or show him a certain thing.  He also loves to "share" his toys with you by holding them out towards you and sometimes giving them away (he will sometimes do this when asked, but not always).  He can also give you a big kiss if you ask him now, even though he's been "kissing" for months, he can finally do it on cue!

In this last month, although Nolan has become independent with his mobility, he has conversely become very dependent on needing Mom around 24/7.  He finds it hard to entertain himself like he used to and hates being left alone in a room by himself if only for a few seconds.  He used to entertain himself in his crib while I would wash his helmet and start his bath, but now he screams and cries during this time.  Unfortunately, it's something we are trying to break by letting him cry it out... but man, is it hard!  Definitely not my favorite stage, but hopefully soon he will regain some independence!

Nolan continued his helmet journey by receiving his new helmet on the 24th of September and had no problems wearing it full-time again.  His skull rounded out so quickly and efficiently, that he was promoted to only wearing his helmet during nap times, night sleep and anytime he would be flat on his head (i.e. long car rides in his carseat or stroller).  We can't believe how different his skull is since we started, and in only 5 weeks total of full-time wearing, we are definitely so happy we chose to helmet him!  Now, the part-time schedule will maintain his new round shape until his plates and sutures close and solidify in his skull.  He will most likely be on a part-time schedule until around his first birthday.  

Here's what else Nolan baby has been up to:

Height, Weight, and Sizes: 
At our most recent 9 month well check, Nolan came in with the following measurements: weighing 19 lbs., 12 oz. (57th percentile), is 28 3/4 inches long (70th percentile), and has a head circumference of 18 inches (72nd percentile).  He is continuing to slim out since he's always on the go, but still has his chunky arms, wrists, legs and cheeks!  He is losing his baby face and becoming much more "kid" looking, which makes Mommy want to cry!  He now has four teeth, as he just cut his two top teeth in the last couple weeks (Top front left, third tooth, October 2nd, top front right, fourth tooth, October 14th).  Nolan continues to wear mostly 12 month clothing, and is now starting into 18 months, especially in PJs.  He remains in smaller bottoms because of his tiny waist, but nothing smaller than 9 months.  We're starting the switch to size 4 diapers, but he's in between sizes now: size 3s are getting a little tight and size 4s are still a little big, but manageable.  

Feeding:

Nolan's feeding habits have remained the same as last month, just with a lot more variety as we introduce him to mostly everything we eat, as long as it's healthy for him.  He will always have purees first for each meal, and then finger foods second.  I like to know that he's getting a "full" serving before starting the finger foods since sometimes he will chow down or other times he will play and fling food everywhere, instead.  He is very capable of using a spoon himself if I load it with food for him.  Sometimes it goes in upside down and other times he plays with it, but he knows where it goes and how to get it there in a hurry, especially if he's hungry!  For breakfast, his favorite finger foods are toast and hard boiled egg yolks, waffles, and yogurt.  For lunch and dinner, he's a fan of any type of pasta (macaroni, ravioli, tortellini), grilled cheeses, black beans, and his absolute favorite still remains to be avocado.  He will even screech and dance when he sees a whole avocado before I've cut it up for him!  

Nolan still gets four bottles of breastmilk a day, but has lowered his intake to about 20-24 ounces total a day.  I'm starting to slow down in production while pumping, so we've been dipping into our freezer stash, and are hoping to get Nolan to his first birthday on frozen milk that we've stored.  

Sleeping:
Nolan has a pretty solid schedule with his sleep the past month, but can also be flexible if we are out on the weekends or during the week running errands.  Lately, he has started sleeping in a little bit later in the morning which pushes his whole day a little later, which works just fine for us.  He typically will wake around 6:45AM, and will be ready for his morning nap around 9:45AM-10:00AM.  His morning nap usually lasts for an hour to and hour and a half.  In the afternoon, he goes down around 2:00PM and will typically sleep for another hour and  half to two hours.  Then he's up for the afternoon until bedtime, which happens still around 7:30PM-8:00PM, and sleeps through until the next morning.

Firsts & Milestones:

-Real "up all night" cold/fever

-Can say Mama, Dada, Dog regularly 

-First bloody boo-boo  (hit corner of his eye on shape sorter)

-Can follow a point

-Can shake his head "no"

-First steps alone with push walker (9.29.14)

-Stood alone (10.01.14)

-Cut his third (top front left) and forth (top front right) tooth (10.02.14; 10.14.14)

-Learned to clap (10.07.14)

-Learned to wave (10.09.14)

-Passes things to "share"

-Started scooting on butt everywhere as main means of independent mobility 

-First visit to Gilcrease Orchards

Likes:
-Pushing his walker everywhere
-Turning on and off the light switches around the house
-"Letter of the Day" Sesame Street song
-Standing and pulling books off bookcase
-Pulling wipes out of container and "cleaning"
-Turn pages of books and press buttons on music books
-Spending time outside
-Visiting our pumpkins and Halloween decorations on front porch
-Playing at the park (swings, slides, walking and cruising the playground)
-Being a ham for the camera and taking pictures 

Dislikes:
-Being left alone 

-Taking toys away if he's not "done" playing with them

-Not being allowed to explore areas he can't go

-Getting stuck somewhere with his walker 

Happy 9 Months, big boy!  Three more months and you won't be our little baby anymore, but a TODDLER!!