Ten Months

Well, we just tried to weigh him and it doesn't look like our Squirmy gained any weight this month. But he seems to be a half an inch longer (28.5 inches), so apparently he's getting skinnier. Thin or not, he's a happy little kid. He's taken to squealing and talking A LOT. Its pretty entertaining.

Sam's separation anxiety has grown to an intense level. I've been paged to come get him from his new nursery class both times that we've dropped him off there. Bible study drop-off isn't going much better. He does better with babysitters in his own house, but the transition is still hard. I'm hoping that if we keep trying, he start to believe me when I tell him, "Mommy loves you and ALWAYS comes back for you!"

As far as accomplishments go, I'm adding clapping to the list this month. He slipped in there right on ten-month birthday. Just one clap, but it still counts! And the other day he picked up a toy mirror out of his toy box with both hands. He just stood there for several seconds looking at himself, until he realized he wasn't holding a stable item. He could totally do it if he had a little more confidence!

As we approach the end of nursing, he seems to be growing very fond of it once again. He doesn't drink as much as he used to, but he once again finds it a great comfort. That being said, he does like his food. He has this adorable little giggle when he spots the box of crackers, anticipating the yummy taste in his mouth. When he isn't sick he eats a lot...I have no idea where he puts it all.

Likes:
Chocolate
Peek-A-Boo
"Finding" Snacks
Watching the Laundry
Bouncing

Dislikes:
Leaving his Parents
Being Confined
Having Something He Wants Taken Away From Him
Vacuum Cleaner

Sam's New Ride

As of this afternoon, we are the proud new owners of a Mom-Mobile. I think our Chevy Traverse is pretty cool for a family car and because we got a good deal, it comes with a lot of features. Leather seats, sunroof, power liftgate, Bluetooth connectivity, OnStar ("free" for a year), back-up camera, Bose sound system. We didn't get the DVD player, but we plan to add in when Sam gets a little older.

Sam will be very well protected in his new ride with all kinds of airbags all around him. And now I can relax about my constant fear that I will accidentally lock him in the car with the keys inside, because the lovely OnStar people can unlock it for me :-)

But today we also had to say goodbye to a sweet, old friend. My Jeep served me well for 10 years, driving me to high school, Sam home from the hospital, and everything in between. It made more trips to and from Richmond than I can count, and probably did at least 10 college move-ins/outs. It moved with me to Texas, back to Ohio, and back to Texas again. It can attest to my inability to sing. Although it was giving us a few problems towards the end and certainly was not a family car, I was still quite sad to leave it sitting on the lot today. I hope it goes to a loving home - it would be perfect for a teenager, just like it was for the Sivard kids (all of whom drove it for at least a short time).

Because There's Nothing Sweeter

Nothing sweeter than a sleeping baby.

DONE

Today was a monumental day in our house because...

I finally finished making our kitchen curtains.

I started them the week that Chris went to Alaska in June 2008 - before I got pregnant, before our first wedding anniversary. There were many contributing factors to the delay (not the least of which being the main character of this blog), but I mostly have to blame my lack of motivation. So they sat, 90% done, on the floor of our closet for 20 months. And then in a matter of 3 hours this weekend, they were done.

Now let's make some predictions - how long will it take us to get them hung up?

**I apologize, as this has nothing to do with Sam. But I'm just so proud of myself you would hardly believe it. And I'm totally motivated to sew something else. Any ideas?

Graduation

Well we've arrived: Sam's first (of hopefully many more) graduation. From what? You might ask. After all he is only nine months old. He's graduating from his classroom at the church nursery. He is no longer allowed to hang with the bitty babies in the Bunnies class. My baby boy is no longer a bitty baby. Now he's a Frog.

I'd been trying to avoid the transition because Sam has really come to love the caregivers in his room. He sees them every week, and they know his idiosyncrasies. But this week I got the email: "Umm...Sam's REALLY mobile now. I think its time to move him!"

This graduation, although sad for me, is a wonderful reminder of how spoiled we are by our church nursery. There are four classes for children under the age of 2! Not only are walkers separated from immobile ones, but crawlers are separated from both groups as well. I didn't really appreciate this until we visited our families' churches and I was surprised to find 2-year-olds in the same room as my then 3-month-old. Oh that makes a new momma nervous! And Sam's Bunnies class has 4-5 adults in the room each week, rather than 2-3 adults for ALL the under 2's we've seen other places. Oh and its all so organized! Now I realize that all of this is made possible by the sheer number of children at our church, but still, its a well-oiled machine.

Congratulations on your graduation, Squirmy!

That Feels Weird!

I think my son has texture issues. Sounds weird, I know, but if you know his father (and aunt) you'll realize its not all the surprising. When we were dating, Chris informed me that he doesn't like "white foods." Later I realized that he doesn't like creamy foods, many of which just happen to be white. Seriously, who doesn't like whipped cream?

Anyways, back to Sam. I mentioned before that he loves his touch and feel books. At story time the other day he found the only mom in the room with fuzzy pants on, and spent some time feeling her lower leg. (Hmm, that would be disturbing if he were older.) He likes to slide along the non-slip mat in the tub, giggling at the way it feels. Its all very cute.

Until it comes to meal time. We've tried a whole host of finger foods, some of which he can't eat because he still has NO teeth. So I offer him a softer, almost mushy bit to try. He picks up these squishy foods, smashes them between his fingers, gives them a disturbed look, and drops them again. He will not put them anywhere near his mouth. Grr. So lots of crackers and cheerios for baby boy these days.

I think that if he understood that there was syrup on the bite of pancake that Grandpa offered him last weekend, he might have reconsidered his consumption of mushy foods.

Is He Too Young?

To help with the laundry? Because he seems pretty interested...

9 Months

At nine months Sam is more active than ever. Gone are the days of happily playing in one spot while mommy gets some things done. If I step out of the room, he follows me. If I sit him on the floor, he pulls up on the nearest furniture. If we're playing on the bed, he tries to dive off the side. If its a cord, he wants to pull it. If its something he probably shouldn't have, he'll do anything in his power to get it into his mouth. He is ALL over the place.

So yes, our little Squirmy has mastered the art of crawling on his hands and knees and never army/belly crawls anymore. He's even figured out how to do it while bringing a toy with him in one hand. He's really fast at cruising around furniture. And he's now figured out how to sit himself back down, so he is quite adept at combining the cruising and crawling to make it across the room. He likes to walk while holding our hands, but gets a huge smile when he walks using his push toys - I think he feels independent that way. But...no waving or clapping yet. We're practicing though!

He also now likes to listen to short stories, look at the pictures and turn the pages. Sometimes we read out of order depending on which page he decides to turn for us. His favorite books have touch and feel pages.But...no waving or clapping yet. We're practicing though!

We went in for Sam's 9-month Well Visit on Friday and it turns out we weren't so well after all. I knew he had a cold, but I didn't know that he had a ear infection. That explains the pained cries and uber-crankiness of Thursday and Friday. After just 2 days of antibiotics he was already feeling better. Too bad we have to finish out the 10 day prescription. Giving medicine to a baby is the pits!

We also found out just how little our baby boy really is. Sam weighed in at 15 pounds 14 ounces. That's below the growth curve, as predicted, so I can't give you a percentile. I was prepared for it to be low, but I wasn't prepared for it to be below 16 pounds. Part of me thinks that is a little off - he hadn't been eating well all week due to his cold. I don't know, maybe that's wishful thinking. He is perfectly average in length though - 28 inches is 50%.

So I guess that brings us to our likes and dislikes for the month:

Likes:
Moving - constantly
Lovies - he carries them everywhere
Baths

Dislikes:
Ear Infections
Daddy leaving for work in the morning