October is just around the corner and Natalie has hit the 9 month mark! Weird to think that she has been a baby for as long as I was pregnant-- funny how the last 9 months with her on the outside seems a lot longer than the 9 months before that when she was on the inside!
She is getting harder to photograph and a lot faster on her hands and knees. One of her new "skills" is to carry something in her mouth while crawling so she can play with the item in her new location. Previously we had mocked her because of her turtle-like inability to roll over when placed on her back. She could do it, she just never did. It was a nice and simple way for us to know where she was. That bliss is over as she now rolls like a pro and combined with her new love for pulling up, she is planning her great escape from her crib. She also has figured out the areas we prefer she not play in and gravitates towards them. She's not a trouble-maker just yet, but I think she may be in the future!
Her 9-month check up was this week and she's a happy and healthy little girl. She's 17 lbs 12 oz (43%), 28.5 inches (82%), and her head is 17.5 inches (67%). We have also started her on some table foods which she is interested in eating. Not much has gotten into her mouth, but she's having fun trying. The only real success at this point is bread. I know that got into her mouth successfully. She's also navigating a spoon from time to time, and finds her mouth after dragging it across her face. Meal times have gotten exponentially more messy, but I guess that's to be expected with a growing girl.
We've been getting out and about as a family lately. Last weekend we took Natalie to her first pumpkin patch to pick out some pumpkins. We put her in the wagon and pulled her out into the patch to pick and she loved it. I'm not sure if it was more fun to ride in the wagon or bang on the pumpkins, but either way she enjoyed it. I think I'll let her paint one of the pumpkins when we get closer to Halloween (she paints a lot at daycare), but we'll see if I remember to pick up the paint. We also had some friends over that Saturday evening and Natalie did great playing with the 4 year old and 18 month old and was friendly with all of the adults. She also shared her toys well and went to bed (at almost the normal time) and stayed sleeping while we got loud playing games. Our guests commented on how well-behaved she was which made me feel really good--we must be doing something right!
This weekend we hopped in the car and went with our friend Kristen to the Amana Colonies. The day was rainy but we walked through the stores and ate some good German food and enjoyed ourselves. I knew our stroller was going to be difficult to navigate in the small shops so I decided to wear her in my baby carrier--I think she enjoyed herself but I was glad to pass her off after a few hours. The restaurant was a bit of a disaster; new surroundings along with her increased mobility and dexterity makes mealtimes away from home quite the adventure. We all survived, but she didn't eat much. Oh well, she'll learn.
Tomorrow is our last Water Babies class. Rick is joining us so hopefully he can get some cute pictures. In case you were wondering, the third time was better than the second, but not as exciting as the first time. Such is life. We did go under water several times last week, so I anticipate we'll be doing some more dips this week. And then we'll have to put our swimsuit up for the season as we pull out all the long sleeves and fleecy pants. I'm a bit jealous of Natalie's fleece pants and hooded sweatshirts with ears on them; why isn't that an acceptable style for adults? Dress for comfort!
Can't wait for fall!
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