At this point in time Foster has now been in my arms as long as he was in my stomach. That’s just crazy!! I just re-read my 8 Month Old Foster Update and I am just in awe of how much babies grow from month to month. It is really impressive if you think about it. I mean us adults don’t really improve that much month to month or sometimes year to year (depending on the adult). We can if we are trying to learn a new skill or something along those lines but nothing in comparison to our sweet babies. They got it going on!
I’ve said it before and I’ll said it again, God is amazing. To see a child change from infancy then grow into a little person is an absolute miracle. Foster is outstanding and I’m so honored to be his mom. I get to see my little person that God put on this earth for a specific reason change from day to day. As he continues to develop so does his personality and I’m loving every second of it. I get to see what he is most interested in and what he doesn’t’ really care for because… he’s pretty vocal about both.
I’ll have to say that this month I have seen the most changes in all areas (but I’m sure I’ll say that again in about another month). Here is what my little man has been up to…
Movement: There have been great gains in the movement department this month. Especially since last month his main means of transportation was rolling. Now he has moved past rolling everywhere and instead he prefers to get around by, I guess what you would call, army crawling. He gets a major upper body workout because he basically drags himself from one end of the room to the other by primarily using his arms. He’ll push off the ground with his toes but a majority of the movements responsibility falls on his arms. I told Aaron that he’s going to look like Popeye before too long. I keep wondering if he is going to skip actually crawling and go right for walking. Only time will tell…
He has been pulling up and would much rather be standing than on his tummy. Once he gets to the upright position he looks so proud of himself. He has a huge grin and does a little victory dance(more like a shake).
As you can see…anything electronic is of big time interest to him!
As of late, I am his favorite way to stand up. He’ll get a tight grip on the neck of whatever shirt I’m wearing and then grunt and pull until he is up! The couch is his next resource in his standing up endeavors and as you can see anything Apple related sparks his attention (computer, iPad, iPhone). The boy has good taste!
We recently introduced him to a the Little Tikes Light ‘n Go that our family got him for Christmas. I believe this will be the thing that helps him realize he can walk. The way it is shaped offers enough stability for him to stand on his own without toppling over.
With a bit of assistance he stands up and holds onto the railing. Then he’ll push it forward but his legs aren’t following yet. So, his little body will just stretch out as far as possible before he totally falls off. Just think Stretch Armstrong (but only with his mid section). I know he’ll soon understand that if he moves his feet they’ll take him anywhere he wants to go (and I need to get on that baby proofing thing).
Smiles:
His smile continues to be contagious! I love going in to his room to greet him in the mornings and he is just laying there with a huge smile on his face. He truly does light up a room. Everywhere we go he smiles at every person in his path or out of his path. It doesn’t matter if they don’t smile back(and that happens more often than you would think). He just keeps on smiling. I pray that he always keeps that. I think far to often we let others determine when we are going to smile or how we feel, but not my sweet boy. I am learning from him.
I just had to share this pic even thought I look all kins of nasty. I love how Foster is looking at me. It absolutely makes sharing my nastiness worth it. When his smiles are directed at me is the absolute best!
Ya’ll, I don’t know what I’m going to do when he can say “I love you.” I’ll probably end up buying him a pony or whatever cool thing that boys want.
Food(aka white gold): What was once “white gold” and his favorite thing to do (nursing) is now a past time. When it comes to breastfeeding time Foster gets very distracted. He’ll eat for maybe 3 to 4 minutes before he decides that he’s done and would rather pull all the books off his bookshelf. Despite him being “done” I try to encourage him to keep eating. Sometimes it works and sometimes he BITES me! Yup, I said bite…and, it hurts!!!
The first time he did it I just said “OH” loudly and pulled away. He thought it was funny and that’s not a good thing because then it became a game. My least favorite game ever! After speaking with my pediatrician about this he told me that I was being too sweet and that I need to say NO very harshly. Harsh enough that it makes him cry. Well, I did and he cried and then I decided that I think I’ll just let him bite me. I felt so horrible!
Just kidding about the keep biting part. I’ll continue to tell him that’s not okay.
I guess it’s safe to say that breastfeeding has not gone super smoothly this month. Although, I do want to say that he nurses very well if he’s sleep! So, I’ll end that section on a positive note.
Solids: I do believe that solids are the culprit as to why he no longer has interest in the “white gold.” I get it…solids are great! I mean there is so much more variety…texture, taste and you can throw it across the room! All those things are pretty hard to keep up with.
After Foster’s last pediatrician visit where we found out that he is not gaining enough weight. The doctor told me that I need to really up his fat intake. So, I’m trying to add Coconut Oil, Almond Butter, Olive Oil and Greek Yogurt to any meal that he is eating.
Prayerfully these foods will help him pack on a few pounds so we can hear a better update when we go back in March to check do a weight check.
Sleep: Over all, night time sleep is still going very well. Bed time falls between 6:30pm-7:30pm each night (depending on when his last nap of the day fell).
Aaron is still in charge of night time duty. He really likes and it and so does Foster. It’s just a good time for them to be alone together. Plus it’s super peaceful. Well, peaceful it it’s not a bath night. Foster recently decided he’s not a huge fan of the bath, so that portion of the routine is more “high pitch screamy” rather than peaceful.
But, afterwards he is all smiles again.
His absolute favorite bed time book is The Going to Bed Book by Sandra Boynton. One of my students bought it for Foster last year and I’m so thankful she did. It’s the perfect length, colors and melodic tempo to get him nice and relaxed.
Once he is in bed he falls to sleep very quickly (he gets it from him mama). I wanted to add that we started putting two lovies in his crib with him. One on each side. This way he has a little something to cuddle with since blankets are too risky to sleep with.
Then I usually go in to feed him before I go to bed for the night. This is usually the best feeding of the day since he stays asleep. This way he’s not distracted by everything around him. Side note…Can you imagine if we ate in our sleep?! How horrible would that be?! I mean if I’m eating ice cream, I want to remember dad gum it!
He has been waking up a little earlier than he did in the past. Usually between 5:00-6:30am. I try to go in and feed him and then put him to sleep. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. Today it didn’t.
Naps: I’ve read that at 9 Months they are possibly down to two naps a day. Well, with us that all depends on what time he wakes up. If he sleeps until 7:30am he can probably make it on two naps. But, if he wakes up for the day at 6:00am we’ll most likely need three naps.
He comfortable stays awake for about two to two and a half hours before he starts showing some big sleep signs (yawning, rubbing his eyes, crying). I try not to let him get to the big sleep sign point because that’s just not fun for anyone.
We’re still doing the same nap time routine. We put in his paci, I read a book to him, pray and then stand up and sing one song to him before laying him down in his crib. For the most part this works beautifully. Occasionally he’ll start crying a few minutes later. I try to give him about 5-10 minutes before I go back in to pick him up for one more song and then put him back down. That does the trick nine times out of ten.
Personality: Ahhh, just thinking about it makes me want to buy a bumper sticker that says, “my child has a better personality than your child.” But seriously, it’s awesome! Like I mentioned in the smiles section, he is such a happy baby. My mom would always tell me a story about the time my dad had his appendix out. I was just a baby and we stayed in the hospital for a while so dad could heal. All the nurses would come to the room to see me and comment on what a “happy baby” I was. They’d clap their hands and say “happy baby, happy baby.” So, that’s always what I think of when I think about how happy Foster is! Maybe he got a good trait from me?!
He’s not only happy, he’s also funny! I promise you he already understand humor and he makes me laugh for sure! Oh and he’s pretty determined. I love to watch him huff, puff and grunt while trying to get one of Hunley’s toys or some other “toy” that he’s not supposed to play with. Like plugs or hairspray…you know, the usual.
Foster is also a huge people person! I told Aaron it’ll be interesting to see if he is an introvert or an extrovert. We both love people but are naturally more introverts. But if I had to call it now I’d say that Foster is going to be an extrovert. He reaches a whole other level of excitement when other people are around.
I try to take him the the local library for the “Snuggle Bug Club” when it works out for our schedule. I’m trying to make it work out more often because Foster loves it. As soon as we walk in the door he is checking everyone out, trying to get there attention and waving at them. Oh, did I mention he’s waving and high fiving and it’s the absolute cutest!
I just couldn’t get over how grown up he looked sitting on the carpet and intently listening to the instructor. He’s going to be such a good little student one day.
Car:
I haven’t really talked about our car experience much because it’s not fun at all since Foster cannot stand the car. Since he was a newborn the car seat has been his least favorite place. I think it’s the fact that he’s back there by himself and can’t see what’s going on. I’ve tried to keep a stash of toys in my front seat and slowly pass them back as he gets fussy. That worked for a little while but then it stopped. THEN something even better happened and it’s named Baby Mum Mum Teething Biscuits! One of these little gems keep him entertained for a good twenty minutes and they are an absolute life saver! They dissolve so I don’t need to worry about choking and the ingredients are very basic and I approve of all of them. Just wanted to drop that knowledge in case your kiddo can’t stand the car either.
So, there you go folks. Foster’s 9 Month Old Update. If you are a new mom or have a newborn my advice or hope to you would be that it gets better. I don’t mean that I didn’t enjoy the newborn stage. I loved and cherished it. But, it’s so amazing to see your child develop into a little person. I guess I’m just saying I have loved every stage of life with Foster and I look forward to how he will continue to grow and learn!
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