mrs. meleggan: 9 months old

Well, that was fast! My son is 9 months old as of yesterday and solidly wearing 12m clothes. We had his 9 month check up today (woo hoo for no shots!) and got his official stats: 29" long/tall and 24 lbs. ohh this boy is growing up so much.

In the past week, even, so much has changed. He rolls to wherever he wants to go. He'll eat almost anything -- though Cheerios, blueberries & yogurt sure take the cake. He takes steps when you hold him up! He's very very interested in standing. But he always needs our hands to hold onto. I don't think he's figured out that he can try it on things like the couch. He has 3 bottom teeth and one top tooth. The other three top ones are almost in, too.

I mentioned that last month he was having a lot of separation anxiety. This included crying if I left the room and lots of nighttime cries & interruptions (read: no sleep). He was cosleeping with us because of this. Which only made him more attached, while still not getting a full night's rest. I mentioned this to a few of my old coworkers during a recent visit who all have grown children. They said, and I [roughly] quote, "No. No, Megan! This is when you need him OUT of your bed. Trust me. He will stay until he's 3. Do it tonight. Do it now. He has to stay in his crib!" And I responded, "Well uh, it's ok. We don't mind. Err uhh, I'll think about it." And even though unsolicited advice is a bit frustrating at times, I took their advice. I sat in a chair next to his crib that night. And eventually (midnight!), he fell asleep. That's all it took. He's been much less grumpy lately. He sleeps in his crib for naps now, which he NEVER did before. AND, no more pacifier. I took away the pacifier because babies/kids wake up sometimes in the middle of the night and search for it, ruining their sleeping pattern. So, I went and cut it out cold turkey. He hasn't even noticed. We still have them in a drawer, more so for my own sentimentality. And a brand new pack that he didn't even get to use. I guess we'll save it as a gift or a future someday baby.

My baby boy is growing up. And even though he is definitely still a baby... I can see toddlerhood on the horizon.

He now rolls onto his belly in his sleep.