Bowen Barrett - 9 months old

Bowen was, once again, sick on his monthly milestone. This time it was a double ear infection and upper respiratory infection. What a nasty winter it has been for this boy! Hopefully, this will be the end of our sickness! In the midst of all the sickness, this has been a BIG month for our not-so-baby Bowen!

You are now weighing 22 lbs (80th percentile) and 28.5 in (75 percentile). Still a pretty big boy! (Sidenote: your head is 95th percentile... I am pretty sure you are going to be a genius :) We have moved up to Size 4 diapers and are in 12-18 month clothes. Even some of those britches are way too tight on your big belly! Such a fat kid. But those rolls won't be there for long, because you are now CRAWLING! Pretty much on your 9 month birthday, you figured out how to get everything moving at the same time. You love to find doors, cords and twigs and mulch to put in your mouth. Actually, pretty much EVERYTHING goes straight into your mouth. So I am pretty much constantly moving you and picking up. Between Saydi and your big brother, I have not figured out how to keep twigs out of this house. That is on my to-do list, though :) You FINALLY cut those 2 top, very pesky teeth! It was not a fun process, but you look so cute. And maybe a little ornery! You have quite a gap, and I just love it! You constantly grind your teeth together and it makes me crazy, but you make the funniest faces when you do it! You still love to be in your jumper and you love to walk around in your car. You are all over the kitchen and have even managed to get trapped in the utility room a time or two. You are such a playful kiddo. You love your blocks and your walker that plays music... pretty much anything that plays music. You LOVE your big brother more and more everyday. You belly laugh at him and watch him all the time. I love that. You still aren't sleeping great, but Dr. G told me I could give you 1/4 tsp of Benadryl  for all of your congestion and, HALLELUJAH!!!!, you have been sleeping for 5 or 6 hours at a time!!!! Now, I will not continue to give the Benadryl to you unless you need it, but those long stretches of sleep have been heavenly! You are eating pretty much 3 meals a day. Usually oatmeal for breakfast, fruit for lunch and veggies and meat for dinner. You like it all ok, but I don't think you are a great eater. You look like you eat a lot more than you actually do! You still nurse pretty often, and that is ok with me. You aren't very consistent with your naps either, but usually one in the morning and one in the afternoon. One is usually short and the other long, but it just varies which way it goes. You are really good about going with the flow. A lot of the time, your naps get pushed due to activities, so the inconsistency is probably my fault. Everyone thinks you are just the happiest little guy, and most of the time you are. I love that about you. You smile at pretty much everyone you meet. You are growing so quickly and I see an ornery little boy when I look at you, more than a sweet little baby. Although, you will always be my baby. Happy 9 months, Bowen Barrett!