Dear Charlie

Dear Charlie,
Nine months!  You've now been out as long as you were in!  You are growing so fast I can't believe it.  In the last month you have mastered your mobility, as well as your ability to pick up tiny things and insert them promptly into your mouth.  What this means to me is that I am now spending much more time trying to keep the floor clean than I would like, simply because I don't want you to end up digesting something icky.  Or worse yet, dangerous!  You still LOVE to eat, (duh) and will eat pretty much anything (aside from green beans--you still refuse those).  Some of your new favorite foods are steel cut oatmeal, tuna noodle casserole, homemade mac and cheese, whole wheat cinnamon pancakes, and the old standbys:  applesauce, cheerios, bananas, and gerber puffs.  What would we do without puffs?  (actually, we are about to find out what we would do because we ran out of them today...so you're probably going to just have to deal with it).  We also gave you gerber graduates 'lil crunchies', but we will NOT be getting those again because they made your breath stink. Like really really bad.  Like babies shouldn't smell like that kind of bad.  Costco is fun, because you love to sit in the cart and eat the samples, and the pizza, of course.  So now, I can get one of those big ass pieces of pizza at the food court there, under the premise that my baby is hungry...not that I want it. So thanks for that!  I'm still breastfeeding you, and you would probably nurse 11 times a day if I'd let you.  But I'm kind of over feeling like a cow, so I may start weaning you down to 3 times a day and giving you a bottle if you need more than that.  I'm thinking morning, noon, and night should be good.  I'm sure you won't have a problem with it because have I ever told you...you are pretty damn chill for a baby.  At least for MY baby.  I've never had a chill baby before you. 

You've learned how to give high fives and to wave.  But you've decided that waving is for wimps, so you just stick your hand up all cool, like "wassup?" or something.  You're at the age where you can be happy pulling out all the tupperware from the cupboard, or scooting around on the floor with really anything that's not a baby toy.  It could be keys, a piece of mail, the clicker, anything really...you are also drawn to the dvd player and the dvr.  Why wouldn't you be...they are right at your level, and they have all sorts of buttons and cords and stuff that you're not supposed to touch.  Your favorite "game" is definitely the game where you drop something (anything) on the floor and then wait for somebody to pick it up.  This game can go on for a while because there are four other people in this house who LOVE to dote on you.  Your favorite book is one that has pictures of babies in it and on one particular page, you always kiss the baby.  And you love to turn the last page to get to the peek-a-boo at the end.  OMG it is so cute.  I should totally get a video of that.  I know I always say this, but you are so fun.  Your smile makes everybody smile.  You are constantly flirting with complete strangers, and they just melt in your itty bitty hands.  One of my favorite times is when I nurse you for bed, and stick you over my shoulder to burp you.  Your head nuzzles right into my neck, and your arm goes around my neck and holds on.  Holds on!  I love this time with you and sometimes I let it drag out a little longer than it needs to.  Then when I do lay you down in your bed, I lay you on your tummy (with your binkie) and you close your eyes and reach for your blankie.  It is a-DOR-able.  OMG.  I should totally get a video of that, too, because I am really going to miss it when you stop being so damn snuggly.  In the meantime here are a couple of videos from last week that show you in action:

ANYWAY...we love you.  You are the sweetest. cutest. baby. ever.  EVER!

Love love love you,

xoxo

Mom