10 months (and more on finger food)

We survived another month!  Although juggling both of us working full-time, the baby, cooking a decent dinner, and all the grass cutting is getting a lot easier.  Probably because I now understand I will never have an hour of free time to myself again for a very long time.  Regardless, I love this baby age!  X is interactive with us, he gets excited when we walk in the room, and is starting to form his own opinions (this is fun to watch).  X isn't walking yet, but crawling just enough to get what he wants w/o needing me to bring him his toys.  Here are some favorites from months 9 and 10.  Although this list should probably also include cords, purse straps, our iPhones, and my DSLR camera.

Cheerios - We switched from Puffs to Cheerios this month.  It's one of the foods he consistently gets into his mouth.

Huggies Little Swimmers Diapers - Great for swimming and trapping the waste.  'Nuff said :)

iGuy - Helps Xavier to hold the iPad and it's cute!

Books! - The Pigeon books are my favorite.  They are absolutely hilarious!  But, basically all kinds of books have attracted his interest lately.  He's finally enjoying us reading to him (he looks up at me when I read aloud) instead of eating, chewing, or ripping the pages.

Baeba utensils - Perfect for when your kid starts eating the foods you eat.  Those shallow baby spoons just don't cut it anymore.  These are great for serving cut up spaghetti, casseroles, etc.

Dr. Brown Stackable Container - We used to prefill these with some dry oatmeal to mix in baby food with but now we put Cheerios, applesauce, or other fruits in them.  Great for on-the-go snacks and easy to find in the diaper bag!

Fisher Price Walker - Xavier loves this walker.  He sits up and spins the ball, flips the tabs, all while smiling and laughing at it.

You can check out all our Monthly Favorites by clicking the link at the top of the page!

Food Schedule:  We have entered an entirely new world of mess making.  Like 2-hour-old-avocado-smashed-in-the-hair mess making.  We tried Puffs and Yogurt Melts around 8 months, but it just frustrated him that he couldn't consistently get them in his mouth.  But, we tried it again at 9 months, and what an improvement!  He uses his pinchers and consistently gets the Puffs in his mouth!  I admit, the first few times he tried Puffs, I was worried sick!  I tore each Puff up into 5 little pieces, watched intently until he swallowed...  I now know that kids have this innate trait about them and they somehow know to chew and swallow.  He HATES yogurt melts, and usually cries when they start to dissolve in his mouth.  As he mastered Puffs, we switched to the less expensive substitute, Cheerios.  Have you ever looked at the ingredients in Cheerios?  They actually have a lot of nutrients in them.  He could eat Cheerios all day.

Not only is it cute to see the diaper hanging out, but if you look closely, you'll see the Cheerio stuck to it.  Haha!

We also introduced table food, slowly at first, like the tiniest pieces ever of watermelon, chicken, avocado, etc.  Even though he has no teeth, he can mash the food with is gums.  For a while the only thing he successfully picked up was the Puffs.  With practice, he can now eat a full baby-sized meal, usually whatever we are eating.  As scary as it sounds, the bigger the piece, the easier it is for him to pick up and eat.  He struggles a little picking up the slimier things, like bananas and mixed veggies.  Early on, I freaked out any time we introduce a new table food to him for fear he'd choke or be allergic.  But now, he's so used to eating our foods it doesn't worry me.

Eating his lunch like a big boy!

His pediatrician still wants his main source of nutrition to come from bottles, but wants him practicing table foods so he has the skill mastered by the time we wean him off bottles at 12 months.  I will be so happy to not have to wash bottles every. single. friggin'. day.

Here's his food schedule:

7am - has a 6 oz. bottle
9:00 - has pureed fruit mixed with 1/4 cup of multi-grain oats
9:30 - tries whatever daycare fixes for breakfast
11:00 - has a 6 oz. bottle
12:00 - tries whatever daycare fixes for lunch
2:00 - has pureed veggies mixed with 1/4 cup of multi-grain oats
3:00 - has a 6 oz. bottle
3:30 - tries the day care snack
6:00 - tries whatever we make for dinner
7:00 - has his last 6 oz. bottle

Sleep Schedule:  Usually, X wakes up at 7am, takes two 40-minute naps at 10am and 2pm, and goes to bed at 7pm.  He's a great sleeper.  Sleeps the whole night, even when he's battling ear infections in both ears (knocking on all the wood around me)!  Since his separation anxiety has kicked in, he has a session of crying it out that usually lasts 15-25 minutes each night.  Other than that, he sleeps great!

Signature Moves/Favorite Activities:

Pulling on my lips, nose, hair

Army crawling by mostly kicking off with his right leg

Sitting, to tummy, back to sitting, back to tummy, etc.

Pulling himself up over any wall-like structure to see what's on the other side

Halfway blowing kisses, getting his hair blow-dried after his bath
The Fisher Price Giggle Gang, Music Sparkle, and Read Me Stories apps, Noggin' on YouTube

Playing fort!

Things He Dislikes:

Going through the automatic car wash

When I leave the room.  Separation anxiety is at an all-time high these past few weeks.

Things regularly said at home that would be funny to say to X when he's a teenager:

"Uh-oh, there's the poo face!" *while he's sitting on the living room floor*

"Way to balance that purple ring on your finger!"

"Reeeer, reeeee-eeeeeer, reeeer" *while airplane feeding X his food*

"Open wide.  Say aaaaahhhhhh.  Aaaaahhhhhhh." *when giving X his medicine*

Table Food Likes:

Lasagna, Broccoli, Applesauce
Corn Dogs - atta boy!!! (take off the skin, too hard to chew)

Lemon muffin with avocado

Grilled turkey burgers, meatballs, baked tilapia

Table Food Dislikes:

Watermelon, Grapes, Corn, Rice, Cheese - All are difficult to pick up.

X's Favorite Books:

The Going To Bed Book

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
Go Dog, Go

Brown Bear, Brown Bear
Leonardo the Terrible Monster

Mom & Dad's Favorite Books:

The Pigeon Finds A Hot Dog - This book is hilarious!  Plus, I love hot dogs!

I Love You For You - Daddy's favorite

Fox in Socks by Dr. Seuss - SERIOUS tongue twister!!

Tips & Tricks:

-As I mentioned before, to solve the problem of bedtime leaks out the diaper, just use your regular diapers and go up a size or two.  Works great!

-To get your wiggly-worm baby to sit still for great photos, give him your iPhone, your TV remote or anything else he's not usually allowed to have that you use a lot.

-We are entering a new stage of fussiness with both ears still infected, separation anxiety, and X forming his own opinions about things he doesn't like.  If it gets to be too much and Tylenol isn't working, give him a bath.  It works like a reset button and will give you at least 10 minutes of happy baby.

Annnnnnnnnnnd...Some exciting news!  At 9 and a half months, we had our first glimpse of a tooth!!!  Don't ask.  There's no way in heeeellllll I'm getting a good picture of that.