We spent last weekend celebrating my birthday. It was a great weekend spent with family and friends. My birthday was on Sunday, but we did most of our celebrating the day before.
Saturday morning, Matt, Nathan and I took a trip to the mall to pick out my birthday present. I've realized that I have officially become an adult when I requested a new dishwasher for my birthday. Our current dishwasher still works, but the handle is broken (which is a major pain), and the racks are starting to rust and break. Since we figured that when we go to put our house on the market (a few years down the road), we would probably need to replace the dishwasher in order to sell, we might as well and get a new one now, so we can enjoy it. We found one well within the price limit Matt had given me, and got it ordered. Then we ate a quick lunch at the mall and headed home.
Matt spent most of the afternoon baking my birthday cake. He's a sweetie to bake me one every year. My parents took us to an early dinner late in the afternoon at a great restaurant at Utica Square. Matt and I really like their steaks. It was a fun time, and Nathan was well behaved, which is always good at restaurants.
We snapped a quick picture before we left for dinner
My parents got me a new charm for my Pandora bracelet with my birthstone. Nathan had the same idea and got me a new charm too (Daddy must have helped him pay for it), so I doubled my charms!
Matt did a great job on my cake. He made a four layer chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and cherries in between the layers. It was delicious. That evening we invited friends over for cake and to play games.
We ate, visited, and played Apples to Apples. Nathan and Chloe entertained everyone too :). It was a fun night with special friends.
Sunday was a pretty normal day, since we celebrated the day before. I did get a picture with my favorite little boy before we headed to church.
It's crazy the difference a year makes. Last year on my birthday, I was pregnant with him, and now he is quickly turning into a toddler. Having him here this year made my birthday extra special.
We went to church, out to lunch with some people from our Sunday school class. It wasn't really a birthday lunch, since we had planned it for other reasons, but it was still a fun time. The weather was gorgeous, so we got home and went for a long walk. Matt let me nap when we got back and even changed almost all of Nathan's diapers on Sunday since it was my birthday. It was a wonderful birthday weekend spent with my favorite people.
We had a great time celebrating Valentine's Day this year. Matt and I celebrated on Saturday. We sent Nathan to my mom's and had the afternoon and evening to ourselves.
We went bowling that afternoon. We bowled two games and both ended up with the exact same score after the second game. We decided that was probably a good time to stop :). Then we went out to dinner at an Italian place we hadn't eaten at before. Our dinner conversation was super romantic: car insurance, budget, job stuff, etc. We did talk about future plans some too, that was a little more romantic I guess. Afterward we came up and cuddled up in front of the fireplace in the living room and watched Courageous. Halfway through, Matt said, "This movie just makes me want to go pick up Nathan from your mom's." It might not have been the most romantic movie, but it sure reminded me of all the reasons I love my husband. He is an incredible daddy and such a blessing to me and Nathan.
We didn't do much yesterday since we had celebrated over the weekend. We decided just to stay in and spend time with Nathan. We love him too you know.
I dressed Nathan in a festive romper for Bible study that morning. The hat didn't stay on for long after the photo shoot, but he was still a cutie. He knows how to work those nursery workers too. He was the only baby in the nursery yesterday, so he had all their attention just to himself. I'm sure he loved it.
While he napped that afternoon, I baked up some fun Valentine's for Matt. I'm looking forward to next year when Nathan will be able to "help."
Matt brought these home for me along with a sweet card. I love that guy.
For dinner Matt attempted to make heart shaped pancakes. We also had scrambled eggs. Something about eating breakfast for dinner is a fun treat for us.
Nathan enjoyed his pancake. He stuffed his mouth full of pancake, and when he got full, he proceeded to throw the rest on the floor for Rhapsody.
We spent the rest of the evening playing with Nathan and relaxing. Nathan loves it when we are both on the floor playing with him. He just lights up. It was a great day celebrating with my two favorite people.
Nine months old! 75% of a year! How did we get here so fast?! You are incredibly fun these days, learning new things, becoming even sweeter day by day and bursting with personality. You are just too precious for words.
You continue to improve your mobility day by day. Crawling usually can get you anywhere you want to go, and your speed has certainly increased this month especially when you are after something, you switch into turbo speed which is usually accompanied with giggles. You are everywhere, crawling from one end of the house to the other in seconds.
You are still pulling up on everything as well and have perfected it. You love to pull up on our legs. It's hard to get things done with you attached to us, but we'll put up with it because you are cute. This month you have begun to take a few steps while holding onto furniture. I notice you cruising most along the edge of the bathtub. I think it's the right height for optimal walking and there are lots of gizmos and gadgets and buttons to entice you to walk the length of it. About a week ago I saw you pull up on your stroller that was in our entryway and push it. Your daddy saw you too, and we immediately decided you needed a walker to give you some practice. I went out the next day and got one for you.
You'll walk with it occasionally, but really you just like to push all the buttons and see the lights. You'll stand behind it and lean over to push the buttons. Everyone who sees you on a regular basis, nursery workers, friends, etc. all comment that you will be walking very soon, and I believe them too! They also tell me you'll be running by your first birthday. We'll see baby, but I don't mind if you want to stay little for a while longer. Somehow to me walking translates into toddler instead of baby, and I don't know if I'm ready for that, sweet boy. All these milestones sure are bittersweet for a momma.
This month we have noticed you being more careful sitting down when you have been standing up. You'll slowly lower your legs before you let go of the furniture. It's cute how careful you are at times when at other times, you'll plop right down to zoom off for something.
You are babbling all the time and making new sounds occasionally. I can tell you watch our mouths when we talk to you and try to imitate the sounds we make. My "mamama" is still coming out "bababa" when you try and imitate, but we'll get there someday, I'm sure.
You weigh 18lbs, 11 oz (10%) and are 26 1/4 inches long (5%). Your head circumference is 18(50%). You wear 6-12 month and 9 month clothes and a few 12 month. You wear a size 3 diaper.
You are waving now. It's not usually on cue, but you'll wave in response to us every once in awhile. We notice the most waving when you are excited. You'll talk loudly and wave your hands back and forth like you have something really important we need to know.
You continue to be a great eater. This month we are introducing more table food and finger food in addition to your bottles and baby food. I'll give you diced up pieces of banana, peaches, cheese, and pasta at times. You also love graham crackers. They are your new favorite food. You have learned from your puppy dog how to beg, and your daddy and I can rarely eat in peace these days because you are standing at our feet "asking" us for bites. We'll give you bites of yogurt, oatmeal, cheerios, flour tortilla, rice, bread, green beans etc. We usually have something on our plate you can have a bite of, and since you are so adorable, we almost always give you some.Your fine motor skills are definitely improving and you have replaced your raking reflex with the pincer reflex. You seem so big when you reach and pick up a piece of food with two fingers instead of using your whole hand.
Your feeding schedule this month has started to line up with typical meal times, which has been more convenient for us.
You eat breakfast between 7-8 and will take a 6 oz bottle along with fruit and yogurt or fruit and oatmeal. Lunch occurs between 11-12 and includes a 6 oz bottle along with a vegetable and a fruit. You have a bottle when you wake up from your afternoon nap usually between 3 and 4 and then have dinner around 5. You have meat for dinner along with cereal or some fruit. Then you eat your last bottle right before bed around 7:30-8. As great as you are doing with solid food, you have really lost interest in your bottles, which is surprising because you used to go CRAZY over them. Now, I think you are just too busy to sit still and drink a bottle. You'll sip a few ounces and then want down to play. You'll come back for a few drinks every now and then when you spot the bottle in your line of vision, but it's a battle at times to get you to drink your whole bottle.
You take two naps a day, a morning nap between 9:00 and 10:00 that lasts 1-1.5 hours and an afternoon nap between 1:00 and 2:00 that lasts 1.5-2 hours. You go down for the night around 8 and sleep until 6-6:30.
You are in love with the dishwasher. It has so many things for you to
hold onto and play with. You'll pull spoons out of the silverware container
and if we don't watch you closely, you'll climb right in it. You can be
in the other room and see me open it, and you'll bolt straight for it. Maybe someday you'll like unloading it as much as you like playing in it now :).
One of your favorite games to play is for us to flip you upside down and tickle your belly. You'll laugh and giggle and we'll pull you back into our laps and you'll lean your head back to go upside down again. You would play that game all day if we would let you.
You had your first bout with sickness this month (besides a tiny cold you had at six months). Your ran a high temperature (It got to 104 at one point) for a couple days, and we felt terrible for you. You are such a good baby though even when you are sick. As long as someone was holding and snuggling with you, you hardly fussed, but you never wanted to be put down. I enjoyed the extra days of cuddling with my busy boy, but am so thankful that you are well now, and that you are almost always a very healthy baby.
You are very tactile. You seem to try and explore your world by touching and feeling. One of your favorite things to do is tear paper, kleenex, cotton balls, or whatever you can get your hands on. You also enjoy feeling the grate cover for our fireplace and pulling the fuzz off of Rhapsody's tennis balls. I catch you so many times holding an object in your hands and passing it from one hand to the other trying to fully experience it. It will be interesting to see what your learning style is as you get older. I'm thinking you may be different than your mom and dad.
You are also more interested in books and they will hold your attention for a longer period of time before you get bored and take the book out of my hands. You'll listen to the story and stare at the pictures. Your favorite book right now is "I Love You Through and Through." You always laugh while I'm reading it.
The words are certainly true sweet baby. "I love you through and through, yesterday, today, and tomorrow too."
Friday is usually our least busy day of the week. I try and get all our weekly chores, errands, and appointments finished earlier in the week to leave most of Friday for some down time or time to get other things accomplished besides just the basic everyday things that need done.
Nathan woke up about 6:30. I fed him his bottle and breakfast and got ready for the day. It was a dreary and rainy day, so Nathan stayed in his jammies for most of the day. We played for awhile. Nathan got into some papers in the office and had fun tearing them up. He was acting tired and went down for an early morning nap just before 9:00. He slept for about an hour and a half. While he napped, I ate breakfast, checked email, folded laundry, and made out our meal plan/grocery list for next week.
When Nathan woke up he wanted to help me fold the laundry.
He's such a big help :).
He played some more and I also tried to get our office
desk cleaned out and organized. I made a little progress before Nathan
was ready for his lunchtime bottle. I fed him his bottle and went ahead
and fed him lunch too. Matt came home for lunch while Nathan was eating.
While Nathan snacked on his crackers and puffs after lunch, I unloaded
the dishwasher and chatted with Matt for a few minutes. He headed back
to work and Nathan played in the living room while I ate lunch.
I
tried to put him down for an early afternoon nap about 1:00, since we
were going to be gone most of the afternoon, but he wasn't having it, so
we read some books and he played in his room while I finished getting
ready to go to work. I took Nathan to Andrea's house about 2:00. She is
kind enough to watch him for me on Friday afternoons while I meet with a
client. Nathan loves his playtime with Chloe, even though Andrea told
me he slept almost the whole time I was gone today. After I dropped him
off, I drove across town to meet with my client at my former
supervisor's office. I met with them from 3-4:30 and picked Nathan up
about 5:00. We came home and I fed Nathan his dinner and then cooked
dinner for me and Matt.
Nathan was pretty whiny and clingy, so Matt had to give him a lot of attention while I prepared dinner and cleaned up the kitchen. While dinner was in the oven, I could tell Nathan was exhausted, so I went ahead and put him down for an evening nap. He slept about 45 minutes from 6:45-7:30, but it was good timing because he slept while Matt and I ate. We also watched episodes of Parks and Recreation and The Office. When Nathan woke up, I got him ready for bed, fed him his bottle and rocked him for awhile. He was fussier than normal, so I held and rocked him a little longer than usual. I think he just needed some extra snuggle time. I put him in his bed about 8:15.
We took it easy the rest of the night. Matt is always really worn out on Friday nights, so we rarely make any big plans. Sometimes we'll invite friends over, but we usually save our date nights and entertaining for Saturday evenings when Matt has had some time to rest and recover. We just relaxed, visited, and took a warm bath before bed. I tried to pick a week to recap that was pretty ordinary and kept with our usual schedule. No week or day is ever exactly the same, but we do have a pretty consistent routine. This week turned out to have some unusual events though especially with Matt being sick which altered our evenings some, but it will still be a good way to remember what life was like with an almost 9 month old little boy.
Nathan woke up about 6:30 on Thursday. I got him up and fed him a bottle. Then I showered while he played. Matt went in to work a little late on Thursday since he was still under the weather, so he could help entertain Nathan while I got ready. Nathan crawled over and stood up next to the shower door with his hands (and mouth) on the glass while I was in the shower and screamed and screamed until Matt came to get him and played with him. After I was ready, I fed Nathan breakfast and packed his bag and my lunch and got him dressed and ready. We were out the door by 9:15. I dropped him off at Mother's Day Out and then headed to work.
I had planned to meet with three clients on Thursday (at three different schools). I met with my first two clients and headed over to my last school around 1:00. My student at that school was absent, so my day was a little shorter than planned. I headed to YST to turn in paperwork and then had some time before I needed to pick up Nathan so I ran home for a little while. I hadn't planned on having any time at home, before I needed to get Nathan, so it was a nice little break. Matt was home. He only worked a couple hours that day before he was worn out. I got home about 2:00 and spent about 45 minutes relaxing and playing on the computer. Then I straightened and dusted and vacuumed the house before I left to pick Nathan up from school.
I picked him up at 4:00. I walked in the church and he was being held by his teacher in the hall. He saw me as soon as I walked in and started giggling and reaching for me. So precious. I just love that little guy. I had plans for the evening, and since Matt was still not feeling well, my mom volunteered to watch Nathan, so I took him over to her house. I visited for a few minutes and made it home shortly before 5:00. I did my progress notes and paperwork for the clients I had seen that week, and then told Matt goodbye and headed to dinner with some girlfriends from church.
We ate at Panera, and had such a good time visiting. I was really missing girl time, and it was a wonderful evening catching up with old and new friends. There were five of us at dinner. Erica and I are notorious for late night conversations in parking lots and last night was no different. After we left the restaurant we visited for another hour in my car. I'm so thankful for friends. I didn't make it home until almost 10:00. My mom had brought Nathan back to our house at his bedtime, so he was sound asleep and Matt was almost asleep when I made it home. I visited with him for a few minutes and crawled into bed.
Nathan woke up around 6:30 on Wednesday. I fed him a bottle and his breakfast. I showered and got ready for the day while he played in the bathroom. He was fascinated with a cotton ball. He tore it apart and played with it for probably 3-4 minutes. Whatever keeps him entertained works for me. I did keep a close eye on him so he didn't put it in his mouth. I spent the rest of the morning packing his bag, making my breakfast, and straightening up the house. We had a few minutes to spare before we had to leave, so we played in his room for a little bit.
He's a busy guy! I dropped him off at 9:30 and then drove across town to meet with a client. I finished my session with her at 11:15 and then drove to the other side of town to meet a client at my former supervisor's private practice office. I normally meet with this family on Friday afternoons, but I got a phone call earlier that morning that they had a crisis situation and needed to meet on Wednesday. Thankfully the timing worked out that I could meet with them while Nathan was taken care of. I finished my session around 1:00 and ran a couple of errands before I needed to pick Nathan up at 2:00.
Wednesday was a little out of the ordinary in that Matt called me while I was working to tell me he was home sick, so he was home when Nathan and I made it home. I grabbed a quick lunch and Nathan played for awhile and I fed him a bottle and finally got him to take a nap about 4:00. Since Matt was home and able to watch Nathan while he slept, I took advantage of the alone time and the pretty weather to take Rhapsody on a walk/jog. It's always easier not having to push a stroller and having to wrangle an excited dog at the same time.
When I got home, Nathan was still asleep. I had a few minutes of time so I cleaned and swept and mopped the kitchen. I also started on dinner since Nathan was still sleeping. Matt wasn't feeling well, so I just made bacon sandwiches for dinner. Nathan finally woke up about 5:45 while we were eating dinner. I finished eating and then fed him his dinner. After dinner, Nathan and I played in his room for awhile. Normally he gets pretty fussy after dinner because he is getting sleepy, but since he took a late nap, he was in a great mood! I gave him a bath around 7:00. Baths are normally Daddy's job, but since he was sick, I took over.
I let him play in the bathtub for a long time, until he was ready to get out. I put his jammies on and he played for a little bit longer. My parents stopped by for a few minutes to drop something off and get their Nathan fix. My mom can't make it more than a couple of days without seeing him :). They left about 8:00 and I fed Nathan and put him down. After he was asleep, Matt and I watched the movie, Moneyball before we went to sleep.
Nathan woke up around 6:00 on Tuesday. Matt got up with him, since he was getting up anyway. I got up around 7:00 and fed Nathan a bottle and breakfast. I started getting ready and noticed Nathan was fussier and acting more tired than normal, so I decided to go ahead and put him down for a nap around 8:00. He went right down, and I finished getting ready and ate breakfast in peace. I packed his diaper bag and had to wake him up around 9:00 to get him dressed so we could head to the church for Bible study.
Nathan played in the nursery while I went to Bible study.
It was a great discussion and lesson, very convicting for me. After
Bible study (11:30) we came home. I fed Nathan lunch, and I ate too.
Nathan played in the office for awhile while I ate lunch, checked email,
etc. I put him down for a nap around 2:00 after we had read a few books
together.
While Nathan slept, I got a lot accomplished. Since I didn't get
anything done during his nap on Monday, I tried to make good use of my
time on Tuesday. Nathan helped by sleeping for two hours. During his
nap, I did laundry, unloaded the dishwasher, straightened the house and
cleaned the bathrooms.He woke up around 4:00. I fed him a bottle and
then loaded him in the stroller. We went for a walk/jog around the
neighborhood. The weather was so nice, I wore shorts. It was crazy. I'm
doing the couch to 5k program again and finished day 1 of week 4. I have
set a goal to run a 5k on the track that runs around the deck of the cruise ship on our vacation.
When
we got home, I fed Nathan his dinner. Matt got home while I was feeding
him. He kept Nathan entertained while I cooked dinner. We had marinated
pork tenderloin, rice, and roasted asparagus for dinner.
After we finished eating and cleaned up the kitchen we headed to Braums. We needed to pick up milk and couldn't pass up an ice cream treat while we were there. It was close to Nathan's bedtime when we got home from Braums, so I fed him and rocked him. He was asleep by 8:00. Matt and I visited for awhile and hung out together for the rest of the night. Matt read some and I watched a little tv before bed.
