Baby Brystol at Nine Months

Brystol, Nine Months Old


At nine months, Brystol:

• has visited ELEVEN states -- Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, Tennessee, Illinois, Wisconsin (though most she rode through or had a layover in)


• weighs approximately 22 pounds -- I would have sworn she weighed more, but doing a little math on the scale proves otherwise


• is *still* chubby -- double chin, big cheeks and fat rolls intact


• is much to heavy for her infant car seat


• will be in the convertible seat soon


• is surprisingly tall for being so chunky


• fits comfortably in 12 months outfits


• wears size Large cloth and size 4 disposable diapers


• crawls on all fours


• chases the cat


• tries to climb the stairs


• is always on the go


• pulls up on everything and can sometimes get back down on her own


• will likely be walking VERY soon -- sigh.


• fell out of her portacrib when the bottom slat shifted -- she did not cry, but began destoying a book instead


• got her first boo-boos -- a bruise on her cheek and a scraped toe





• has FOUR teeth -- two on bottom, two on top


• puts everything into her mouth


• still smiles all the time -- she is such a happy child!


• only recently began laughing *at* people. Really, until this week, laughter was induced by tickling or some kind of physical play. Just this week, she began laughing at silly voices and noises and she often laughs at Bub for no reason at all


• is quite vocal -- always "talking," babbling, and growling


• says "DaDa," "Bubba," "GaGa" (Gracie), "MaMaMaMa" (but mostly when crying), and her own sort of "Night Night" which means either she's tired, wants to nurse, or both. She used to say her own sort of "Hi," but she's stopped. She calls the cat something indecipherable.


• loves being worn in a sling or Mei Tai


• rarely lets other people hold her, even for brief periods of time


• still doesn't like to sleep alone


• still will not sleep through the night, but wakes to nurse 2-3 times


• won't take a bottle


• tolerates sippy cups


• would much rather drink from a regular cup with a regular straw


• loves ice water


• eats mixed grain cereals, fruit and veggie purees, YoBaby yogurt, banana chunks, steamed carrot chunks, whole black beans, mashed garbanzo beans, fruit bits in mesh feeders and lots and lots of puffs


• enjoys self-feeding


• will not wear socks or shoes


• is super smart -- maybe too smart! (That, or we've grown more dull.)


• is mastering the art of the temper tantrum


• picks trouble over something she's allowed to do every.single.time.


• is one of the loveliest children I've ever had the privilege of knowing







Laughing at "GaGa"