Lucas: 9 Months

Well, only about two weeks late on this month’s update. Whoops!

Oh, my sweet Lucas. Curious as ever, always wanting to know what’s going on around him. I am amazed watching him day after day, seeing him develop new preferences, abilities, dislikes, and a killer personality. This boy can light up a room!

Since this month’s post is a bit late, I’m trying really hard not to mix things up for next month’s post, so this one may be a bit shorter. Who knows…we’ll see how it pans out!

Weight & Height: At his 9 month appointment, Lucas weighed in at about 20.2 lbs and I think, 29 inches (*not 23, typo!) long (both of which were between the 50th-75th percentile). He’s our little bulldozer!

Don’t worry, Bud. We mean that as a good thing.

Eating: Still going so well! We’re still following a pretty similar nursing/feeding/bottle schedule as we have the past couple of months; the major changes would be the variety (and quantity!) of solids:

• 7:00am(ish) – Nurse
• 8:30am – Breakfast: 1/4 cup oatmeal with breastmilk and fruit (apples or bananas) + cut up fruit (blueberries/strawberries/grapes)
• 11:00am-11:30am – 6oz bottle breastmilk (or nurse him when I’m home)
• 12:00-12:30pm – Lunch: (2) 1oz portions of veggies/fruit, yogurt, and diced fruit or veggies
• 4:00pm – Nurse (or a 6oz bottle breastmilk/formula if he wakes earlier from his nap while at daycare
• 5:45-6:00pm – Dinner: (2-3) 1oz portions veggies/fruit, protein (ex. 2 mini chicken meatballs or an egg yolk), diced fruit or veggies or toast (or yogurt or cottage cheese, depending on what he had at lunch)
• 7:45pm – 6oz bottle formula + breastmilk at bedtime

We introduced a couple more new foods this month in addition to those he’s already been eating:

• strawberries
• grapes
• egg yolks (hard-boiled)
• bite-sized pasta (ditalini or cut up elbows)
• chicken meatballs, cut into bite-sized pieces

• yogurt (we buy some of the Yo Baby, but also bought a big tub of Stonyfield full-fat plain and mix it with some pureed fruit and cinnamon, too – much cheaper!)
• cottage cheese (rinsed and eaten as finger foods)
• whole wheat toast with a little butter or fruit puree

In addition to new foods, he’s also been eating a lot of other foods as finger foods, including peas, carrots, pears, avocado, green beans, and bananas. He actually prefers finger foods most days now (and is a champ at the pincer grasp) and gets a little antsy when we can’t get the spoon to his mouth quick enough. *A tip: For the more slippery foods, coat them in some super finely crushed Cheerios. Easy peasy pick up!

Sleeping (naps): Naps have stayed pretty much the same. Most days, he’s taking two naps between 9-10am and 2-3pm (depends on when he last woke up) and each one lasts about an hour and a half to 2 hours. Very rarely does he need help getting to sleep. He’ll usually crawl around in the crib for a bit or pound on the side of the railings before finally settling down.

Sleeping (at night): SO good!! Over the course of a few weeks, we gradually pushed his bedtime back to about 8pm (more so to fit with our own schedules) and he adjust really well with that. Most nights, he’ll sleep through the night, from about 8pm – 6:30 or 7:00am. Trust me…we are counting our lucky stars with that one and enjoying it while it lasts (because I’m no dummy…he’s still all gums over here, so I’m sure once the teething monster strikes, it’s not gonna be pretty!).

Clothing: Mostly 9 month clothes and size 3 diapers. Pants are still an issue (too big in the waist for the right length) so I’ll be glad when we’re in shorts weather soon!

New this month: Oh my goodness, talk about progress this month!

• Speed crawling…like, for real.
• New sounds! He loves stringing together “bababa,” “dadada,” and “gagaga.” Alas, still no “mama’s” in there.
• Pulling up on things – Last month he pulled up to his knees but he’s now pulling up to his feet on just about everything he can get his hands on.
• Takes a couple of steps while walking along the couch or coffee table. He doesn’t go far, but he definitely looks like he’s contemplating it!
• Drinking well from a sippy cup. We introduced in a couple of months ago, but he just recently started being able to really drink from it.
• Swinging in a swing!

Nicknames: Bubs, Bubba, Mister, Mister Man, Peanut (although he’s quickly outgrowing that one!). Sometimes we’ll call him Luke, too. We get asked quite a bit if we’ll call him Luke or Lucas. My answer is that I’ll most likely call him Lucas, but he can be whatever he wants to be when he gets older.

Lucas likes:

• Finger foods
• Reading books
• His teddy (a lovey he sleeps with)
• Listening to music (Fall Out Boy, 311, Zac Brown Band and Florida Georgia Line)
• Theme songs to just about any cartoon
• Bubbles!

• Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
• The remote control (the real one…of course!)
• My cell phone
• Splashing in the tub and any sort of water
• Seeing pictures of himself or his reflection in my cell phone
• Cody! Lucas still loves him…unfortunately, the feeling isn’t mutual.
• Sitting in the shopping cart like a big boy

Lucas dislikes:

• Getting his face wiped off. This is probably the biggest one. Oooo does he hate it!
• Getting ready for bedtime – still a struggle. It’s almost comical at this point
• When mommy leaves the room too suddenly

Comparison:

Lucas, you are the sweetest, happiest little boy. You can throw a tantrum with the best of ‘em, but that’s what makes you YOU, and we love every bit of it. <3