Noah is Nine Months Old!

I know... time flies... it is tough to find enough of it to post as regularly as I'd like.

Noah loving his reflection at the Please Touch Museum

Happy 9 month birthday to Noah, as of the 10th of January! He's doing very well. He had a well-visit with the pediatrician (well, nurse practitioner, but that's another story). He measured 30.75 inches long, which is above the 95th percentile. If the measurement was accurate, he is our tallest nine month old by a quarter inch. However, a measurement that accurate is asking a lot when you're dealing with an active baby. Still, he's tall like his brothers. That much we know for sure. He weighs 20 pounds and 13 ounces, which is at the 50th percentile, making him our lightest nine month old by half a pound. He's also down from the 95th percentile just five months ago. I know all my babies just slim down after the first six months or so, but it always seems so drastic. I am sure he is fine; he's just a lithe little thing.

A few days after he turned nine-months old, he took his first single step. He's repeated the feat several times since then and once, today, he even took two steps. He's still pretty unsteady, though, and a while away from walking with any confidence. I'm really looking forward to Spring when we can get back outside and watch them all walking and running around. I hope to get a swingset installed in the backyard, using Noah and Kai's birthdays as my excuse.

Noah has only recently started to eat much in the way of solid food. Up until he was eight months old he struggled with a very strong gag reflex every time food would hit his throat, even the thinnest mixtures. I really didn't know how I'd ever get him to eat, but starting at six months old I would just try for a few days, give up for a few weeks, then try again. Every time the food would get to his throat, he would gag. Finally, right before turning eight months old, the gag reflex started to lessen and he was able to start swallowing some purees, but it took the past five weeks or so to build him up to where he was eating one small jar at breakfast along with some Cheerios, and one small jar in the afternoon along with maybe a Wagon wheel or two. Unfortunately, yesterday he came down with a stomach bug, so we went back to just nursing until he is feeling well again. Hopefully he'll take right back to it as I build him back up slowly to where we were.

He still is not sleeping well and wakes probably six to eight times per night and wants to nurse all night long. Reminds me of a few other someones I know! I did have Jack and Kai both night weaned by this age, but Noah may prove even more stubborn than Alexander was! No matter, someday I WILL sleep again. Someday....

For now, it's great to see my baby grow. It's bittersweet as always, especially since he is my last. But it's exciting, too. The next time I'll do an age update on him, he'll be a year old! WOW!