Jude at 9 months

Jude is 9 months old today and boy has he changed a lot in this last month. I think the two biggest changes have been that he started crawling and he's eating table food now. Jude had been scooting backwards for several weeks and finally figured out how to move forward over Valentine's Day weekend. The tile was definitely a challenge for him at first but now he's getting around on both tile and carpet. He definitely enjoys being able to get around and likes coming to find me in the kitchen or bedroom. The second big change is that Jude now prefers to eat table food instead of baby food. He still eats yogurt for breakfast but likes to eat some of my or John's lunch and dinner. He started out with Gerber puffs and quickly moved on to other table foods. He's had chicken, ground beef, refried beans, rice, macaroni and cheese, quesadilla, tortillas, soup, bread, pasta, french fries, and bananas. While he still doesn't have any teeth, he'll chew up anything you put in front of him or in his mouth.

Jude is still a great little boy who only has one real volume - loud. That kid can scream with the best of them. He mainly used it as a way to get our attention when he was stuck and wanted to change locations or positions. Thankfully he's also figured out how to get himself back to a seated position from all fours. That in combination with being able to crawl has decreased the screaming a lot. We've also been putting him into a standing position holding on to various toys like the Incrediblock. He was pretty unstable the first weekend and took a number of tumbles. After a week or so of practice, he's found his sea legs and can stand for much longer periods of time. He's also learned how to sit back down without falling. He's quickly figuring out how to pull himself up. He can get to his knees and I'm sure it won't be long before he can get to standing on his own.

Jude still enjoys bath time and loves splashing in the water and trying to grab a hold of John in the tub. He uses a seat in the tub so he can't slide underwater but he twists and turns so he can grab different bath toys. He also takes two naps a day usually lasting two and a half hours a piece. One great thing is that if he misses a nap, he's not overly cranky or unhappy. He just goes with the flow and crashes the moment we get home. He's still doing a great job of sleeping all night in his crib. He wakes up at least once a night but his able to soothe himself back to sleep. He's also started swinging in the baby swings at the park. He really seems to enjoy it and laughs when James pushes him.

Looks like we have another future Wii player

From Photos for Blog

Finally getting the hang of standing up

From Photos for Blog

James' First Rhinofest

James attended his first ever Rhinofest yesterday evening. It was a very well organized and thought through event put on by the Rylander PTA. There were tons of carnival games, crafts, a cake walk, food, snacks, as well as live and silent auctions. James had a blast playing all the games and seeing tons of friends from school. We walked around, played games and ate for about two hours before taking his treats and prizes back to the car. After that, I donned my volunteer shirt and the two of us manned the three ring circus booth for the final hour of the event. James was such a great helper explaining how to play the game, taking tickets and handing out prize tokens to the kids who came to our booth. Here are a few photos of James doing sand art and playing the bean bag toss game.

From Photos for Blog

From Photos for Blog

From Photos for Blog

From Photos for Blog

Haircuts and Jude do not mix

Poor Jude still hates having his hair cut. We went for the third time today in preparation for his 9 month photos on Saturday and he wailed the entire time. He really doesn't like the clippers and could not calm himself down even after she finished trimming his neck and sideburns. He screamed while she trimmed the top of his head too. He was rubbing his face so much that he got hair clippings all over his face and even in his eyes. I'm so not looking forward to cutting his hair once he gets older. At least his hair looks really cute and hopefully his pictures will turn out great on Saturday.



On a side note, a mother brought in her little boy just as we were finishing up. At first I couldn't tell if the child was a boy or a girl because their hair was so long. As it turns out he was a boy and he was so cute. His hair was really fine so it looked good long. Too bad my boys can't pull off that look. The mom asked how old Jude was and if it was his first hair cut. I told her he was almost 9 months and it was his third cut. She said her son didn't get his first haircut until he was 2.

James' first loose tooth

I just discovered earlier this week that one of James' front teeth is loose. I can't believe that we're already to the losing teeth stage. Is it wrong of me for him to want to lose it at school so I don't have to deal with the bloody mess? The tooth fairy better get her money ready.

We have a crawler!!!

Jude is growing up far too fast for me. He's been moving in reverse for several weeks not and just this weekend mastered crawling forward. Here's a video of him doing his latest trick. He's also getting a lot more comfortable standing and can now pull up to his knees. Pulling up to standing and cruising are not far behind.

We are a dogless family now

Last Monday, we had to say good-bye to our dear lab, Molly. She still wasn't feeling well so Brian took her to the vet Monday morning. They did an x-ray and found something was indeed blocking her digestive track. Due to the fact that very expensive surgery was the only way to correct the issue without any guarantee that this wouldn't happen again, we had to sign ownership of Molly over to our vet. We hope and pray they were able to find a rescue group willing to pay for her surgery and then find a new home for her. As much as we loved Molly, weren't the right family for her. We had too many tempting non food items for her to consume. We hope that she's found a new home with people who will love and care for her. One day when we're all out of the baby stage, we'll likely get another dog but until then we'll just have to play with our friends and family's dogs. Here's a slideshow dedicated to our first family pet.