9 month appointment

Allie had her 9 month appointment and it went great!!! We met with an awesome D.O. and had the best appointment we've had in a long time! She was very respectful of our decisions and was absolutely wonderful with Allie! I had heard that D.O. we're more open to a natural approach to things, so I went ahead and made her appointment with one. I'm so glad we did! Now I don't have to worry about switching peds! :)

Allie is doing wonderful!! She's 19lbs 11oz and 27.5" long. She's right where she should be with everything! The Dr. was surprised that does the pincer grasp and drinks throught a straw. Aiden drank through a straw early as well. I just introduce it early. As for her pincer grasp, she's been doing that since about 5 or 6 months. I think that's why she was a little later than Aiden with crawling - because she was focusing on smaller things like that. I asked about her foot turning outwards and she said that, at this point, it's hard to tell if it's just a balance thing or if it's an actual gate issue. She just said to keep an eye on it, and if it gets worse, we'll look into more. I guess once they start walking, it's easier to tell what the actual issue is.

She has also mastered the stairs, as I found out yesterday. UGH! Before she could only barely get up the first one. Last night, I followed her all the way to the top.

I just love her personality! While she can seem rather bossy at times, she so very funny and sweet! We've got a 13month old here that I've been watching since yesterday, and Allie rules over her. Not in a mean way, but you can tell she thinks she's gotta be in control of everything. I'm gonna have fun with her once she gets older. Note the sarcasm, lol.

9 months!!

I'll get some pictures up as soon as I get them loaded onto my computer. The other day was the first time I had picked my camera up in weeks! I just needed a break! Things were going way too fast for me, and I didn't feel I was ready for where it was taking me. People were asking me left and right to do family pictures, baby pictures, birthday pictures - and while I love that they love my photos, *I'M* not where I want to be yet, and I don't want to give anything to anyone that I'm not happy with myself.
So, I'm starting over. I'm learning my camera from top to bottom - not just the inbetween stuff. And then, hopefully, by the end of the year, I will be where I want to be and will be on my way to getting an upgrade! :)

Ok, enough about that - on to Miss Allie!

She's doing wonderful and learning something new every day! She understands more words now. If I say something or ask her where something is she will get it/go towards it/look at it/etc. She's been pulling up for awhile now, but she is now letting go for about 5-10 seconds. She falls, but her balance is getting better and better, and I can just tell she's itching to walk! I have a feeling it'll be late May - mid June before she starts walking. She's getting the hang of waiving hi and bye and it's oh-so-adorable!! She figures things out very quick as well - like how to put tops back on things, how to stack 2 or 3 blocks (and how to knock them down of course, lol!!), how to open and close stuff...you know, that sort of stuff.
She's babbling like crazy, but hasn't said any actual words, aside from your typical "mama", "dada", "baba" stuff. Sometimes I think I hear her say, "Hi" and "yeah", but who knows!

Aiden's getting excited because she actually plays with him now. She loves to copy him and he thinks it's just the funniest thing in the world! She, on the other hand, just loves to crawl all over him and bang stuff on his head! Oh, how I love these two!


We're planning a trip to the Toledo zoo in June and I cannot wait!! Aiden's never been, so he'll love it! I used to go all the time when I was little and we were visiting my grandparents. I remember the gorillas the most! I especially remember one, whom I believed was named Max, who used to escape all of the time, lol. Allie is going to go crazy! This girl loves her animals! She squeels and claps whenever any animal is around. Heck, she even gets excited over the sight of stuffed animals. I really want to take her to Binder Park Zoo as well. ONLY because they have an awesome giraffe exhibit, where you get on this platform and the giraffes walk right up to you and you can feed them! I can only imagine how excited she would be! Other than that, I don't care much for that zoo. It's a semi-rip off for what they offer. But, the kids always have a good time, so I won't complain! :)

I just really wish Summer would kick in to gear and bring us some nice, warm, weather that actually sticks around! Oh, and the fact that little Ellie will be here in just about 4wks!!! :) :) :)