9 months

About 1 week late.

3 days old vs (almost) 9 months old - I love to see how he has grown!

Ben is 9 months old! He is 20 lbs 8 oz, 28.25 inches tall, with a head circumference of 18.5 inches. This puts him right about average, with a big round skull, like his brother (they get that from Rodgers' side). He has 4 teeth. The fourth actually just peeked out yesterday.

He went through the most recent "Wonder Week" a few weeks ago. At the end of that, he started clapping, signing "milk," making twinkly star hand motions when Nate and I sing Twinkle Twinkle to him, moving around more (though not crawling yet), pulling up to standing and sitting back down again without falling, and cruising the furniture.

Yesterday, he started crawling for real, though he uses his knees and feet, rather than just knees. He never did the typical belly crawl, but he could still make his way around the room. I wasn't sure he'd ever really crawl. He likes to be original, I guess.

He eats everything. He is in the loving food stage. There are, of course, a few foods we are still waiting to give him until he's older or has molars. But he'd usually rather eat off the table than have a bottle. I'm strategically spacing his bottles around mealtimes to make sure that he still gets enough formula for nutrition's sake.

With his new mobility, he is getting into more things. However, if I tell him "no" he will obey. Sometimes I am a little too firm saying "no," and he bursts into tears. Sorry, Ben! I'm used to telling your brother "no!"

He loves giving cuddles and kisses and Eskimo kisses (Nate and I call them "nose, nose, nose"). He adores Nate, and especially loves to play with Nate's favorite toys. He is desperately trying to convince us that he is not a baby anymore.

On his 9 month "birthday"