9 Months Old!

I am now 9 months old! It's hard to believe my birthday is only 3 months away! I am really developing my sense of humor now that I am a bit older. When I laugh or smile, I like to make the scrunchy face seen above, it helps show off my 6 teeth.

I continue to grow more and more beautiful each day. I swear, I am the best looking baby around! I could stare in the mirror for hours... Thank you Great Aunt Linda for this robe!

On 12/28, my Uncle DJ and Auntie Justine flew in for a long weekend. Along with Aunt Sarah, Uncle Brian, Uncle Andy and my cousins Skylar and Jayson, we had a little get together where we opened some Christmas gifts. Thanks again, Aunt Linda for this pretty blue dress!

I am a very proficient crawler at this point, crawling around the house and starting to find trouble (stairs, cabinets, lamps, etc). One of my favorite games is to empty the contents of the coffee table, which is filled with boring grown-up books. I am also pulling myself into a standing position, with the help of furniture or Mommy's leg. I have started to throw things - balls, books, toys and even pacifiers when I would prefer to cry. I began waving this week, so I enjoy waving to the waiter every time he comes to our table, or waving to Daddy every two seconds from my spot on the floor. I also have clapped my hands a few times, although I lose interest when my hands don't make the same noise as everyone else's hands seem to.

I am starting to expand my vocabulary. Some of the words I am working on are Daddy, duck, bottle, light and cat. I don't quite have the pronunciation, but Mommy and Daddy seem to understand what I am saying most of the time. Still no "mommy" but that's because I want to get it perfect before even attempting.

I am a very good eater, long surpassing any charts that pediatricians publish. I enjoy feeding myself, so I get some chopped veggies every day to munch on (carrots, corn, green beans and peas). In the past few weeks I have also tried raspberries, asparagus, cheese, yogurt, wheat bread, and even french fries and milkshake from Steak-N-Shake (don't tell Daddy). I have a doctor's appointment in a few weeks, so we will check in regarding my growing appetite.

I am currently in 18 month clothes, but finding a good fit is hard since I still have baby thighs. I have the weight and height of a toddler, but need a few more months of crawling before I slim out some.

Please Do Not Feed The Animals!

You dog lovers out there will appreciate this one!!

Christmas Clip

Here is a clip from Christmas Day - Delanie opening one of her many presents under the tree! For us, Christmas began a little after 6 am, when Delanie woke up. She was quickly fed, then we began opening presents. First off, let me say, being able to experience our first Christmas as parents was truely a wonderful, memorable experience. There was nothing like the feeling of watching Delanie's excitement and wonder as she progressed through the day. And, although she doesn't quite "get it" yet, Dave and I were still very excited to sneak around and play Santa after she went to sleep the night before.

Of all the gifts she opened, Delanie was most drawn to the books. She loves all books! She is so funny now, because she actually will sit down and "read" books, only occasionally nibbling on the binding. She uses lots of inflection in her voice and just talks nonstop, glances at pictures before turning pages. She is so fun to watch when she really gets into a book (this trait she gets from her Dad, not her mother!!).

After presents, we were able to take a nice walk with the dogs at some trails at the high school. Those poor dogs! The walk was their only gift this year, other than what Mamo sent them! But, they were as content as ever. We had pot roast for an early dinner, played with toys some more. We drove out to a cool light display - the homeowner synchronized all his lights to a local Christmas radio station. We sat out on the grass and got lost in the beauty of the Christmas lights for a while. Once we got home, it was an early bedtime for all.

A big thank you to all our generous friends and family - it took until mid-afternoon to open all of the presents we received! We had such a wonderful Christmas as a family, but missed everyone we did not get to see. Christmas celebrations will continue until mid-January, as our plans to see family spans over several weekends.

We hope everyone was as blessed with a wonderful Christmas Day! We look forward to catching up with so many people in the coming days!

Christmas Day

A picture of me in front of the Christmas Tree

A picture of me crawling AWAY from the Christmas tree! Thank you Caleb for the bib!

Here I am reading one of the many great books I received... I love books!

I enjoy playing with my new Care Bear's nose! He is as big as me!

Christmas Morning

Here is a picture of Daddy and I coming down the stairs on Christmas morning.

I started the morning by exploring in my stocking of course!

Dancing with Daddy in our pajamas!

This is my face upon opening the gift from Great Aunt Kathleen!! The stuffed dog did not make the best first impression, but has since grown on me!

First Presents!

The first of what will likely be a string of posts of Delanie's first Christmas! We opened gifts from Grandma and Grandpa Blatchford and Aunt Kate on Dec 22. Delanie loves paper - newspaper, tissues, etc - so opening gifts wasn't a huge stretch for her!

Dancing Queen

On Friday, we had a small open house for close friends and family. Here is some video of Delanie and Mommy warming up before guests arrived!