Team Shep Blog: Ava - Nine Months

I am a little late in posting this one, but Ava turned nine-months old on November 3rd. She seems so much older than she did on her eight-month birthday, mainly because of her new top teeth, her increasing mobility, switching to more finger food, and her fun personality coming through even more.

We have had a few updates in the sleeping department as well. First, she switched from a sleepsack to a loose blanket last month. The sleepsacks were all getting a little short for our tall baby. So, rather than order bigger ones, we decided it was time to ditch them. I was also not worried about putting a loose blanket in her crib anymore, both because she is so mobile and because the Aden + Anais blankets are so breathable. The other big adjustment was Ava dropping her morning nap at daycare. However, she is still holding strong on that nap on the weekends....thank goodness, because I am not quite ready for it to go.

Ava babbles and giggles constantly, and has also become quite the little ham. Whenever I bring out my big camera, she shows off with a big grin...

And speaking of our little ham, below are my favorite pics from her nine-month photo shoot.

As usual, it was hard to get her to sit still for very long. And she was even more preoccupied by the teddy bear this time around.

But we still managed to keep her attention for a short while.

Stats:

20 pounds, 7 ounces (75%)
29.75 inches (greater than 95%)

Milestones/Firsts:

While she says "mama" and "dada" on occasion, she says "da" (dog) every time he sees Stella and Louie. I guess we know who she likes the best ;).
Ava has also learned other ways of communicating with us. The best example is that she makes a lip-smacking noise when she is hungry. It is so cute and really helpful at the same time! I really need to get it on video soon.
By the end of last month, Ava's top two teeth were almost all the way in, and her bottom right just started to peak through.
Ava cruises around like a champ. It is only a matter of time before she is walking.

This also means that she has discovered how to get into a lot more stuff around the house. But luckily, she has also learned what "no" means, and that certain things are off limits...at least temporarily.

Ava has officially mastered the sippy cup.

She now eats lots of different finger foods. Ava loves being able to feed herself, and surprises me constantly with how much she eats!

Likes:

Of course...her "Wubbas." We usually only give them to her during naps/at night, but I recently found out that she had it with her almost all the time at daycare. Needless to say, I asked that they help us limit her Wubba addiction.
Ava loves crawling around on the couch (with supervision of course). She giggles the whole time.
She loves grabbing Josh's hair. Although we are trying to teach her to be "gentle."

Ava often does a backbend while you are holding her. She especially loves when I sing "Horsey, horsey ride to town. Horsey, horsey don't fall down," and she now bends back by herself when I say the last part.
Eating! As I mentioned above, Ava eats pretty much whatever we put in front of her...especially if she can feed herself. Her favorites are cheese (just like her momma), bananas, puffs, green beans, mango, and chicken. She also loves giving the dogs a little taste.

Ava loves her bath time. Unfortunately, she also likes trying to drink the bathwater. Yuck!
She also loves "brushing" her teeth each night after her bath. I love that it keeps her still long enough for me to put on her diaper and PJs.
Swinging! Ava is definitely getting a swing set from Santa this year.

Despite all the toys in the room, Ava will inevitably go after this particular dog toy. I move the yucky green chicken into the other room, but the dogs always bring it back in. I think they are conspiring against me :).

Dislikes:

Sitting still on the changing table. Ever.
Waiting on her food once she is hungry.

Funny/Random Tidbits:

I don't know how to best describe it, but she loves making this noise...

She often sleeps on her stomach with her cute little booty in the air.

Before we got a gate to block it off, she loved to crawl behind the couch in the family room. Because she knew she wasn't supposed to go back there, Ava would look over at me and smile mischievously before laughing and crawling at lightening speed behind the couch. I think we are in trouble.

And finally, some of my other favorite photos from last month...