Beth is 9 months old!

This has been a very long and challenging month! A lot has happened this month and I'm not sure I'll remember it all!

First, both kids got the chicken pox! Nora got them first and had a fairly mild case. She had quite a number of big spots on her back, but seemed to enjoy the frequent baths and extra attention. She had one really horrid night where she just couldn't sleep and it took her just over a week to recover from that night! Beth had a rather impressive case. We counted over 100 spots on just her back. Poor thing. She handled it like a trooper, but clearly wanted to crawl out of her skin. I'm convinced that was why she became mobile while she had them! Both kids did burn up - fevers of 104.5. Now, when I'm doing a tick check I often have to remind myself that they have scabs in their heads. I've had a couple of moments where I forgot.

Beth was sleeping very well for most of the month. She was in bed by 7pm, up at about 2-3am for some milk, and then back down until 5:30am. We'd bring her into bed for a cuddle/nurse/nap at 5:30 and then all get up with Nora at 6. The chicken pox threw off her sleeping, so we are kind of starting over again. She tends to make fussing noises in her sleep, so it's really difficult to tell when she's actually awake. She had been taking 2 good naps a day - usually one in the stroller/Ergo and the other in her crib. Now, all naps are pretty much in the Ergo. Once she's sleeping better at night, I'll work on the nap location again!

Beth is now eating like a champ. After almost 2 months of eating just a few bites of food, she finally decided that she wanted to eat it. She still insists on feeding herself, which makes a huge mess! I have no idea how to convince her to not grab the spoon. Nora was the same way, but eventually lost interest in helping. Beth, on the other hand, is becoming more insistent on doing it herself! She enjoys avocado, sweet potato, pears, peas, green beans, pumpkin, carrots, applesauce prunes and mango. Her sister has introduced her to a few other foods, such as yogurt and bits of toast, but we aren't giving those to her regularly. She did really enjoy the yogurt though! So far, she hasn't been overly impressed by the roasted pumpkin (unless mixed with applesauce) but eats loads of everything else. We are up to two meals a day and I think we'll be adding the third very soon. Beth loves finger foods, but still tends to gag on even thick purees, so we don't offer them often. She has eaten bits of watermelon and sweet potato with success!

The week before Beth turned 9 months, she started being really mobile. She is currently doing a half hitch - half crawl, but gets around pretty well. She's still trying to pull up on everything, and only succeeds if her feet are in a certain position when she starts. Mostly, once she gets to standing, she gets so excited that she falls right back down and has to start over. The mobility has brought a new dynamic to the house. We need to be much more careful with what we play on the floor. No more leaving crayons and paper on the floor - they need to be picked up as soon as we are done with them (usually, as soon as Beth wakes from morning nap). Nora gets very protective of the toys, shoes, and anything else within reach and moves everything away from Beth. We are working on teaching Nora that Beth can play with the toys, but it hasn't been easy. Up until now, Nora felt she had control over which toys Beth could play with. On a better note, Nora does seem to enjoy the fact that Beth can chase her around the living room. They go from end to end laughing hysterically at each other!

Nora has also grown recently. She's started drawing circles with smiley faces in them instead of just scribbling (and telling us what the scribble is - daddy, boat, car, iceberg, chocolate cake...). She's also been making up a lot of her own songs. She sings to daddy what she's done during the day. Sometimes, it takes us a minute to figure out if she's using her imagination or not, and it's so great to see. Her play with other children has also changed a lot recently. She tries to get the other child to join in her imaginary journey - be it a tea party or a drive to "work". It's so fun to watch!

We spend plenty of time outside. Nora loves to show Beth pinecones, rocks and acorns. Nora puts them in her bucket and then counts them over and over again - which is pretty funny! Beth loves to swing, so often Beth will swing while Nora and I play in the sandbox.