9MO

This past month has been one of our favorites. This phase in babyhood is so fun! Crawling, giggling, engaging in play, babbling... the best of the best. Stephen and I are both just trying to relish this time :)

To see all of Carson and Beau's pics, go here!

And because this kiddo makes it hard to choose the official photo, as usual, the runner up:

This photoshoot was a fun one. Carson was super pumped about all the bubbles and splashed so much there was water EVERYWHERE. I'd say he was pretty proud.

One thing I didn't quite realize is Carson's reach. I thought Beau would be plenty safe on his swan. Turns out I was wrong...

Carson:   * slap slap slap, splash splash splash, giggleeeee *

Beau took a little dip.... or perhaps a big one :P

All about Car-chee:
- It's official. The nickname has stuck
- He is super expressive. Especially with this tongue
- He's babbling a lot of sounds like yayaya, dah dah dah, buh buh buh, ta ta ta, a lot of ahhs, growls and raspberries. He saw Stephen the other day and said "Dada" pretty clear. Not sure he's coordinated the meaning with the word to call it his official first word, but hey, so cute regardless!
- 90% of what he wants in his mouth makes it there. For better or for worse
- Eating mostly baby food but we're working on getting better at table foods. He has trouble with the textures of some foods I feel like
- His hair is getting noticeably longer :D
- He's waving, but not on command
- 3 teeth!! The top just popped through. The other on the top looks like it will soon follow
- He's all over the place and about 60/40 army crawl vs. traditional crawl ratio

- Can traverse over objects
- Still working on pulling up on things but if propped, can kneel or stand pretty confidently
- His current favorite spots:  Lucy's toys, the lamp's electrical cord (safe, I know), the shoe bench, the dog door & Miles' playroom
- Laughs at himself all the time
- Can feed himself his own bottles
- Gets SO excited when the baby Keurig turns on
- He finds people across the room and just grins and coos at them
- He makes a b-line for shoes. Even if they're on your feet
- Knows his name
- Can sign "milk" but doesn't ask for it by sign
- Still a kicking machine. His legs are always moving
- Him and Miles are playing more and more together. More so collaboratively than before. So fun to watch.

I only caught the tail end but they were playing this game for about 20 minutes. Miles would run around as Carson spun and then plop down behind him. When Carson caught up, they'd laugh laugh laugh.

- We've noticed more that he wants to feel included and be part of the gang. If we set him down away from the action, he gets upset.
- And one of my favorite things this month:  he peers over the crib bumpers while he waits for us to come get him up. So cute :)

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Carson is the epitome of tolerance. Literally, as I'm typing, Miles is laying on top of him and Carson is just dying laughing. He's funny, engaging, flexible, lovable, curious and overall just the sweetest. Happy 9 months baby boy!!