Size: Ruth
had her 9 month check-up this week. She’s happy and healthy. She weighs 18 lb.
10 oz. and is 28 ¼ inches long. Both of these are around the 50th
percentile for height and weight. Her head is around the 80th
percentile. Grateful for a good check-up!
She was quite curious about everything they were doing but did a great
job as they checked her out. She got a little giggly when he had to feel her
tummy…ticklishJ.
New
things: In
addition to her hands, Ruth can now identify her feet, teeth, and nose (by
sniffing) when you ask her where they are. I didn’t even really know she knew
these until I just randomly asked her, and she started showing me. The nose,
especially, caught me off guard because she started sniffing, and I was not
expecting that connection. It’s so interesting to me because it helps show how
they learn. We don’t spend hours practicing learning where our body parts are,
but somehow she picked up on these from “life”.
So cool!
Ruth
started saying “boo” this week when we play peek-a-boo. I hide one of us and
say “boo”, and she would repeat or say it herself.
Ruth can
sign “water” now…her version, but she can do it! It’s super cute.
Our
housemate taught Ruth how to kiss this week. In the past, Ruth’s kisses just
involved putting her mouth or open mouth to your check, but she taught her to
put her lips together and make the “smooching” noise. She was holding her one
day when we were talking, and Ruth got quiet and was very focused and intent on
watching her. Then she started trying to “kiss”, and it was so cute to watch.
Her lips looked like a fish but crooked. Sometimes her teeth stick out, too.
But she can do it, and now associates the sound with the dog. I think she also
uses it as a way to call the dog or as a whistling sound perhaps. Not sure of
its exact meaning(s) to her, but it’s so cute to watch her do it, and it’s just
another form of communicating for her.
Ruth
also learned where her tongue is this week! If she ask her “where’s your
tongue?”, she sticks it out and moves it around. J
Ruth
started saying “book” this week. She’ll look at her books and say the word, of
if you ask her where they are, she’ll look right at them. We went to the
library this week, and Ruth was quite intrigued by ALL the books. Now that she
can say the word, she was amazed at how many books there were all overJ! I think the library had a whole new meaning to her this
week!
Ruth
follows me (by crawling) most places. Where I am, there you will probably find
Ruth. I remember people saying that I’d soon have a little shadow. It’s trueJ. It’s also cool because if I go into another room and or
across the room and say “come over here”, she will leave where she is and come
to where I am!!
One of
our family activities is to have Ruth walk back and forth between the two of us
while holding our hands. This week, we tried without hands, and she was able to
take more than one step. Most of the time, she was so excited that she just ran
and fell forward, but a few times she was able to “walk”. It was so precious as
she seems too little to be walking. It just made her look like a big girl.
Ruth is
back to playing on her own more often now. Teething made her a bit clingy, but
this week she went back to more of her normal wanting to be with me at times
and having fun playing alone at times.
Ruth
used Tom to push herself up to a standing without holding onto anything
position. Woohoo! Go, Ruth!
When Tom
goes to get Ruth, she’ll hurry over to me. Even if she thinks Tom might get her
(or if she wants him to get her as it seems), she’ll start to squeal and hurry
over to me; it’s so cute. She gets this way particularly more so when she’s
tired and a little slap happyJ.
In the
past, Ruth has been quite intrigued with the vacuum cleaner and hasn’t minded
it. This week, Tom went to vacuum, and Ruth started making a new “scared” sound
that that was unfamiliar to me. We reintroduced her to the vacuum cleaner…touching
it, encouraging her to touch it, and held her while vacuuming, and she was just
fine. She’s still completely intrigued and curious about it and may even like
it, but perhaps she also has a healthy respect toward it.
Ruth is saying/trying all sorts of words. She has her own
version of “phone”, and she can put Tom’s old cell phone up to her ear (it’s
cute)! She can also say bowl and Ruth (again, her versions).
Ruth can see the smallest anything on the floor to pick up,
when she does, if I say “give it to Mommy”, she will give it to me pretty
consistently without putting it in her mouth first. I have to be quick, though,
and catch her right away; otherwise, she’s already processed in her brain that
she wants to eat it.
I realized the other day that while nursing, Ruth isn’t
pulling at her hair as much as she used to. She still does it a little just not
as frequently.
Ruth learned how to take the lid off her snack container
with her teeth this week:),
and she rather love being able to do so.
We brought back Ruth’s bookshelf from IN and finally
unpacked all her books! I gave her a few to look at/play with, and she was in
heaven! It was a whole new baby looking at them this time around, and they had
a whole new meaning to her. It was so fun to watch her look at them and to
process all the changes since we last looked at those books (before moving).
Ruth knows how to open the cupboard doors now and can get to
my pots and bowls.
We’ve reached a new phase of parenting again.
Fun
things: We
brought back a plastic infant swing with us from my mom and hung it out this
week. Ruth LOVES it, and it made hanging laundry much easier!! Maybe it’s
taking her back to her yester-years of her baby swing!
We used
to sing the ABC’s while we brushed Ruth’s teeth, but she was not been interested
in brushing her teeth in recent weeks, so Tom switched it up to the Veggie
Tales theme song, and she seems to be responding much better. J
While
visiting our housemates one afternoon this week, Ruth discovered soil in one of
their potted plants and was quite interested in it. She kept trying to crawl
back to it and was willing to work around obstacles to do soJ. She also discovered the dog food. I told her it was “eyes
only”, and sometimes, I would have to take her away from it, she got her hand
in it once or twice, and a few other times, she would get close to it and hover
her hand over it but not touch it,
knowing it was off limits…there little minds are just working over time. It’s
amazing to think of what’s going on in there!
One time
this week, when Ruth was playing in her own little word, she would sit with her
legs spread and use her hands to “rake” the floor. She did quite a few times.
No idea what she was doing, but she was having fun! It was fun to watch her.
We went
to a steam engine show this week. Ruth was in heaven with all the tractors
(real and toy) and machines, and people! We watched some tractors plow (she
enjoyed waving to them); we watched a steam engine power chopping wood; we
walked around and looked at all the toys and stands; we got lunch and then had
some kettle corn as a treat (which she also enjoyed; her first time eating
popcorn); and just enjoy the afternoon as a family. In the toy area, there were
a few toy farm displays set up, and we pointed out all the things Ruth sees on
an almost daily basis – tractors, trucks, cows, hay, etc. I think her little
mind was spinning taking it all in as those words/items have meaning to her
now. They weren’t just something to look at. We also saw some people we know
there! Woohoo! Getting more localized by the weekJ. We had a fun as a family!
Ruth
loves: North
Carolina style BBQ pulled pork.
“Sauces”…she had some BBQ sauce this week, and loved
it. We also gave her a little raspberry vinaigrette on her high chair tray to
try, and she loved it. We tried showing her that she could dip her “salad”
(spinach) into it, but she preferred to use her fingersJ.
Also, this is kind of interesting. I learned this
week that when she sees me eating carrots, I think she associates them with
eating hummus. She saw me eating some this week and wanted them, but she can’t
have them herself yet. I didn’t have hummus, so I dipped them in BBQ (we were
having pulled pork) and gave that to her. She loved it, and that was enough to
satisfy her.
Her swing!
Our salt and pepper shakers. I will give her spice
containers to play with while I’m in the kitchen and have taught her to shake
them. Well, she has discovered that she can get something out of the salt and
pepper containers (gets a little taste) and loves playing with them. In fact,
she doesn’t really care for any of the other “shakers” as we now call them, has
refused them, and will point at the salt and pepper. If we’re in the kitchen,
she’ll just randomly point to the “shaker” section signifying what she wants.
Sleep: This week, Ruth learned that she doesn’t have
to stay lying down in bed once she wakes upJ. When I would go to get her out of bed, I would find her on
her knees holding onto the handle bars of her crib. It’s kind of really cute!
Ruth has
been sleeping in about a half hour later than normal this week (maybe
recooperating from our travels??). She’ll wake up before then but fall back
asleep. It’s been nice!
Ruth has
been waking up during her afternoon nap but falling back asleep, thankfully.
Tom and
I: We went to another new church this week and enjoyed it. A fun story…one of
the pastors, while leading the music, was using his hand to conduct. We noticed
Ruth was waving to him and realized she thought his conducting was him waving
to her. We both started chuckling; it was so funny!
I worked on unpacking, setting up, organizing some of the items we brought back with us from our parents'.
Thank
you, Lord, for: That
Ruth has been physically well for 9 whole months. We’re so thankful for her
health and safety. Communication! It’s so much fun!!
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