9 Months Old Today!

It's amazing what can take place in 4 weeks! In the past month, I feel like "my baby" has taken major "steps" (no pun intended!) toward being a toddler, which is both exciting and daunting at the same time! Although she was never too bothered with crawling, walking, on the other hand, has seriously peeked her interest! I'm not sure when she actually took her first steps, because it's been a gradual process, but we'll call it May 15th - this past weekend after returning from our trip! Right now, she's taking about 6-8 steps on her own before crashing into Mommy or Daddy's arms - if we're lucky!! It's all very exciting and adorable to see how proud she is of herself. It's a different life than I left a few weeks ago when we headed to the States. Now that she's had a taste of "going" she wants to "go" all the time now. It can be seriously exhausting, but for her, it never gets old- we just "walk, walk, walk" all the time now! Let the baby proofing begin!

What else... well, she is still a great eater and particularly LOVES steamed broccoli florets! To see her reaction when she sees them, you'd think she was about to have a major treat! Finger foods in general are the theme these days-- anything she can do "by self". I made thin crepe-like pancakes the other morning and she had a field day with them. Just rolled them up in small pieces and she ate every bit with some mixed berries! YUM!

Bowen is a very sweet little girl and has become more observant than ever about her surroundings. Just this week, Stewart and I have noticed that she is VERY interested in a jointed Steiff teddy bear in her room that was mine as a child. When she gets up, she will crane her neck toward the bear until we take her over to say hello. Then she'll just smile and smile as she holds his hand and pets his fur. It makes her so happy. Another item she's become very affectionate towards is the Madame Alexander baby doll my mom gave her while I was pregnant. She loves "Baby" and will give kisses (open mouth malling of the head) when prompted. It is SO cute.

Not unusual, she loves all sorts of adult electronics or gadgets. Our laptop, blackberries, phones, remote control etc. are getting a serious beat down and influx of saliva! When the phone rings she goes absolutely crazy and won't settle down until she gets to "talk to Dada" or who ever else is on the phone. She also loves small lotion/ointment containers - namely Aquaphor. It's become kind of a joke in our house when we need something that's sure to distract her -- "Where's the Aquaphor"??!

The most recent time she was weighed was at the RDU airport (on the luggage scale!) when we were returning to London. It clocked her at 17 lbs 8 oz! Not sure how accurate that was, but she's probably round about 18 lbs and pretty solid. Not much baby fat on this girl, unless you count those cheeks. :)

Oh, another very big thing has happened this month! Bowen's first tooth is well on it's way!! Poor thing, it all started the day we flew back to London - Monday, May 10th. It was definitely hurting her that day, but I'd say she's been dealing pretty well with it since. You can see the tooth, but it's yet to come all the way through. I will definitely take a photo when it's through and visible - right now she's hiding it with her tongue!

Well, there's the mini update on our little super star! She's the love of our lives and brings us more joy than we can express. It's is really hard to believe 9 months have gone by since the day she joined us. Life is good. Let the fun continue!

Happy 9 month birthday to our sweet little Bowen!