9 Months

 Well another month has flown by and Miss Tessa is 9 months old!

Tessa is weighing in at 15 lbs 6 ounces and is still wearing size 2 diapers although I think this might be the last of them.  She's such a wiggler that she seems to be able to wiggle out of them so I might move her up to size 3 next time I buy them!  She's fitting into 6-9 month clothes but still wears some 3 month outfits too...just depends on the outfit!  

As for eating she's pretty much on the same schedule.  She nurses 4 times a day and takes one 4 oz formula bottle.  I did start feeding her lunch this month because I could tell she was hungry!  When I introduced lunch she dropped the 2 oz bottle at dinner.  She has loved all the purees I have made and I even added a little pumpkin to her fruit medley this last time!  I just started giving her finger foods this past week and she is doing great.  Before the finger foods she would have a YoBaby yogurt for breakfast, 3 cubes of food for lunch, and 5 cubes for dinner.  She loves to snack on Mums and Puffs as well!  Her first finger food was some pumpkin pancake and she loved it!  This past week I've been giving her bread, corn, grapes, avocado, strawberries, and honeydew and so far so good.  She does a good job of picking it up and getting it into her mouth!  For as much as this girl eats and as little as she is it's clear she is just blessed with a great metabolism!

She still just has her two bottom teeth!  I thought she was having another spell of teething but so far nothing has shown up!

She's been sleeping great but I've had to throw in the towel on getting the girls to sleep in the same room...at least for now!  My goal was to get it done while Jason was gone but then I realized I need sleep to care for two little ones on my own..haha!  A few nights of Tessa waking up crying which then woke Riley up and going into find them both screaming was enough for me!  Tessa still cries some nights but if left alone she gets herself right back to sleep...but if she's in the room with Riley it most often wakes Riley up and at that point there's no chance of her getting herself back to sleep!  So she's back to the guest room for now and I think I might just have Jason move her crib in there for now.  I still nap her in her crib so she is used to it as well and she sleeps in there at night on Friday and Saturday because those are the nights Riley gets to sleep with me when Jason is out of town!  She still takes 2 good naps a day about 1 1/2 hours each...and on the days we are out and about she might take 3 shorter ones...she is still very flexible and I'm so grateful for that!  She will sleep in the carrier, in the stroller, in the ergo...she's easy!  She sleeps a consistent 10-12 hours at night and I can't complain!  She usually always is up between 6:30 and 7:00 but she just hangs out in her bed for 15 minutes before she really starts fussing for me to get her...I hope she continues to wake up mellow and snuggly like her big sister!

I love this passed out face..just want to schmooch those cheeks!

This girl is REALLY on the move now and she is wearing me out!

She is constantly on the go...crawling, pulling up, opening cabinets, pulling drawers, looking for outlets, putting anything and everything in her mouth!  Changing her diaper should require at least 2 adults...it's such a challenge as she constantly is trying to roll over and crawl away!  I always have to have a toy to let her hold onto and hope that it occupies her...most of the time she likes to hold the diaper cream tube but sometimes we have to change things up!

She's also SOOO fun to play with...she loves to play peek-a-boo, chase, and has even been crawling through the tunnel!

Even though she's home with me all the time she is a social girl and she loves being with other babies!  We belong to a gym that has great childcare and she spends several hours a week in the care of the sweet folks there and she does great!  Only in the last few weeks has she ever cried when I drop her off and even when she has they can get her distracted and happy in minutes!  They LOVE her and fight over who gets to hold her when I'm walking in the door!  She's also done great in the church nursery.  The last time I dropped her off she started crying but as soon as she saw her friends and toys she was all smiles!  

Addi is her BFF!  These two are so fun together and now they really get excited when they see each other!  I love it!

This month she got to go to her first story time at the library!  She was not too interested in sitting and listening to the story but more interested in crawling around to all the other babies...such a socialite!

 She also got to ride in the "car" cart at the commissary for the first time!  Riley was SOOO excited to have Tessa in their with her!  She did great and was evening turning the steering wheel like a big girl!

I keep telling Jason I think Tessa might be our wild child!  The jury is still out but she's much more active and into things at this age than Riley was...that's for sure!  I think a lot of that is normal for the second kiddo!

What are you looking at mom?

I found her with the wooden spoon this last week and sent Jason a text saying "uh oh...who's in charge here?...help!"

All I know is she is a happy girl with the most contagious smile and she can be as wild as she wants to be as long as she is a sweet girl!

 

She's getting more interested in playing with Riley!  Sometimes it is hard for Riley to understand that Tessa isn't just going to play what Riley wants to play but we're working on it!  Riley is an AMAZING big sister and is constantly doting over her sister and saying "she is soooo cute"!  She wants to hug and kiss her all day long and she longs for Tessa to show her affection and attention!

Here's the comparison pic...I think they start to look more like each other the older Tessa gets!  They definitely look like sisters but I still see their differences!