Ian-mo09 Ian-mo08Ian had his nine month check up today and he is now a total of 22lbs 8oz and is 28.5 inches long. That puts him in the 75-90 percentile for his weight and the 50-75 percentile for his height; his head is 18.25 inches (which is in the 50-75 percentile). This time around, he didn’t receive any vaccinations, but he did receive the first round of a flu shot. We have to go back in a month to get the second round, but we’ll probably do that after the new year. They also took a urine and blood sample; both came back fine. Ian did really well with both the shot and when they drew blood. The nurse was able to give him the shot without a word from Ian. It wasn’t until we both looked at him and noticed he was doing fine that he decided to tear up. It didn’t last long though; he became distracted when the nurse started taking blood. He just watched her and was trying to figure out what was going on. He continued to flirt with the nurses and tried escaping down the halls a couple of times. His next check-up with be at 12 months, so not until March. One other thing we did learn, Ian will start getting a mouth full of teeth. The Doc said that they should start coming in faster and that they shouldn’t bother him too much, at least not until the 12 month molars.

Ian is starting to get faster at crawling. You can always tell when he’s about to go faster because he likes to put his head down and go. It’s kind of amusing to watch since he can’t see where he’s going, but his head is there to intercept any road blocks. He is definitely standing every chance he gets and he’s even doing it without holding on to anything. It’s not for long, but I did catch him balancing himself and standing on his own for a good 30 seconds (at least twice). That’s a record. He’s creeping along the couch a lot more (and he’s getting faster at it)….so Jesse thinks he’ll be walking soon. I can tell you, I can wait for that to happen.

There has been a change in Ian’s diet this month. He is no longer content with just baby food; now he has to have the same food mama and daddy are eating. That’s right, Ian started table foods this month. He began with bagels and has evolved into meatloaf, chicken, veggies, basically anything we’ll let him get away with. The doctor told us this could happen, but generally those who start around 9 months have siblings. Now that Ian is on table foods, I’m surprised Jesse hasn’t tried for burritos yet. That is the one meal Jesse has been waiting to give him. Ian has had all the components (guacamole, salsa, beef, cheese, rice), but there are still some he can’t have. According to the doctor, Ian shouldn’t be given any kind of poultry since it is kind of stringy and his teeth are not fully developed yet. Also, diary products are something that we have to wait on for a bit yet.

Since we are talking about teeth, Ian has learned a new concept – biting. We haven’t figured out if it’s a sign that he’s hungry or not; but he is definitely teething again. I’m hoping that they’ll come in two at a time again, but we’ll see. Although he is teething, he’s not drooling nearly as much as he used to. He’s still doing it, but it’s a bit more manageable now.

It is November and that means Ian has experienced his first Thanksgiving as well as his first visit with Santa Claus. Ian was able to enjoy the Thanksgiving meal. I ended up sharing everything on my plate with him (minus the turkey). We went and saw Santa on Tuesday and Ian took it really well. He wasn’t really sure how to take the entire experience, but, just like his father, once he got to the chest of silver pieces, he had no problem diving in to the experience.