Happy 9 Month Birthday Lily!

I can't believe how fast the time has gone by! Lily, you are such a joy these days, full of surprises and quirkiness. I love watching your personality develop, you have a great sense of humor little one and a kind heart! I can tell by the way you laugh at our silly jokes and the way you gently pet Jackson. (Although you occasionally pull his tail- he doesn't mind.) You are really figuring out the world around you. You get a look of serious concentration on your face sometimes. It's amazing and a little frightening that you are so smart...Your daddy and I are so proud of you and love you more than you know. It's wonderful to know that you love us too, and you show it in the cutest ways. Your sloppy kisses and tight hugs with your arms and legs are adorable and so endearing. Some of  the fun things you are doing right now are:

You can clap, and you try to say "Yea". You love to clap and you love to be clapped for.
You just started giving "high fives" this week!
You attempt to wave "hello" and "bye", but aren't really interested in that at the moment.
Talking up a storm! You are saying "ma, mom, la, ba, ah, and ya"  and giving lots of raspberries. No "da" yet, but we are getting there. All of these sounds you will make on command, and you love to mimic, espeically when we are driving in the car. You also like to make "monster noises" like "raar" and you scrunch your nose and eyes when you make that noise.
You love music too! You love to hear mommy sing and you will try to sing along as well.
And dance! You have the cutest sway that you'll do when you hear the alphabet song on your musical table and sometimes you'll put your hand up too. It's really adorable Lily.
You are crawling up a storm, and love to be chased. You'll turn around with a big smile on your face to see if we are following you, giggle and off you go!

You are pulling up on everything! and WALKING with your baby stroller. When I showed your dad for the first time, he was so full of pride Lily, he almost cried.
You love to ride on your car. Even though you're supposed to make it go with your feet, you prefer to lean back with your feet up and be pushed.
You love to be carried and held. and you hold on tight with your strong little legs.
You will sit on your bottom and turn yourself in a circle with your legs. It's so cute, and this is usually how you decide in which direction you want to crawl.
You smile a lot, but you are pretty serious too. We have a feeling that you are thinking really hard a lot of the time.
You like new people, but when you are in a new environment, it takes you a few minutes to warm up to everyone and then you want the crowd's full attention. You are a ham that way!
You love to be tickled, hang upside down in our arms, and ride on our shoulders. You hold on to hair like they are your reins.
You love walks! We try to go on a walk a day and you are completely relaxed in your stroller and will usually fall asleep.

You are such a good sleeper. You still take two naps a day, and your bedtime is at 7 o'clock. You are an early bird! Sometimes you'll try to get up at 6 am and daddy will give a bottle and turn on your lullabies so you'll sleep a little longer. You prefer to see daddy when you wake up in the mornings, and will look around form him when I come to get you in the morning. You prefer to sleep in your crib, but you'll take a nap in your car seat occasionally as well.

Lily you got your first haircut last month! Mommy didn't want to do it, but your hair was getting in your eyes and making you very unhappy, so we took you to the kiddie barber, and you have a cute bib and bangs. Very stylish!

You love to eat and you will always try new things! (You're like your momma that way). You prefer to feed yourself with your hands, so meals have become a lot easier for mommy and daddy. :) So far you have tried: bananas, (which you LOVE), avocados, peas, carrots, squash, zucchini, lentils, pineapple, apple, peaches, pears, potatoes, pasta, bread, you LOVE bread, grapes, cheese, sweet potato, broccoli, yogurt, puffs (another favorite), and rice. You will still eat rice cereal and oatmeal occasionally, but finger foods are your preference.

When you fall asleep on my shoulder after a bedtime bottle it's the sweetest and most precious moments we spend together Lily. I use that time to tell you how much I love you, and how important you are to me, your dad, your family, your friends and the world. I can't wait to see what life has in store for you Boogs, you are going to be amazing!