Nine Months

Ok, I'll spare you the whole "I can't believe they're so old" line...again. But seriously, I can't believe they're so old. Do you know what this means? I have to start at least kinda sorta thinking about what we're going to do for their first birthday. Let me just say, I'm in complete denial. To the point that I might consider thinking about their first birthday party on October 22nd. I was thinking the other day that I can't believe it's been 9 months since that day at the hospital when they pulled the 2 sweetest babies I'd ever seen out of my belly (yikes, that's maybe a little graphic, but true). I blame the sleep deprivation, countless hours of worrying if I'm a bad mom/feeling guilty/realizing time is slipping through my fingers for why it's hard for me to remember what it was like gazing into these tiny sweet faces just days after we came home (I actually have little recollection of the first month or so). All I remember feeling was immense exhaustion and love all at once. I even had a break down or two because I felt like we didn't take enough pictures of the girls for the first 6 weeks or so. What if I forgot how they looked sleeping at 4 o'clock in the afternoon? Have I mentioned I was a mess of sleep deprivation and hormones there for awhile (and maybe still)?
Ok, I'll move past the weepy reminiscing and onto more fun things, like all the exciting things these little 9 monthers are up to.

Sophie Kay

This little chunky monkey makes me laugh nearly every day. And not like the giggling laugh we all do at our babies, I mean she literally cracks me up constantly. Her hilarious expressions, screaming when she doesn't get food fast enough or you're not paying enough attention to her, her delirious belly laughs in the evening when she is so tired and I swear she understands every word of our conversations, or her insane bouncing in her jumperoo. I could go on and on. This girl is hilarious. She is also, incidentally, the greatest little snuggler in the world. Every time I pick her up, she grabs me has hard as she can, hugs me, and squeels with delight. It makes me want to just squeeze the life out of those rolls. She is a great eater, an even better sleeper and all in all just pure delight.
As far as her "tricks", here are a few...
-clapping her hands and feet with equal expertness
-is now able to mimic us shaking our head back and forth (again, cracks me up)
-goes from sitting position to all fours, to stomach, then screams out of frustration while kicking feet and hands (much like the superman position) because she hasn't figured out this crawling thing yet
-would rather stand while holding onto you or any piece of furniture than be in any other position
-can successfully roll to something she really wants (like the laundry basket, remote, or my phone)
-talks and talks and talks and talks. we are hearing new consonant sounds all the time (however, yet to hear my name yet). Says "dada" pretty consistently. When she gets really excited, she starts repeating "a-ga-a-ga-a-ga" in this whispery/hyperventilating voice. It's hysterical.
-still gets scared incredibly easy. If I run the disposal, blender, or vacuum in the same room as her, she screams like she just saw a ghost. It's hilarious and so sad at the same time.

At our nine month appointment, she was 19 lbs. 12 oz. and 27 in. Which puts her in the 50th percentile for height and 75th percentile for weight.

Campbell Jane

My sweet little CJ. I love watching both of their personalities develop and see daily how insanely different they are. Campbell is my little observer. She looks all over our house, outside the window, up at the ceiling constantly like she is always seeing it for the first time. I absolutely adore the way her face lights up when she first sees you or something else she loves for the first time. She goes nuts when she hears Kyle's voice when he comes home from work and starts frantically looking all over for him. I ask Kyle all the time if he loves those first few moments of when he comes home and sees both girls grinning from ear to ear. It always makes me think of when my sisters and I were little and my dad would come home. We would run for the door and all grab onto his legs like we hadn't seen him in ages. I'm pretty sure Campbell would run and grab a leg if she could! I can tell that while I don't think she will be a really reserved girl, she will be the one who always laughs at her sister's antics. She loves to laugh (like her mama), and it's the most genuinely sweet sound ever. One thing she does that also cracks me up is her recent ability to "dance." We have no idea where she learned it, but almost every time she hears music of some sort, or the songs on their toys, she starts moving her whole body and head in a dancing motion. My friend, Mary, made the most hilarious observation the other day that I keep thinking about: "How can the Baptists think dancing is wrong? It's innate!" I have to say after watching CJ dance, it must be, because we certainly didn't teach her that (and no offense intended to any Baptists). She has such a little zest for life, and we love watching it develop.
CJ's "tricks":
-thisclose to crawling! she pulls her legs up under her when on her stomach onto all fours, rocks a little, then collapses back onto her tummy. She can also consistently get from a sitting position to all fours and vice versa. I'm telling ya, days until this one is on the move!
-eats because I insist she tries to eat 3 meals a day, but I'm pretty sure wouldn't miss food if I didn't give it to her
-is really good at reaching "into" almost anything. she loves exploring new things/drawers and trying to find hidden toys in places
-working on the sippy cup, but mostly loves to dump out water everywhere
-is very photogenic. I swear she "poses" for pictures, and I can almost guarantee a smile from her in 90% of the pictures I take of her (Sophie's eyes are usually closed-darn flash).
-loves her own reflection. I set her up on the changing table so she can face the mirror almost every morning because she makes the sweetest faces and coos while looking at herself, as if she's thinking, "Gosh, I'm pretty!"

At the nine month appointment, she weighed in at 19 lbs. 7 oz. and 28 1/2 in. which puts her in the 75th percentile for both weight and height.

The girls are really getting into such a fun age. While each stage has its fun parts, they are really turning into little people, and I'm starting to have so much fun with them. Here are a few pics of our summer adventures...

Sophie and Sophie

CJ and Daddy

Summer duds

Ornery

love being messy

notice Sophie has less food on her-not much goes to waste!

A visit from Nana and Papa

Dad and Sophie

Stinkers

Is this hat not hilarious? Aunt Sara brought them back from San Francisco. Sophie couldn't keep it on long enough for a picture.

Playing with our friend, Addie Cooley

Playing with Nana

Playdate with our friend, Bryn Doty

CJ and Daddy

I'm sure you're wondering where the picture of the both of them together is with our chalkboard. These girls are such little busy bees that I seriously couldn't get a single pic where they were both looking/smiling. It was insanity. 

Can't wait to see all the fun we're having a month from now (double digits!) ;)

xoxo