9 months

It's hard to believe my baby is 9 months old already! She's still so tiny, and acts more like a 5 month old in many ways, so it's easy for me to forget how old she is. While I do want her to grow and develop and become more mobile, there is a part of me that is enjoying this "extra" baby time.

Stella has one tooth, middle bottom, and more are on the way. She chews on everything, including her own fingers. I think it's funny that she continues to be surprised when it hurts to chomp down on her finger. She is still nursing strong, but also enjoying a variety of foods. I think we're done with the pureed baby food, because she makes a huge mess and doesn't seem to like it that much. She seems to prefers actual chunks of foods. So far she has had puffs, cheerios, carrots, peas, bananas, and teething biscuits. I am so impressed with how well she finds the food on her high chair tray and feeds herself. She doesn't have the pincer grasp down yet, but she grabs the food with one hand and uses fingers from the other hand to scoop the food into her mouth. She helps to hold a sippy cup but hasn't managed on her own yet, but we haven't given her many chances to try.

I think Stella has made great strides in her physical development this month. She is rolling from her tummy to back very easily and consistently. She still prefers to be on her back, although she tolerates tummy time a little better and will actually reach for objects and play with them while on her stomach. She often rolls from her back to her side, usually to find something to play with, but rarely goes all the way to her stomach. I think she is pretty close to sitting by herself. She does very well in the high chair and the exersaucer. Of course she still loves the swing and her little room and really interacts a lot with her surroundings now. She enjoys exploring textures and playing with rattles. Stella has become a lot more verbal this month too. No words yet though. Stella found her feet this month and just loves to play with them. She can also pull her socks off to get at her feet.


Her hair is getting longer and often seems like it might be curly. It definitely has a lot of body. This has been a difficult month for her conformers. The visits were traumatic and we had trouble finding a good fit. The end result is that for 3 weeks she has been wearing one clear conformer and one white conformer. They seem to be doing the job, but I think it looks awful. Next week we will get them changed and hopefully she will look a little better.


Overall I'm happy with the progress Stella is making, although I would love to see her be a bit more mobile. We are starting her on physical therapy to help with that, hopefully next week. Stella is such a sweet, easy baby, and I am having so much fun with her. I'm amazed at how expressive her face can be and at how easy it is to figure out what she needs. I just love watching her grow and learn things. And it's very fun to watch Sebastian find ways to interact with and enjoy her.