nine months.

nine months. three quarters of a year. 274 days. that's how old our baby is. i seriously can't handle it. i really just think he is old enough and can stop growing now. unfortunately it seems he doesn't agree. we had bennett's 9 month well visit on friday, and he is pretty much perfect :) he weighs 19 lbs 17 oz and 28 inches long. he is in the 52nd percentile for weight, 39th percentile for height, and 48th percentile for head circumference.

we are crawling. everywhere. and we are into everything. literally. like george's food. also, his teacher at daycare, shauna, let me know that he is taking every opportunity to explore his surroundings, even launching an escape to the toddler room next door, shawkshank redenption style.

there's his little butt diving into the play gym

over the weekend ben climbed up a stair (i'm sure this will soon become a regular thing), then promptly fell backwards off said stair. falling is our most frequent (though least favorite) activity as of late.

bennett is on only formula now and is doing really well with it. and i love not pumping. win-win. he eats anywhere from 5 to 8 oz, 4 times a day (7:30am, 11:30am, 3:30pm, 6:30pm) and eats some baby food and some finger foods (still no teeth, though, so we have to be careful!). he LOVES peanut butter, yogurt, and cheese. unfortunately right now he does not love solid fruits and veggies (he loves them pureed as baby food though), so we are working on it. i really don't want him to be a picky eater, but i'm trying not to get ahead of myself and stress over it.

ben loves to laugh and thinks mom and dad are both really funny :) i know there will come a day where he will think i am embarrassing instead of funny, so i am embracing it while i can. bennett is obsessed with taking self pictures on my phone and laughs hysterically when he sees himself on the screen.

he is now into kisses, which essentially involves him grabbing my hair and pulling my mouth or chin into his slobbery face. it's my fave.

he also loves working out with mama!

these five lbs dumbbells are tough!

hi jillian!

we are working hard on signing and waving. he flaps his arms up and down when he wants something so we are thinking that is his way of signing "more." close enough, buddy.

our little man is continuing to assert his independence and doesn't like to have anything done for him. this includes diaper changes, which keeps things interesting. we are completely crazy for our babe and love seeing his smiling face each day as he learns and grows (but tell him every day that he's grown enough and he's all done :)