I watch her at daycare sometimes and she just zooms all over my screen from one place to the next, pulling up on absolutely everything. She can climb up our stairs (with support and supervision, of course) and she loves it when we have "crawling competitions."
Harper is also communicating a lot more. She babbles more and I can tell she understands some things. She is also very demanding and her moods can go from very happy to crying in a snap. The Wonder Weeks app says that she is currently in the 6th leap, and that it's normal for her to alternate between being "extremely lovely" and having a "bad temper." That app has really always been right on with developmental stuff.
I just love this age---it of course comes with its own set of challenges, but it's so fun to see her learn so much and just become a little person who is mobile and makes decisions about what she wants to do and where she wants to go.
It shocks me that in just a few months she will be a year old (I'm in denial, of course) and gone will be the days of bottles of breast milk every 3 hours and purees. So much changes so quickly. Can I please press the pause button?
This past month was full of changes---Harper started her new daycare and we absolutely love it (and best of all, so does she!) We absolutely made the right decision transferring and I love her new class, teachers and the overall environment. I love that they have a little more of a structured day and that they do circle time, songs, baby sign language and arts and crafts that we get to take home every week. I can really see she is thriving there and her classroom is so big and bright! Once the weather gets warmer the babies get outdoor time everyday which I know she will love (bring on the sunscreen!)
This month was also the first time I was with Harper alone for an entire week. My husband was traveling for work and to be honest I was a little bit stressed at how I would manage it all alone because we really split caring for Harper equally. Before he left, I think I made it out in my mind to be worse than it was. In fact, it couldn't have gone better. I just adapted our schedule if I needed to. One morning, for example, Harper woke up earlier than usual so I didn't get to pump as soon as my alarm goes off, so I just started off our day like usual and pumped at the kitchen island while I fed her her breakfast in her highchair. It was no big deal, just moving things around a little bit. Candice also came over twice to spend time with Harper and me and help with bath time. Then we had some girl time with dinner and lots of laughs after Harper went to sleep. Harper did really well without her daddy here too. She slept through the night most nights and if she did wake up, I could get her right back to sleep in less than 10 minutes. We did okay, but we're glad he's back!
Here are Harper's 9 month updates:
Weight: Harper weighs 21 lbs, 10 oz (91st percentile), is 27 3/4 inches tall (41st percentile) and her head circumference is in the 51st percentile. She is wearing size 4 diapers.
Health: We've all been sick on and off during Harper's 8th month and poor Harper has had cold after cold (which is to be expected with all of the babies swapping germs at daycare). The pediatrician told me it's normal for a baby to get 10 colds in their first year�we are nearing that number! Towards the end of February, she began to feel much better and she still has a runny nose, but nothing like the congestion and cough she had before. The good news is that our pediatrician says that they're seeing rarely seeing flu and other respiratory illnesses right now so hopefully it's all on the up-and-up.
I also confirmed at our 9 month appointment that Harper has indeed developed a small umbilical hernia. The doctor said it's nothing to worry about. I noticed the change in its appearance a couple of weeks ago during bath time.
I pump anywhere from 29-33 ounces a day now that I've reduced my pumping sessions to four per day. I still haven't decided what I'm going to do with weaning from pumping. I hope to maybe wean down at 11 months and I want to be done completely right at her first birthday because that was my goal and we are traveling soon after and I don't want to have to pump/bring all of my pumping stuff on that trip. I've spent enough time with my pump, thankyouverymuch.
I feel bittersweet about stopping, because it feels so good to know that my body has been nourishing her and making her grow into the amazing little girl that she is... but I'm also ready to have that time back and not having to think about pumping and working my days around my pumping schedule. At this point, I honestly can't even imagine not having to do it. What will I do with all of that free time? Ha. My hope is that I can get back into weight training and build some strength back. I was hesitant to start working out at all (though it's not like I had the time with EP) because a lot of my friends told me it affected their milk supply.
I'm still making all of Harper's food and she absolutely loves eating. Even her teachers told me that they are so impressed with how she eats. We introduced Plum Organics Puffs this month and she also tried her first baby food pouch last weekend (it was this spinach, kiwi and pear one). She loves puffs, but she isn't really into the squeeze pack purees yet. I think since she's only ever had food we make, maybe it tasted weird to her. Who knows.
At her nine month appointment our pediatrician told us to go ahead and try any food except for honey. He said reactions usually happen in minutes and to just watch carefully when she tries a new food.
New foods we've tried recently include cheese, whole grain bread, peaches, honeydew melon, blueberries, watermelon and eggs. We are going to try turkey and Greek yogurt soon. She started to really chew recently and is able to munch on larger pieces of food as well as feed herself. We still make her purees too, but I'm excited to start offering more foods just steamed or in their normal state. For example, today at lunch, I gave her a piece of cucumber off of my plate which is very convenient when we are out and about. I also gave her chunks of watermelon today. She loved them!
I still do feel tired a lot, but I know it's because I don't exercise and sometimes I get less sleep than I should. I try to take short naps on weekends but it's hard because there is always something else I could be doing around the house and usually I'll do that instead of resting.
Emotionally I'm doing pretty well. Six months later, I'm still happy with my decision to stay working full time, though some weeks are harder than others. I find when I leave at the time I plan to, my evening runs much smoother and I'm happier overall. So I try to let go of the guilt and just leave at the time that maximizes my time at home with Harper and helps me avoid the worst traffic.
Work has been really busy and the days go by faster, which is great. I thought the cameras at daycare would make me feel bad every time I checked-in, but to be honest, they've actually given me the reassurance I needed that she is happy, well taken-care of and getting lots of time to explore and learn. It's still hard being away from her all day and thinking of the time we won't get back together, but I also remind myself that by working, we are giving her the best life that we can and saving for her future.
Clothes: I recently packed away a bunch of Harper's clothes�thats was emotional. Harper is wearing some 6-12 month stuff (Baby Gap onesies and leggings and some sweaters/zip ups) but I'm only buying 12-18 now since she's starting to grow out of most 6-12 stuff. I've also purchased a few 18-24 items. I figure she can wear them longer/grow into them. You can see recent items I bought for Harper here.
I also confirmed at our 9 month appointment that Harper has indeed developed a small umbilical hernia. The doctor said it's nothing to worry about. I noticed the change in its appearance a couple of weeks ago during bath time.
Sleep: Well halleluja! Harper has been much more consistent with her sleep this past month. She goes to sleep between 6:45-7 p.m. and most mornings she wakes up between 6-6:30 a.m. On the rare occassion she will wake up at 5 or 5:30 OR sleep until 7, but that's pretty few and far between. Rarely, she will wake up in the middle of the night. Sometimes she self-soothes with her pacifier and goes back to sleep and sometimes we will rock her for a few minutes. We are hoping her good sleeping sticks around�it helps when we can get more rest!
Social: Other than her friends at daycare, we haven't done much this past month. Harper was usually sick and so were we, so we didn't get out much. We did have a wonderful breakfast date with Megan and Olivia (check out her blog here) and we will get together again soon!
Diet: I am still exclusively pumping for Harper (read more about my pumping story here). Harper still drinks about 24-30 oz of breast milk a day in addition to her solids. This past week was the first time I noticed that she sometimes dropped a feed during the day. I think we are so used to feeding her breast milk every 3 hours that I'm listening to her cues instead. She's also eating more solids so that may be affecting how much breast milk she takes�though she's not eating significantly less so I am not worried (and she very clearly is a chunk and gaining great!)
I pump anywhere from 29-33 ounces a day now that I've reduced my pumping sessions to four per day. I still haven't decided what I'm going to do with weaning from pumping. I hope to maybe wean down at 11 months and I want to be done completely right at her first birthday because that was my goal and we are traveling soon after and I don't want to have to pump/bring all of my pumping stuff on that trip. I've spent enough time with my pump, thankyouverymuch.
I feel bittersweet about stopping, because it feels so good to know that my body has been nourishing her and making her grow into the amazing little girl that she is... but I'm also ready to have that time back and not having to think about pumping and working my days around my pumping schedule. At this point, I honestly can't even imagine not having to do it. What will I do with all of that free time? Ha. My hope is that I can get back into weight training and build some strength back. I was hesitant to start working out at all (though it's not like I had the time with EP) because a lot of my friends told me it affected their milk supply.
I'm still making all of Harper's food and she absolutely loves eating. Even her teachers told me that they are so impressed with how she eats. We introduced Plum Organics Puffs this month and she also tried her first baby food pouch last weekend (it was this spinach, kiwi and pear one). She loves puffs, but she isn't really into the squeeze pack purees yet. I think since she's only ever had food we make, maybe it tasted weird to her. Who knows.
At her nine month appointment our pediatrician told us to go ahead and try any food except for honey. He said reactions usually happen in minutes and to just watch carefully when she tries a new food.
New foods we've tried recently include cheese, whole grain bread, peaches, honeydew melon, blueberries, watermelon and eggs. We are going to try turkey and Greek yogurt soon. She started to really chew recently and is able to munch on larger pieces of food as well as feed herself. We still make her purees too, but I'm excited to start offering more foods just steamed or in their normal state. For example, today at lunch, I gave her a piece of cucumber off of my plate which is very convenient when we are out and about. I also gave her chunks of watermelon today. She loved them!
Likes: Going everywhere! She is crawling, climbing, standing, and dancing all over the place. HARPS ON THE GO! She also loves her Jellycat Panda Bear that she got for Christmas. We say "where's panda?" and she crawls to him and hugs him. It is too adorable for words. She also loves anything that can make music. She will bang cups together or other toys that rattle and sway side to side "dancing" as she makes music. She loves to eat, her paci and lately she has been very attached to yours truly :)
Postpartum: I have been pretty sick for the past month but I've been feeling better for the last week or so. Thank God for antibiotics.
Emotionally I'm doing pretty well. Six months later, I'm still happy with my decision to stay working full time, though some weeks are harder than others. I find when I leave at the time I plan to, my evening runs much smoother and I'm happier overall. So I try to let go of the guilt and just leave at the time that maximizes my time at home with Harper and helps me avoid the worst traffic.
Work has been really busy and the days go by faster, which is great. I thought the cameras at daycare would make me feel bad every time I checked-in, but to be honest, they've actually given me the reassurance I needed that she is happy, well taken-care of and getting lots of time to explore and learn. It's still hard being away from her all day and thinking of the time we won't get back together, but I also remind myself that by working, we are giving her the best life that we can and saving for her future.
Baby Gear Love: I recently reviewed our Boon Flair highchair, which we love. We also love these OXO Tot food storage containers for taking her solids to daycare. We also installed the Clek Foonf in my SUV recently and I love it. More to come on that! We also love our Prince Lionhart bathtub. It helps keep her safe and contained in her bathtub and makes bathtime easier. Plus it doesn't contain Bisphenol-a (BPA), PVC, phthalates, heavy metals or other harmful materials. It also folds down (great if you have a smaller space).
Crying: Harper has now mastered the "I want to do/see/hold this" and if I can't, I'm going to cry very dramatically cry. It breaks my heart when she cries, but most of the time it's very short-lived (thankfully). We try to practice redirection so that even though she can't chew on the leg of the dining chair, she can chew on Sophie. Pretty good compromise, right? We don't want to limit her exploration so we do a lot of supervised exploration and redirect when necessary to teach her. It's a full time job, folks! Thank goodness her classroom at daycare is completely baby proofed and the babies can go wherever they want. It gets it out of her system a little...I think that's one of the reasons she loves it there.
Milestones: Crawling, standing with support, walking along her crib and the couch, dancing, pulling up on everything, clapping, starting to wave (sort of, she's getting there), sometimes points to things, dances.
Thank you for reading!
Harper's Dress-Baby Gap (buy it here)
Harper's Headband- ? Willow Crowns
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