I always say every stage is my favorite. I think the truth is, that it really is! Every single month I absolutely love everything about Rosy, how she has changed, and her adorable little personality that just shows itself more and more as she grows.
Every stage really is the best.
That being said, 9 months is my favorite.
There are so many memories that I will treasure forever about this age, but there is definitely one that just tops them all!
We attend the early service at church and sit in the balcony area so that Rosy can stay with us for that hour (she goes to the nursery for the Sunday School hour). This is becoming more and more of a feat every week as Rosy is a loud little girl! Hearing all of the music at the beginning of the service really just gets her warmed up for her own solo!
So, we are always focused on trying to keep her (relatively) quiet during the sermon. One Sunday when she was 9 months old, I put her pacifier in her mouth. She has lost all interest in the pacifier outside of sleeping, so I should have known that wasn’t really going to work.
Before I could even realize what was happening, she had pulled the paci out of her mouth and thrown it with super human baby strength over the banister about 6 feet in front of me!
This was all during the closing prayer.
Some poor person below was on the receiving end of the flying pacifier and was probably pretty shocked!
Remember what I said about personalities showing up even more around 9 months. Rosy was just trying to be heard and a little pacifier was sure not going to stand in her way.
Everyday is an adventure with our Rosy girl, and I can’t wait to tell her all of these stories someday.
Speaking of memories, there is something that I’m so glad I have done now that we are approaching the end of her first year.
I have kept a journal of entries Clay and I have made to Rosy entailing all of the things that have happened during her life so far! It’s not anything fancy, just a small leather notebook.
Anytime we have something that happened that we think “I want to remember this!” we write it down. It’s been so special to read back the memories from the end of my pregnancy all the way through stories about diaper blowouts in unfortunate places.
It’s little ways of being intentional that I’m finding are the most meaningful to me in motherhood. Nothing fancy or elaborate, just intentionality.
There were a few significant changes that happened at nine months.
1. She started eating a lot more food!
Before, Rosy would eat just a little bit and be content. Around this time, she wanted to eat a lot more!
This was fun, because instead of just trying one new food at a meal, she could try lot’s of things! Chickpeas became a favorite of hers, as well as spinach, cheese and eggs.
2. Pulling up and getting around was not a big deal anymore.
This is the age where I started having to watch her like a hawk! She can get around like nobody’s business and started getting into everything.
A favorite activity of hers … standing in the refrigerator door pulling out everything in the bottom shelves! Whatever works, ha!
3. We cut out one of her day nursing sessions.
I really started to feel the pressure of the time to wean approaching at 9 months. To hopefully make this transition a little bit easier, we cut one of her day feedings out at 9 months.
She really didn’t notice very much, and instead I would just offer a snack if she seemed to be hungry.
4. She seems to have a new trick to show off everyday!
Her development just skyrocketed at this age. It seems like every single day she had a new skill.
She started clapping for herself, which is so adorable! Waving and saying bye bye became a daily ritual, and she started saying new words and sounds on the daily.
There were also some really quirky skills like licking the window when she would stand in it and sucking in air really quickly to make a sound that would make my heart stop!
Basically, a ton happened for Rosy girl at nine months, and it was so much fun to watch it all happen.
We stick really closely to our schedule all of the time. She is not a flexible baby and keeping her on a routine helps her to be happier and sleep better at night. Which means mom and dad are happier and sleep better too!
Here is the schedule we kept for our nine month old.
- 7-7:30AM – Wake up and nurse
- 8AM – Breakfast of oatmeal and applesauce
- 9AM – Nap #1
- 11AM – Nurse
- 12PM – Lunch (this varied everyday but a favorite of hers was a scrambled egg with spinach along with blueberries)
- 1PM – Nap #2
- 3PM – Nurse
- 5PM – Supper (she just ate whatever we were eating)
- 6:45PM – Bath, story and prayers
- 7PM – Bedtime
*Sometimes she would wake around 4AM to nurse and then go right back to sleep.
Having a baby that is nine months old was so much fun. Watching her grow and develop is one of my favorite things in the world. I hope this was helpful to you!
If you’re interested in my Newborn, 4 Month, or 6 Month schedules check out these posts!
https://thecypresstable.com/how-to-survive-life-with-a-newborn/