9 months old!!!

Is this really happening? Our little boy is already 9 months?! That means only 3 months until his big first birthday! That's exciting but sad thinking he's actually growing up so fast. Nowadays, it seems as though he discovers a new trick each day. There's no relaxing at our house unless Stryker is sleeping!

1. crawling up the stairs: He knows where his room is upstairs & will climb both flights as fast as he can to get to all his toys.






2. discovered power outlets: Oh yes, we spent the weekend baby-proofing the house with outlet covers. Never realized how many outlets we have in our home until I had to cover them all!






3. still loves bath time: If Stryker is playing in his room & hears the bath water running, he'll make a bee line crawling for the bathtub. It's hilarious when he started pulling up on the tub & hiked his leg trying to figure out how he could climb into the tub.






4. learning the word "no": This was a new experience that he is not fond of. The first time I said "no", he sat back on his bottom & stared at me with his little bottom lip poked out. How pitiful :( Now that he's crawling around & discovering everything in sight, we have to use the word "no" several times a day.






5. hates to sleep during the day: Stryker will now talk (well, babble), scream, arch his back, rub his eyes, etc in order to keep himself awake.






6. doesn't want to be in crib if awake: Now that he can pull up, he'll stand in his crib & then cry for us to come get him.






7. loves to eat real food: Stryker is not a picky eater. Thank goodness. He use to eat whenever, but now wants to eat food when we're eating. Guess he thinks that he'll miss out on something yummy if we feed him before.






8. loves to be outside: Outside is the most relaxing place for Stryker. He could be having a fit or just restless but the minute we take him outside, he calms down. Amazing! We have enjoyed playing on the blanket in the yard (by the way, he doesn't like being put on his tummy in the grass - he will keep one hand up off the ground; not sure but maybe something to do with the texture), strolling, swinging in his swing or on our front porch swing.






9. saying "momma" & "dadda": He doesn't call our names on a regular basis. Guess he thinks if does something, then he doesn't need to do it again for us!

On Tuesday (November 16th), we spent the late afternoon & night in Children's after hours clinic. Stryker developed a cough Monday afternoon with a runny nose & watery eyes Tuesday morning. It got worse as the day progressed with Stryker spitting up after every bottle or eating food. He was picked up from daycare early & taken straight to the after hours clinic for an appointment at 6:30pm. Poor guy. You could just tell by looking into his little eyes that he felt horrible. Even feeling this bad, he still tried to give you a smile. Priceless. Stryker stayed clamly in my arms while Logan registered him. The nurse took his temperature (yes unfortunately, it was a rectal temp) which was a 100.4. This was shocking to us b/c it was 98.2 rectally at 12:30pm. His temperature had increased in this short amount of time despite the Advil that he had taken. The doctor came in to examine him. She was very nice & Stryker enjoyed grabbing all of her instruments (stethoscope, light, etc). She ordered a chest x-ray which Stryker hated to be held down. I am sure that Logan & I hated it more since we were the ones who held him down. The x-ray was normal. The nurse suctioned his nose out & gave us a prescription for an antibiotic. The doctor informed us to take the medicine twice a day for 10 days & signs to watch out for if an ear infection develops.

The next day, Stryker had his 9 month check-up. Logan & Stryker's grandmomma took him to his appointment. It was a good feeling to know that he would be examined again since he has been so sick. During this visit, they checked his height, weight, vision, iron level, & gave him a flu shot. He weighed 18 lbs (25th percentile) & 28 1/2 in long (55th percentile). His vision is normal as well as his iron level. Baby's flu shots are given in 2 different doses; therefore, his next flu shot will be given after December 17th. Almost forgot to mention the best part about this visit...Stryker said "dadda" for the first time! Hate I missed it b/c I was working, but Logan caught it on video & sent me the clip on my phone.