9 Months Old!

My little pumpkin is 9 months old today! I am spending a lot of time laughing at Miss Elyse lately. She is revealing some very interesting parts of her personality, and I'm starting to wonder what these next months will be like! We definitely have a little chatter-box on our hands. She still gets kind of intimidated when "strangers" are around, but when it's quiet, you should hear her go! She is saying "da-da" and "ya-ya" very often, and she peppers lots of her noises with squeals that make her face all red. She is now "growling" some, which is kind of frightening, but thankfully, she's usually happy when she's making that noise. She is becoming more interested in her toys, and even has a few favorites. She's still addicted to the "Three Little Kittens" story, but she is broadening her horizons and tolerating some other fun books. If it was possible, she is an even bigger fan of Daddy these days, and she likes to seek him out in every room. If that doesn't melt my heart...! It took almost a week of practice, but she is now officially eating finger foods. Welcome to the world of Cheerios! She's rolling over, and scoots all over her crib, but seems to reserve her movement for the crib. She's pulled herself up on her knees a couple of times, but looks a little overwhelmed once she gets there! :) As she grows, it's sad to watch the baby-ness slip away, but she'll always be my little girlie. Here are some of my traditional fun's and not-so-fun's for this month:

fun's:

* Elyse loves to clap these days - I LOVE it!
* I love watching her chew with her two teeth :) A true talent...
* She passes food from her right hand to her left before placing it in her mouth...?
* She giggles whenever we whistle.
* Sitting in the front of a shopping cart is SO fun.
* CHUBBY, CHUBBY arms and legs!
* I think she's discovered 200 new facial expressions this month, each of which cracks me up!
* I love discovering what corner of the crib she'll be hiding in when I get her up from a nap :)
* She really enjoys dancing to music. Sometimes she bops so hard, she looks a little dizzy.
* For some reason, other babies really make her laugh.
* She now waits for me to blow her a kiss when I put her down for a nap...
* Baby food is much easier to make these days.

not-so-fun's:

* She is having a rough time learning the sign for "please," and the whining is my least favorite noise these days.
* More food = more _____.
* She is definitely getting more frustrated that she's not moving much, but she obviously doesn't really care :)
* I've officially entered the stage of the "food-littered-floor." I'm already sick of my broom!
* She is really abusing the whole poochy-lip thing.
* It's hitting me that she's only 3 months away from turning 1!