Peyton Eve: Nine Months

Nine Months, ya'll. 40 weeks. My baby has been out in the world for as long as she grew inside me and I can't even believe it. Except I can. Because what was life like before she was here, anyways?

Peyton had her 9 month check up at the Pediatrician's this morning. She is currently wearing 6-12 month clothes, meaning she can fit into anything from 6 month through 12 month depending on the fit and company. We just upgraded her to size 3 diapers too in the hopes that she would stop wetting the sheets during her 12 hour sleep at night (and blowing out her diaper in her car seat...yes this is still a thing.)

Peyton at NINE months:

Weight: 17 lbs. 2 oz. (29th percentile)

Birth: 6 lbs. 10 oz.

Height: 28 inches (63rd percentile)

Birth: 19 inches 

Head: 17.75 inches (82nd percentile) 

Birth: 13.25 inches 

Dr. Strauss thinks Peyton is growing and developing well which is such a relief for this mama! P only got one shot this morning (and a little prick in the finger) and she totally handled them like a champ. So not her mother's daughter in that regard! 

Peyton Loves:

Crawling

Pulling herself up on everything

Feeding herself

Pretty much anything she can do independently

Swinging

Being outside

Baby Einstein videos 

The water table 

Peyton Hates: 

Red Meat

Tomato-based baby foods

Doing the same thing for an extended period of time 

Being held by strangers 

What's New this Month:

1. Peyton got her two top teeth this month! They're just starting to pop through and not at the same time so she has a funky snaggletooth thing going on, but it's just adorable! She has loved having these top teeth though and pretty much only wants to eat when the food is chopped up and put on her high chair tray for her to grab and chew herself. Purees are definitely becoming a thing of the past! Also, as of yesterday, a fifth tooth is popping through just to the left of her two top teeth! 

2. One night early in the month, P woke up around 4 a.m. and was completely inconsolable. I tried to nurse her but she wasn't having it. After two hours of comforting her, we gave her some infant Tylenol and rocked her back to sleep. That morning when she woke up, I tried to nurse her like I always do, but again, she wasn't having it. Ever since then, she has refused to breastfeed and only drinks her milk out of a bottle. I'm not sure if she was having teething pain that caused her to go on a nursing strike or if she was just over it, but whatever the reason, we are officially done breastfeeding. I now pump twice a day, but am in the long process of weening myself down.

3. We took P to the beach this month for the second time. The first time we took her, she was only 2 months old and still pretty much slept through the entire thing. This time, however, was much different! She loved playing in the sand, watching the waves come in, and splashing around in her own beachfront kiddy pool! I'm not surprised though because this girl LOVES anything outdoor activity.

4. Purees are totally a thing of the past these days. This girl wants nothing to do with food unless it's something she can grab and feed to herself. I'm starting to try to make dinners for Ryan and myself that Peyton can eat parts of too to experiment with different foods for her and to cut down on prep work in the kitchen. So far, she likes pretty much everything except my spaghetti and meatballs. Which is like one of the most time consuming things I make. Why do I even try?! 

5. P loves to wave, high-five, smile with a scrunched nose and squinty eyes, and talk loudly. Very loudly. Her personality is so huge and she is always the center of everyone's attention wherever we go! We're working on expanding her little bag of tricks though so be on the lookout for kiss blowing and clapping next month!

Peyton, you are 9 months old!! How did that happen?! I feel like I blink and you're another month older. Every morning, I feel like you wake up with a new skill. We love watching you grow and learn new things each month. You're the silliest, sweetest little girl I know and we're so lucky to call you ours. We love you, P! 

Nine Month Photo Dump: 

Seagrove Beach 2016

I feel like it's been a LIFETIME since our last vacation. We were supposed to travel to Boston in April to visit our friends (that we left behind ONE year ago today), but with the timing of our first house purchase, it just didn't work out. Now that we're getting settled into our first home, we can finally start participating in family vacations again! So far for the remainder of the year we have trips to Miami (just Peyton and me) for Memorial Day, Boston in June, Indiana in July, and Boston again in Sept/Oct. 

Now, backing up a little bit... 

This past Friday after work, Ryan, Peyton, and I loaded up the car and made the 6 hour drive down to Seagrove Beach, FL for a few days of fun in the sun with the Smith/Owens clan! Peyton went to the beach for the first time back in October, but she has clearly changed SO much since then, so it was super exciting to watch her take in the ocean and the sand for pretty much the first time all over again! 

How P spent her first beach trip. 

The weather was perfect the entire time we were there. On our first full day, we spent a couple hours on the beach before showering up and heading to Grayton Beer Brewery to celebrate Brad's birthday! Brandon and Rachel had a covered inflatable baby pool that Peyton enjoyed immensely! So much so that I actually bought one to take to Miami in a few weeks! That girl beaches in style! 

Peyton wishing Pop a happy birthday!!

After the brewery, we went to dinner down the street then back to our condo to put the girls to bed and play Cards Against Humanity. This game has yet to disappoint and we spent most of the night trying to stifle our laughter as much as possible so as not to wake the babes. I won't go into detail as to the reason for our laughter though. You're welcome.

Day two at the beach was Mother's Day and I feel totally spoiled getting to spend my first Mother's Day at the beach with my little family! Peyton spoiled me with a new pair of Rainbow's and a framed picture of her and her dada! Thanks, little girl!

Peyton loved the sand. I was shocked because my only experience with babies and sand is from my niece Leah, who's hell is the beach pretty much. P took her sand burial like a champ though, and I'm pretty sure tried to eat her way out of the hole. Sand is not for eating, sweetheart!

For Mother's Day dinner, the group made a reservation at the 30A cafe, where we got BOGO entrees! After dinner, we drove down to Seaside for some family pictures on the beach. Before coming on this trip, Rachel and I researched photographers in the area to see if we could book one for a night on the beach. However, we couldn't find a single photographer that seemed to be reasonably priced, so we took it upon ourselves to get some good family pictures. I'm so glad we didn't pay anyone, because I think our pictures turned out just as good!

Before this next picture, there were about 50 pictures of Leah screaming and crying that I chose to omit. I'm telling you...sand is not her friend, ya'll! Eventually we were able to coax a smile out of her though (chocolate is a powerful tool) and got a couple sweet mom and daughter pictures!

On our last full day, we spent the whole day on the beach all the way through dinner time and a beautiful sunset! Susan got steamed shrimp from Goatfeathers and we feasted, hanging out on the beach until it was dark outside.

Monday night, the old folks left as we were putting the girls to bed since everyone was getting up early for a fishing excursion the next morning. Brandon, Rachel, Ryan, and I stayed up a little bit later playing Rummy 500 and Spades before calling it a night.

We had a truly wonderful, yet way too short, time at the beach this spring! Thank you Smith family for making it happen and including the three of us!