Miss Zoey at Nine Months

Can anyone see this smile and not smile right back?! She is already cheezing-it-up for the camera at 9 months! So, Miss Zoey has been out of the womb as long as she was in it now. She was SO, SO active in there-- I was worried that she would be a handful to keep up with, but the opposite has been true. She has been pretty laid back and as easy as babies come, as far as I can tell. 

 We finally decided to take down her swing that she spent a huge portion of her first few months in. I love her expression in this picture, like she was sad that we were packing away her old, dear friend! She put a lot of miles on that thing. We spent over $30 in batteries over those 5ish months she used it! I let her nap in it and fall asleep in it all the time until she was 4 or 5 months. I was too scared to do that with Zach because all the baby sleep books said that they'd never be able to fall asleep in their own beds, etc. PHOOEY! I regret so many things with Zach--I thought I was doing everything right according to the books, but it made us both pretty miserable those first few months. 

 Lately she's been waking up like this, with both legs on one side of her PJs. Sometimes she screams about it, sometimes not. I can imagine it would cramp up her little legs to have them both stuck in the same hole! Speaking of which, Zach has woken up crying a few times this month complaining that his feet hurt. I would rub them and sometimes get him some milk and/or Tylenol if he was up for long. We chalked it up to growing pains. The other night he awakened especially distraught. Corey took him potty and he limped all the way there and back and complained of foot pain. We were a little worried and gave him a dose of Tylenol. Reflecting on it later, we both realized his feet were most likely just numb from sleeping on them wrong. Glad it took (almost) two doctors to figure that one out!! Good thing Tylenol is so mild!

 Did I mention I adore ruffle bums?!

 After rolling around like a pro for 5-6 weeks, she finally got up on all fours. Within days (at 8.5 months old) she was crawling, and within a couple weeks she is now as fast as lightning-- and makes a beeline for the bathtub every chance she gets. It's just the right height for her to pull herself up to, and she loves it!

 Zoey's favorite place to roll or crawl has been under the coffee table. It's her own little hideout!

 She kind of looks like she just got her wisdom teeth out here, but she's actually just getting her bottom two in, and the top four are on their way. I wondered if she'd be a crazy teether like Zach, who got his first tooth in at 11 months, and they all erupted in the "wrong" order. He only barely got his last two a few months ago, about a year late!

 Zoey is finally sporting a more serious look after all her giant smiles!
So my sister, Missy, sent Zoey this DARLING hat. I cannot get over how sweet it is, and the fact that my sister crocheted it makes it all the more precious! 

 I had to have these boots for her last Christmas. I vacillated about it at first because they are size 3-6 months, and I knew she would be 9-12 months old during the winter months, but ended up having my sweet sister-in-law grab them. It turns out that Zoey's feet are exceptionally small--she is still wearing size 3-6 month in every brand--so she fits them during the right season after all!

 Ummmm....cute! Now I just need to get her some skinny jeans to wear them with! Too bad these don't stay on her feet for long. I would love to find more shoes that stay on baby feet. Robeez are good, but so expensive. 

 Missy made a hat for me too. LOVE!!!!!

 Zoey adores Zach, and has fun playing in "tents" with us/him. She's always chasing after him! Zach is so sweet with her (except when he gets curious and tries things like putting a pipe-cleaner into her mouth!), and has taken to calling her "Zoe-Zoe" most of the time. Corey and I sometimes call her that or "Zoe-bug," "Zoey-girl," "Sweet girl," and others. Sometimes Zach puts a few together and calls her "Zoe-Zoe-bug!"

 She's always sticking random stuff in her mouth! I have vacuumed more this month than I have in the last year, probably! I am seriously terrified of her finding something and choking to death, as we had some family friends years ago that had that tragedy happen. Paranoid, I know, but at least it's motivating me to keep the house cleaner!

 Um...cute bum!

I absolutely adore this baby girl. She is honestly the sweetest, most cheerful, smiley, and loving baby I can imagine! 

 Those brilliant blue eyes and sweet strawberry curls melt my heart!

 As soon as she could crawl, she was immediately pulling herself up to things--namely, the coffee table. She often stands on her tippie-toes, tiny dancer!

 Zoey's hair is officially long enough for pigtails! She is crying because she wants to be crawling and eating leaves and I am making her hold still for the photo. She is always on the go now! The pigtails made her look like too much of a big girl for me, so I am going to hold off for awhile, I think!

The last milestone for this month? She started saying "Mama!" 

She's been saying "Dada" for a few months now. I swear he's been bribing her with treats when I am not looking! She also started reaching for me about a month ago, which officially makes her a mama's girl, right? ;) Loving this precious Zoey-girl!!