The girls are 9 months old!!! That is only THREE months away from TURNING ONE. Unbelievable.
The girls had their nine month check up with Dr. Trumbull a couple of days ago so I actually have their updated weights! Hadley Kate is 18lbs 5oz., and Ava James was 15lbs 10oz. Both girls are 27 inches tall and growing just as Dr. Trumbull would like for them to. We (Dr. Trumbull) believe that Hadley might have a slight heart murmur, but nothing significant enough to need further testing or monitoring. I (Katie) also had a heart murmur when I was about the same age that I eventually grew out of. Dr. Trumbull was pleased with their diet and schedule. Both girls eat three meals a day now, each followed by formula. They also have a "snack bottle" mid-afternoon. We are slowing fazing the bottles out by putting their formula (and water) in sippy cups. Ava James has taken to her sippy cup like a pro. Hadley is still unsure and would prefer a bottle. The girls have also done away with one of their naps. Instead of taking naps at 8:30am, 12:30pm, and 4:00pm, they now only take two naps at 9:00am and 1:00pm. They normally sleep for about an hour and a half for each nap. While we were at the doctor, both girls had their fingers pricked to check for iron deficiency. Ava James was quite upset, but Hadley didn't even cry! She watched the nurse the entire time and never shed a tear. Both girls had excellent blood counts and no sign of iron deficiency. Dr. Trumbull was also excited about the girls crawling and ability to walk with the help of a walker. He said that the girls are actually "advanced" when it comes to mobility.
The girls seem to have grown up more in the past month then they have anytime in the past. The girls are now outgrowing all of their 9 month clothes- especially Hadley! Also, both girls are ALL OVER THE PLACE. They are both extremely fast crawlers- especially Ava James. Her Daddy is a fast runner, so obviously she takes after him. Both girls can pull up on furniture, child gates, toys, and even each other. They can stand completely on their own for a few seconds before losing their balance. They like to "test the waters" by pulling up on furniture and then letting go. Like I mentioned before, both girls can walk with the assistance of a walker. Hadley is more interested in walking than Ava James. I think Ava James would be more interested in walking if she wasn't such a fast crawler!
The girls continue to become closer to one another, love spending time with each other, and have even began playing with each other. With both girls crawling, they have the ability to split ways and go in separate directions. Thank goodness they don't! They go every where together. If we take the girls into separate rooms they normally become very upset. They often sit on each other (not really sure why) and never seem to mind being sat on. You can tell they love each other and generally enjoy each others company. Ava James LOVES to give her sister kisses (see picture below)!
The girls are starting to learn how to share! The girls never get upset when their sister steals their toy or pacifier, but I have a feeling that is short lived. We have been working on NOT stealing/snatching toys and pacifiers from each other. I can tell this will be an ongoing lesson for many years!
We rearranged the girl's room this past month by moving their cribs. Their cribs were directly beside each other. Nap time had become impossible with the cribs side by side. The girls were standing in their cribs (which resulted in lowering their cribs), talking and laughing at one another, and even throwing pacifiers at each other. If one girl woke up before her sister, she would stand at the end of her crib and wake her sister up. Sometimes they would even throw pacifiers at one another to wake each other up. So needless to say, we were forced to move Hadley's crib to a separate wall and away from Ava James' crib.
The girls had their first Fourth of July over the past month. We spent several days at the girls grandparent's house (Nonnie & Poppa's) on Lake Jordan. The girls Uncle Jason, Aunt Meredith, and cousin Harper were also there.
(The girls with cousin Harper)
Although we had big plans to get the girls on the boat, go swimming, and generally spend a lot of time outside, Mother Nature had other plans. Unfortunately it rained the ENTIRE TIME. Therefore we spent the majority of our time inside. The girls had a lot of fun with their cousin Harper, so it was still a good holiday! Another big event over the past month was the girls first time spending the night away from home without Mama and Daddy! Although we love our girls, Mama and Daddy needed some rest and relaxation. The girls spent three days (two nights) at their Nonnie & Poppa's while we were in Orange Beach, Alabama. Although Ava James had one rough night, overall the girls did very well! Or maybe I should their Nonnie and Poppa did very well? Either way, everyone had fun! The girls were spoiled by their Nonnie and Poppa and we were able to go to a Dave Matthews Band concert and spend some time on the beach. The girls were even treated to a concert by their Poppa! Their Poppa played the guitar for them and even let them bang on the guitar strings. Hadley was a little more cautious, where as Ava James danced along to the music.
Here is some more about the girls at nine months...
Hadley Kate is still our active girl. She is into EVERYTHING. Hadley especially loves to do all the things that Mama has told her not to. She has learned the meaning of "No, No," and likes to test just how far her Mama will let her go. She most often gets told "No, No" because she is trying to pull paper out the trash can, pushing on the fire place screen, stealing a toy from her sister, or pulling on house plants. I often hear giggles right before Hadley does something that she knows she is not supposed to. Hadley also LOVES to climb. We built Bailey (the dog) stairs to get on the bed- Hadley LOVES to crawl all the way up them! She is such a good climber that she can climb the stairs all by herself (although we don't let her). Hadley's vocabulary has grown over the past month. She can now say "Da Da." "Ma Ma," and even "AJ." We have heard her call her sister several times. Hadley is very interested in walking and prefers to stand in opposition to sitting. She can walk very easily with her walker, but would rather try to walk on her own. She can stand completely on her own for short periods of time. I believe she will walk very soon! Hadley is still a good eater and doesn't seem to be picky at all. We are having a harder time weaning her off of her bottle, but she is slowing but surely warming up to her sippy cup. Possibly Hadley's biggest accomplishment this past month (not sure if you really call this an accomplishment, but you get the point) is that she has a tooth!!! One of her bottom teeth came in while Rusty and I were in Orange Beach. We had been seeing it under gums for weeks, and she had definitely been fussier than in the past, so it was no big surprise when it popped through one night while she was sleeping. It won't be must longer until her second tooth comes in. We can see it under her gums as well. Hadley loves to play peak-a-boo and thinks its hilarious if you throw a blanket or burp cloth over her head. She has also began to patty cake! Hadley rarely meets a stranger, but will get upset if stranger gets too close. She greets everyone with a smile :) Hadley is definitely a Mama's girl and is more sensitive than you would think. She gets her feelings hurt easily, but is quick to forgive. Hadley is our tough girl. As I mentioned before, she didn't even flinch while getting her finger pricked at the doctor. She very rarely cries if she bonks her head or falls while standing or trying to walk. If she does cry, we know she is really hurt!
Ava James continues to come out of her shell. She is still our sweet, snugly girl, but she has developed quite the mischievous side. It is still a sweet mischievous side though. She loves to steal her sister's pacifier (even if she is crying at the time), toys, and even bottle/sippy cup. However, she is still quick to her give her sister kisses on the forehead or get upset if her sister gets upset. She is so sweet that she even gives baby dolls kisses! Ava James has began to wave. She will randomly wave at people (especially Rusty and I) and even waves at people on the TV. AJ still loves to babble. She hasn't spoken any new words since last month, but I think that is mostly because she has been too busy with crawling. She still babbles a lot and loves to "sing." If you blow a raspberry, she will copy you and make a game of it. She loves to play peak-a-boo but would rather "feed" you her toys and pacifiers. Ava James also dances quite regularly. If she hears music, she will flap her arms or sway her hips if she is standing. Like her sister, Ava James has also began to learn the meaning of "No, No." Normally we only have to tell AJ "No, No" once before she is on to something new. Ava James has developed an obsession with Bailey's dog crate. We aren't really sure why, but she loves to sit next to the crate, babble, and sometimes try to crawl inside. I have a feeling it won't be much longer until she tries to evict Bailey. Ava James doesn't have any teeth yet, but she is certainly teething. Out of the two girls, Ava James is most definitely our more accident prone child. She seems to get herself into the worst positions which normally ends in a bonked head. AJ will even run into walls or furniture while "turbo crawling" through the living room. It is must harder to gauge how "hurt" Ava James is sometimes since she is such a sensitive baby.
As always, I'm sure I have missed a thousand things. They grow and develop so much every week (even every day) that it is sometimes hard to keep up with everything.
They are still our miracle babies and our constant reminders of how mighty our God is. They will never know how much we love them. I never understood how much my parents loved me until they were born! Its incredible!
