10 Months Old!

Sweet Iyla Grace, today you are 10 months old! Double digits- such a big girl. Your Papa and I are delighting in every.single.moment with you.

Here are your 10 month updates!

How old?
10 months today

How big?
No official doctor's appointments again until your 1st birthday (FIRST BIRTHDAY!!)- but I did unofficially step on the scale with you this morning. It looks like you are just about 15.5 pounds!

Your photos with Sam today were hilarious- it was pretty much a game of you continually tackling him until he had enough and moved, then me putting you down next to him again, then tackle, move, etc. Here are some shots of the mayhem:

Sleep?
I am happy to say that sleeping through the night is now more the norm and not the exception! You typically go down around 7:15pm and will often stay down until 6:30-7:30.

Naps are still 2x/day- the first one about 2 hours after you wake, for 30-90 minutes- then another sometime around 1-2pm for about the same time.

You love playing peek-a-boo with me after your nap!

Food?
This month you made huge improvements with eating! You now enjoy sampling little bits of whatever we are having... steak, salmon, brussels sprouts, muffins- you name it. You have also figured out how to suck the food out of your food pouches, which makes it so much easier to feed you! You prefer having 2 food pouches to choose from at a time. You will run your little hands over each pouch, examining the colors & writing, stick a finger into each opening before sampling one... then the other... then the original one again. So cute! Your favorite right now is a spinach, pea, & pear blend.

You have been enjoying going out to eat with us again- yay! You love to watch all the people around you and take in the lights & activity in each restaurant. I pack a couple of food pouches and lots of toys, and we let you sample a little of whatever we are eating.

Smiles for Papa after dinner at 2nd Bar & Kitchen

Milestones:
*Mastering chewing and swallowing whole foods was a big one this month!

*Just this past Saturday (September 8th)- you figured out how to push yourself up to sit from lying down. Whole new world! Papa found you like this after your morning nap:

You then proceeded to pull up to stand on the crib railing! We promptly lowered the crib- having to go from the highest to the lowest setting in one fell swoop. You certainly don't do things halfway.

We also had some fun Tuesday night at 2:30am when you awoke calling for me. I found you sitting up in your crib, paci thrown on the floor, with your sound machine also on the floor! You had reached out and pulled it down from the nightstand beside your crib. I quickly removed both lamps AND the sound machine from the nightstands, lest you decide to rearrange your room any further.

Watching the world from a new height and wondering what new shenanigans you might get into

This is now what nap time looks like

*You are getting into a 'crawl' position much more often- but instead of crawling you push yourself up to sit on your bottom. You definitely get around slowly but surely! You will start seated, roll forward to your belly, then either roll to the side or push yourself backwards before sitting up again.

Assuming the crawl position

Pushing up to sit

You love when I sing "round and round and round she goes!" as you turn in complete circles while seated

*You are cruising more and more. I've set up a few obstacle courses in your playroom with objects that are cruising height so you can practice moving from one place to the next. You are getting better and better at it!

New-to-us art easel, scored at a Consignment sale. Perfect cruising height!

*You wave hello and goodbye! Your favorite person to wave to is your own reflection in the mirror.

*You are just starting to experiment with signing back to us. You can show me the sign for "more" when we are eating, and we've been working on "book." I have also noticed you pant a little when we see pictures of dogs, and sniff when I *think* you are telling me your have to go potty (I've put you on the potty after you sniff, and I'd say 2 out of 3 times you go!)

*Your instinct to pull up on any and everything is STRONG... your Papa and I still wonder if you may walk before you crawl:

Potty time?

You go on your potty pretty much every morning- usually both #1 and #2. We try to sit you on there before and after every nap and before bed. You also went for your nanny Veronica for the first time last week! She was so excited.

A little light bathroom reading

Current likes?

*Your books are still #1!

So many to choose from! And inevitably we will read them all (in one sitting).

*Cruising around your nursery

*Your magnets 

You love to eat them and bang them together

*Playing in front of the huge mirror in our bathroom. You play peek-a-boo with yourself, smile, chat, wave your arms... having so much fun watching your reflection.

*Your kitty Sam! You shriek when you see him and are constantly try to pull his hair hug him. You often barrel roll right into a full body snuggle with him! So cute. He is mostly tolerant with you, and I've observed him gently trying to let you know when enough is enough. He usually does this by walking away, but sometimes he does it with a gentle nip- gentle enough that it doesn't phase you. You are lucky he hasn't actually really bitten you- he can definitely bite hard when he wants to!

He wasn't too thrilled with your new cruising skill

*You LOVE playing peek-a-boo, and can make up games with anything around:

*You adore going on walks with Papa. He puts you high up on his shoulders and you two stroll around the neighborhood together.

You also help Papa with chores while in the Beco!

Postpartum Body:

*My thumb has unfortunately been acting up again. I thought the steroid shot was such a miracle cure that I cancelled the follow up session with the Physical Therapist. Bad move! I will be seeing her for a session toward the end of the month.

*I am still feeling really jiggly even though I remain 3 pounds under my pre-pregnancy weight . The recurrence of my Mommy Thumb began after I ambitiously did a full home Ashtanga practice, which in this heat is really my only exercise option. I know that the end is in sight with our summer temperatures- and cannot WAIT until the weather finally breaks (usually in mid October) so you and I can resume long walks.

*This past month I finally had a normal length cycle! About 31 days long. I am still not sure I've actually ovulated... I had 2 *almost* positive OPKS last month a week apart, which likely means there was NO positive OPK.

Most looking forward to?

Our trip to Colorado at the end of the month! I've been having fun procuring and trying on fall outfits with you to see what works and fits for our trip. We can't wait to see family & friends and have some cooler dry weather. We'll be spending 2 nights in Denver, 3 up in the mountains near Vail, then 3 more in Boulder.

Here are a few shots from your official 10 month old photo shoot today!

So big!

So over the shoot

We love you so much sweet girl! Happy 10 months to you.