Caleb Samuel: 8-9 Months

I've said lots of times in the past that if all babies came at 8 months I would have a million because I love this age just SO much. Caleb has been so good from the start that I've amended that statement to say "If all babies were like Caleb, I'd have a million." I've truly enjoyed the baby-stage with him more than I ever thought possible and I'm so grateful for that. However, we just hit the 8-month, sitting-smiling-eating stage and I'm reminded just HOW much I love it. Truly, this is my favorite baby-age. Caleb, I'm loving the time that I have with you. We all just adore you.

Stats: 12 Month clothes, squishing him into size 3 diapers, very little hair, no teeth. 

No official stats this month (because I forgot to schedule a well check for him, argh!) but check his 10 month post for official stats. However, he is still long and he is heavy!

Some other things to remember about this month: 

-He always reaches for my phone when I try to take a picture of him, ha. 

-One of my very favorite things that he does is when he's sitting up, he will stretch his legs all the way out then snap them back together like he's clapping his feet. It's so silly, but he does it all the time. I love the way he sits like this, with the soles of his feet pressed together. Another small thing that he does, that I love, is when I take off his clothes to change his diaper, or to change his clothes, he pats his tummy with his little hand (one or both hands), he doesn't do it when he's dressed, but when it's his bare tummy, he pats away and I not-so-secretly love it.

-Still pretty shy around most other people, loves mom, but warms up quickly to others (for the most part). He gives the biggest smiles to Dad, though. I wish I could just capture the feeling of him burying his face in my shoulder when someone tries to talk to him, then having him peek out to see if they are still looking at him while he grins a great big grin.

-I usually sit him in my bathroom sink while I get ready in the morning. It's my favorite part of my getting ready routine. 

-He's starting to scoot, but mostly backwards. He pushes himself backwards until he hits something and then he gets upset. It's kind of darling. 

-Still a super eater. He eats basically everything we are eating and enjoys it. Oh, but spaghetti! My goodness, he loooves spaghetti (or really any pasta with red sauce), but when he eats the spaghetti, he gets one end of the noodle and then slurps the rest of it up into his mouth. I die every. single. time. It makes me laugh and I love it so much.

-This boy is just loved a whole lot by a lot of people. Aunt Amy came to visit and Lydia and Austin wanted to show off just how great they thought Caleb was. I think she was easily convinced. 

-Of all the people who love this baby, Lydia and Austin are at the very top of the list. 

-He keeps me company while I read my scriptures in the morning. Usually he's pretty content to play with a toy while sitting by me, but lately he's started trying real hard to grab my pen while I'm writing. He has such long arms and he's surprisingly strong. I tried to give him an unsharpened pencil or a pen with a lid, but no dice, he knows what he wants, and it's the pen that I'm writing with. 

-There isn't anything much sweeter than a sleeping baby. 

-With independence comes mischief. His favorite form of mischief? Pulling all the wipes from the package. Even when I see him doing it, I can't really stop him because he just enjoys it so much! (And I use any dried out wipes to clean my dishes or counter or baseboards so it's not a waste.) 

-Keeping him occupied at church is as easy as turning on the rear-facing camera so he can see himself. He loves it and can stay entertained looking at himself for quite a long time. 

-He's starting to think about crawling. I mentioned above that he's started scooting backwards, but he's also starting to figure out how to move his legs from a sitting position so that he can lean farther. He doesn't get up on his hands and knees yet, but you can tell he's on his way. 

-He used to sit up so straight and tall, and now most of the time he sits super slouched over. I'm not sure why. 

-He can't pull himself to stand, but if you stand him up - he can hold his own weight - and he loves it!

-We went roller skating as a family and the kids took turns pushing him around. Also, we've adopted our winter baby wardrobe now: footie pjs. I know there are lots of people who dress their kids in really cute baby clothes, but honestly - these pjs are just so warm and cozy neither he nor I want to change him out. I'm not going to be sorry about it. Ha. (We did get a few super warm cozy one piece outfits and so we rotate through those, too.) 

-We say that Lydia and Austin are his Super-Fans, but to be honest David and I are right there at the top of the fan-club, too. Hard not to just adore this baby.

-He smiles SO much more. Pretty pleased with just about everything. It's almost night and day from before where you had to work pretty hard to get a smile out of him. He's always been happy, but now he smiles and laughs so much more frequently. 

-We are so excited to celebrate Caleb's first Christmas this month. One morning we came down and I set Caleb by the tree while Austin plugged in the lights. I looked over a few minutes later and Caleb and Lydia were sitting together just staring at the tree and it was such a beautiful moment I nearly tripped over myself trying to find my phone so I could capture it. *sigh* I have all the heart-eyes over these pictures. A perfect little moment in the middle of a typically messy, busy life.

Happy 9 months Caleb-love. Our whole world is better for having you in it.