Nine Months

On Sunday the 5th, our little Mac turned nine months old. The week was so filled with fever, Boogie Wipes and doctor visits that I had little time to let it sink in.

Nine months. We've now carried Mac in our arms longer than I carried him in my (very round) belly. As he grows, the months slip away so quickly; I look at him now and wonder if I'd even recognize the newborn we brought home.

These days we have the ultimate measuring stick for time: our baby. Each week brings a milestone - new expressions, words, movements, experiences. I no longer have to check a calendar to see time passing; I can see it in my Mac.

After a few hours away, I arrived home last Thursday to really see Mac for the first time in a while. I caught a glimpse of his face and it looked like a preview of Mac in preschool, of the young boy our baby will soon become. It's heartbreaking - but such a blessing to watch. He's a little baby no more. But he's still my baby!

B and I have seen more changes in the last month than ever before. Mac's personality has come out more and more each day - probably because he's developing a sense of independence that lets him explore the world, or our corner of it, a little more each day.

This past month's highlights:

• Crawling!! After months of rolling and scooting, he officially crawled.
• Waving. He's been practicing for a while, but now he's mastered it.
  
• Waving and "hey!" together. Bradley's very first Father's Day gift was Mac waving, saying, "Hey, dada!" and touching his hands to B's face. I nearly died of happiness.
• A multitude of ticklish spots. He's always been ticklish, but these days it's hard to touch our boy without making him giggle.
• Loving on Blue. After months of admiring him from afar, Mac used this month to get to know his "doggie." Cue the overzealous ear grab and a whimpering lab. In the match-up of infant to 80-pound dog, our little guy was the winner.
• "Walking." Mac loves to have you hold his hand while he takes a few "steps" of his own.
• All-terrain crawling. Little man lets nothing get in his way. Dad perched on the couch between you and that much-loved remote control? No problem - shimmy, crawl, nosedive and scoot right over him.
• Appetite. Our (long and lean) boy's appetite grew by leaps and bounds this past month. He consistently eats over a pound of baby food at each meal - not counting milk and rice cereal. The metabolism on this one doesn't come from me, I assure you. The appetite might! He'll eat whatever food you put in front of him - vegetable, fruit, meat, you name it - as long as the consistency is right. This leads us to the next development...
  
• Exceptional gag reflex. I'll spare you the details of this one, but please believe it is a remarkable skill.
• Get-into-everything-ness. If there's a long-forgotten cord of any size within ten feet of Mac, he'll find it. There's a gravitational pull of some kind between cords and his mouth. Actually, between anything he shouldn't have and his mouth. (I'm guessing I'll read this in a few months and laugh at how much more "into" things he's going to get!)
• Cuteness. The talking, giggling, crawling, growing and curiosity all add up to one really, really ridiculously good looking baby. Even Zoolander would agree.
  

Mac, you are a joy to be around. You're learning and growing and changing every day. We love that each day is new and different. We love love love you, big boy.