9 months!

Ella is a whopping 9 months old! She's been in our lives as long as she was in my tummy. Crazy how nine months of pregnancy lasts an eternity and the nine months that we've had Ella have absolutely flown by! We haven't gone to her official nine month appointment yet so I don't know her percentages but I'll update this next week after her appointment. I think it's safe to say that she's cute and tiny.

I feel like she's changed and grown up the most during this past month than any other. Her eighth month was a big one!

One of the big things that happened this month was that she got 3 teeth! Her two bottom teeth came in within a day of each other and then about a week later she got a top tooth. She's putting them to good use. It's fun to watch her take little bites of graham crackers.

Ella still loves to read books. I have a couple of board books that sit on her nightstand and every time we sit in her chair to get ready for bed she stands up and reaches over to grab one of her books. She loves to look at the pictures and turn the pages.

We had Danny's siblings over for a BBQ while his parents were out of town. This was Ella's first time sitting around a fire. We're getting her prepped for camping this summer. She was mesmerized by the flames.

We had family photos taken by my wonderful friend Audree. I'm really excited with how they turned out and will post more soon. Ella's sweet little smile brightens my day!

We took full advantage of the two whole nice days we had and are anxiously waiting for the weather to improve so we can spend more time outside!

Danny bought Ella some bubbles and went in the backyard and blew them for her while I was making dinner. I was watching through the window and saw how much fun she was having so I snuck out and took a few pics.

She usually doesn't like to sit on the grass but I guess it was worth it to play with the bubbles!

Another accomplishment this month is that she is able to pick up finger foods and get them into her own mouth! She's been able to use her pinchers for a long time now but wasn't able to quite get things from point A to point B until now. She is loving this new found independence! I spread some cheerios or bread bits on her tray and she goes to town.

And the biggest accomplishment this month?

Ella is a crawler! She started by just going a few feet at a time but it didn't take long for her to figure it out and take off! She now books it all over the house. If I turn by back for a second she's in a different room! She thinks it's the greatest thing ever. She teases me and goes around a corner and then when I come get her she squeals and tries to escape. I'm pretty sure there is nothing cuter than a baby crawling. I don't want to her to walk anytime soon because I love watching her crawl.

She also loves to be able to crawl to her toy basket, pick out something to play with and then scatter things around the house. She also loves to go into my closet and pull down all of my shoes. We have a total girl on our hands! And despite my OCD personality of liking a clean house, it makes me smile to walk around after she's gone to bed and see little traces of what we did all day.

We've had a fun month. And like always here's a little list of a few other things I want to remember about my little Ella Lu:

• She is an entertainer! She'll do something just to get a reaction from us. For example, she'll bang the side of her high chair tray, look up to see if I'm laughing and if I am, then she'll do it again and laugh. She has also mastered the fake laugh and does it all the time to get others to laugh. Danny and I will often hear her practicing it in the backseat of the car while we drive. It's pretty dang adorable.
• She is still so happy. She has a smile for everyone she sees and seems to be able to brighten the day of whoever she comes across. I think this is a great trait to have.
• She's a "talker" she says "ma ma ma" and "da da da" - (for the record "ma ma ma" was first). I wish I knew if she knew what she was saying. She does seem to say "ma ma ma" when she is reaching for me. Does that mean she's said her first word? I have no idea but it sure is cute to hear.
• She LOVES when Danny gets home from work. She knows the sound of the garage door opening and stops what she is doing, sits up and looks toward the door. Then when Danny comes around the corner she flaps her arms, squeals and takes off to go get him. 

I'm sure I'm forgetting things so I'll add to this list as a remember but to sum it up this last month has been a blast. I think it's probably my favorite age so far. She's still my little baby with a big personality. I love hanging out with her all day. She definitely keeps me busy and entertained!