Z at 9 months

Zachary is growing up so fast!  I just put away the newborn playmat.  It made me sad.  I felt like S & E lived under that thing for so long, and Z didn’t spend nearly as much time on it.  But in reality, it was probably comparable….time just flies a bit faster with Z because I have 4-year-old twins running all around him while he is on that mat.

Anyways, Zachary started crawling this month!  He took his first crawls at Cayucos on Valentine’s Day.  Now it’s his favorite thing to do….crawl around and explore.  And he has found so many fun treasures!  Sand, sticks, rocks…all of which go straight into his mouth.  Good thing this isn’t my first rodeo, or else I might be a bit concerned and go crazy trying to keep things out of his mouth.  Don’t get me wrong… I do my absolute best to not let him eat rocks.  But let’s be real; he gets a rock in there every once in a while.  So, when he does get a rock in there (or anything else he finds in nature), we embrace it and shake our heads and say, “Crazy kid is eating rocks again.”  =)  

He got another tooth!  The bottom front one wanted to join the party. And with these new teeth, he’s been eating more and more finger foods.  It’s so funny watching him chew, because he really chews some stuff with his two little teeth! 

This month has held lots of colds and sickness for our family.  This year is bad!  We’ve all gotten one cold after another.  Honestly, colds never concern me and I hardly skip a beat when anyone has one.  But when Mr. Z gets one, the Earth stops sleeping at night.  If he can’t suck his thumb, he gets angry.  And then he cries.  Which plugs his nose even more and makes him angrier.  So you can see my dilemma?  I can’t let him “cry it out” when he has a cold, even though I can’t do anything for him except suck out his nose.  So, we spent lots of time walking around the house and the porch, admiring how the moonlight shimmers through the pine trees.  

Also new this month is separation anxiety.   My other kids didn't have this, so it's been new for me too.  He doesn’t want me to put him down or anyone else to hold him.  In looking it up on the all-knowing internet, apparently this is normal because babies at this age have object permanence, which means he remembers that something is there even if he doesn’t see it.  This has also played into his sleep.  It seems we’ve taken a few steps back in our nighttime sleep this month, which is also normal, again because of the object permanence.  He knows that mom went through that door, and if he screams loud enough or long enough, she will come back.  Couple this with the colds, and you have one tired momma!  Tis the season though, right?!?!  =)

Ethan decided to capture this photo of me setting Z up 

So sweet!

He really is a happy, content baby

Clapping

He doesn't like staying still anymore

So I have a lot of pics of him crawling away

Funny story: As soon as we had Z, we started getting compliments (even from strangers in Walmart) on how perfectly shaped his head is.  Strange thing to notice, but apparently he has a good head.  Would you agree?

Melt my heart!

See the teeth?!?

"Heyyyyyyyy...What up my Mama-girl?!?"

"I vant to suck your blood."
He found one of those safety outlet things that wasn't plugged in.  And like everything he finds, it went straight to his mouth.
(Please note: no babies were harmed in the taking of these photos)

They are such good big brothers!

S & Z

E & Z

He LOVES being outside!  And he always has an eye on his big brothers.

Outside has so many things to explore!

He's had splinters in his hands.  Downside of crawling, I guess.