Nine Months

So, if Leah doesn't look too happy in the above photos, it's probably because she hasn't been feeling well lately. She's been battling a nasty cold since Saturday, so she hasn't been her usual happy self. Thankfully, though, this is nothing more serious than a cold (she had her nine-month check-up today, so the doctor also evaluated her sickness).

According to the doctor, Leah's right on track developmentally (which we already figured). Though she doesn't pull-up on furniture on her own, she will pull-up on our fingers. She's definitely TRYING to pull herself up, but she still doesn't have the upper body strength. That slight hindrance is not stopping our Leah. She knows we'll help her stand, and once she's up, she scoots right along. When she's feeling particularly bold, she'll hold onto me (or Scott) with one hand, leaving the other hand free. Because of her interest in standing (and moving!), Scott's teaching her how to sit down when she's tired. It seems to be working; she doesn't fall straight back as much as she used to. Don't worry; we still supervise her when she's mobile.

When she's not standing, she's exploring. Apparently she's grown tired of the family room and her many toys, so she feels a need to explore the rest of the house. This little adventurer will crawl right past the kitchen and head for the hallway, pausing just long enough for us to ask, "What are you doing?", before smiling, laughing, and taking off for the foyer and study. (Hmmm, I guess it IS a good thing that she's not walking yet!)

Oh, our intrepid explorer did find something of interest in our kitchen: gifts. There are two bags of gifts sitting on the kitchen floor. I didn't think she'd be interested, especially since she can't actually reach them. Silly me. Leah managed to pull one of the bags down (no clue how) and then proceeded to grab the bow off one of the packages. She did that not once, but twice, and then brought her "prize" into the family room to join her other toys. I can only imagine what will happen come Christmas! (Side note: surprisingly, she's not that interested in the Christmas tree, or the gifts under it, yet. She did pull a snowflake ornament off when I was holding her, but she then proceeded to "place" it on one of the boughs.)