2 huge milestones

Last Friday, Todd got home from work early so he was home hanging out with Aubrey. I was slaving away at work, counting down to 5:00 when I get the following picture message on my phone:

Yep, that's my child standing up. He said she was trying to pull up on it by herself but was frustrated she couldn't pull all the way up. So, he helped her just a bit and this was the result. Now, she pulls up on everything. She even had her 1st accident report sent home from day care because she was pulling up on the bookcases and fell over. At this point, I became convinced she was never going to crawl. I figured she would just be one of those babies that skips crawling and goes straight to walking....

Until this Friday. It was Todd's Friday off so he keeps her at home on those days. He said she made a few attempts at trying to crawl, but would get frustrated and give up. So, yesterday I decided to really work with her. I found a few enticing toys (including my phone, her favorite obsession) and put them just out of reach. She was so mad at first because she couldn't reach them. Before I knew it, she picked one of those back legs up (which at first she resembled a dog peeing on a hydrant) and managed to move a few inches forward. YAY! I worked really hard with her the rest of the day and got her to move a lot. I got a little on video, but she was getting tired by the time I got it and most of the video is her crying. I think once she realizes she can really move and get what she wants, we are in trouble. Let the major babyproofing begin!

Good-bye my not so dear friend

I can hardly believe it. I have been done pumping for over a week now. 1 whole week of not being attached to that evilness. I had planned to drop down to 1 pump last week, but after dropping down to 2 pumps, I realized it probably wouldn't be so hard to just go from 2 to none. I am still nursing first thing in the morning, but that is a piece of cake. That's kind of our quiet time together and it gives me time to actually just sit and relax, which I don't have time to do more of. The first day of not pumping was easy, the 2nd day was a little uncomfortable, but then the 3rd day I was good to go. I've still got to clean the parts really well and find a way to seal it back up, but the day I put it up in the attic to wait patiently for number 2 will be a great day. It is down hill to her 1st birthday and I made my goal of giving her breast milk until age 1. To celebrate, I bought some new make up and have time to enjoy putting it on in the morning without being attached to a noisy piece of equipment. It's the little things that are so exciting now!

9-month check-up

Aubrey had her 9-month check-up on 11.06.09. She weighs 17 lb. 4 oz (25% percentile) and is 27 inches long (30% percentile). She still has a large noggin', which is 44 cm (70% percentile). It's getting harder and harder to take her to the doctor because there is so much waiting. Keeping a 9-month old entertained for 20 minutes between measurements and actually seeing the doctor is no easy task. Luckily, she was entertained for a while by kicking and tearing the paper on the exam table. When the doctor finally came in, she did her exam and said everything looks great. There was some concern over the continuous faucet Aubrey's nose has become (along with the lovely colored stuff draining from it) over the past few weeks, but she said since Aubrey seems to feel fine, she wouldn't start any antibiotics for now. She said she seems to be right on track in her milestones and growing perfectly. The nurse came in and gave Aubrey a much dreaded (ok, much dreaded for me and Todd) flu shot and sent us on our merry way. So, she is good to go until her next visit, which is scheduled on her 1-year birthday. I can't believe that was close enough to schedule. It's going to be here so soon!

1st Halloween

Aubrey's 1st Halloween was pretty uneventful. We carved our pumpkins on Friday night, which was sad considering we've had them almost 2 weeks. Of course, Aubrey went to bed before Todd's masterpieces were finished, so we took pics of them on Saturday. Aubrey did not nap well during the day, so by the time we put her in her costume, she was not happy. I managed to get a few pics of her, but I am so glad we got professional pics of her in her costume, because I didn't get any great pics of her in the costume. Todd took her to our neighbors' house and they took some pics of their little girl and Aubrey. Aubrey then drank a bottle, ate dinner, and went to bed. She was asleep before most of the trick-or-treaters got here, so keeping Bailey quiet with the door bell ringing constantly was no fun. I felt bad for the kids because it started raining about 7:30. But, that meant Todd and I have candy left over, which is awesome, even though we don't need it. I think next year will be more fun because we will actually take Aubrey out and enjoy it more.

9 months old

Aubrey and I shared a birthday this month. She turned 9 months old on my 31st (uggghh) birthday. Since I didn't go to work, we went to visit Todd at work because his coworkers haven't seen Aubrey since she was itty bitty. It was pretty cold and dreary, which is yucky when you're walking downtown. But, we had a nice lunch with Todd, visited for a while, and then left to go shopping . We ate dinner with my dad that night, which was really good.

Here are some of Aubrey's highlights from this month:
*Was in her first wedding
*Moved up to size 3 diapers
*Dropped a bottle and started eating 3 "meals"
*Finally put away the 3-6 month clothes
*Could start wearing some 9 month clothes
*Working on at least 2 teeth
*Went to her 1st pumpkin patch and farm
*Pulling up to all fours and rocking
*Sleeping in her lowered crib

Almost the end of an era

An era of pumping that is. Aubrey has dropped another bottle which means that I now have enough milk stored that I can quit pumping and she will still have enough milk to last until her birthday. I was in shock when I did the math Friday and realized that. I thought I would be going a few more weeks before I hit that mark. I am still amazed that I can really start weaning from pumping now. I need to take it pretty slow because I've had a nasty clogged duct in the same area twice in the past 2 weeks and I don't want to take the chance of causing an infection. But, I have dropped to 3 pumps a day now and hopefully I will be down to 2 next week and then 1 the week after that. I still plan to nurse first thing in the morning until she decides she wants to stop that. I don't mind nursing at all. But, I despise pumping. I am proud that I have made it this long, though. There were so many times in those first few months I never thought I'd make it to this point. I am going to buy myself some sort of present on the day I put the pump away. I think I've earned it.

Moving on down

Since Aubrey has started consistently laying on her belly and pushing up, she has been greeting us in the morning almost looking over the side rail of her crib. Even though she is nowhere near pulling up, knowing she is that close the top has made me nervous ever since. So, we decided to move her bed frame down. Todd didn't think it needed to go all the way down, but it's not an simple task, so I decided moving it once was enough. So, we put the frame all the way down to the bottom and it is so low. Getting her in and out is now quite a struggle for me since her crib is not drop side. Todd's dad built me a stool, which helps some. But, I am sure it is still quite comical to watch met getting her in and out. Todd said the crib looks more prison-like now, and it really does. The first time I laid her down in it, she looked at me like "where the heck are you putting me?" I know she'll be pulling up in the next few months so I think I can deal with the strain for a few months if it means I know she can't maneuver out yet.