Ten Months November 18, 2006

At 10 months, Jack is meeting almost all of the 10 month milestones, as well as several of the 11 month milestones in What to Expect the First Year. One of the neatest to watch is Jack practicing his fine motor skills. He can pick up very tiny objects with any combination of thumb and fingers. This means that he cleans our carpets for us. Fortunately, he’s getting better about obeying the command, “Not in the mouth.”
The most amazing event that happened this month? Jack crawls! We even have the movie to prove it. We believe the first sight of this crawling was on November 6. It’s a funny kind of crawl in which he tucks one leg under the other and kind of tries to get up off the ground. Jack is standing while holding onto objects and is starting to cruise. He can stand by himself for very short periods of time. Usually, by the time he figures out he’s standing, he falls. However, when he holds onto pieces of furniture, he does squats to see how far he can get to the ground without falling. Sassy is getting used to this mobile Jack, and will generally move at the last possible moment before Jack can get to her. However, Jack does appear to be learning patience in dealing with Sassy. He will now just look at her instead of always grabbing.

Jack loves to topple towers, especially of the nesting blocks that Michael F. gave him. We play zoo with the stuffed animals, and he knows that Simba goes “wiggle wiggle wiggle pounce!”. His favorite book is currently Amazing Baby, I Love You, given to us by Melissa G. Jack can turn the pages himself!

We’re also getting naps under control! Many thanks to the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. Jack is a much happier human being when he gets enough sleep.

Jack had a cold (his second, for the record) on Halloween, so he only went trick or treating at our next door neighbors’ house. We ended up getting the cold too, thus illustrating our need for a baby-sitter. Any volunteers? Suggestions?

Jack has been making a very funny face for the past month or so, which can be seen on his official ten month photo. He likes to scrunch up his face and show his teeth, kind of like a shrew. Mimicking is also big with him, like shaking his head when Mommy shakes her head. We think he understands the word “no” he just doesn’t obey it. Stop! works much better.

His culinary horizons have been broadened with the introduction of chicken and sweet potato dinner and Cheerios. He’s eating more solids each day and is just now beginning to prefer them over formula, it seems.

Jack still has two words: Hi and Daddy. He loves to babble, and sometimes you’d swear he was really saying real sentences. Like, “Not that” for example. We’re still signing certain words to him in the hopes that he’ll pick it up. He’s waved twice, kind of by accident, but we think he’s almost there. He does get that waving means something, and will usually say “Hi” to us when we wave.

Nine Months October 27, 2006

At 9 months, Jack is meeting pretty much all of the milestones listed in What to Expect the First Year. He’s figured out the “If I drop it, it still

exists and Mommy and Daddy will pick it up for me” game. He does not crawl, but he does creep, schooch, and roll himself all over the place. Thanks to Auntie Trisha, he now walks when he stands holding on to someone’s fingers. While we were in NH, he finally learned how to sit up from a lying down position. This has brought his schooching to a

whole new level. Now, all he wants to do is stand! Holding onto us, holding onto a table or chair, holding onto the crib rail.
Most importantly, Jack has TWO words: “Hi” and “Daddy.” “Hi” definitely means “Hi” but “Daddy” may mean “Mommy” and “Daddy” as he often says it to Mommy. The cutest behavior is watching him

saying “Hi” to himself in a mirror. For the record, he first said, “Hi” on October 2, and “Daddy” on October 13.
Jack will often respond to his own name, but he usually responds to “Jackson” better than to “Jack” or “Jack-Jack”.
At his 9 month check up, Jack was 20 pounds and 26 and 3/4 inches.

He is 50th percentile for weight and is finally on the chart, length-wise, in the 5th-10th percentile. His head circumference is in the 90th percentile.
His two bottom teeth are in, and his two top ones are still growing. He loves to bite and chew on anything he can grab. Yes, we have teether toys, but items that he’s not supposed to chew are so much tastier,

including human fingers. As for food, Jack does like yogurt (Yo-Baby), and combinations of cereal and fruit from the jar, in addition to his orange foods.
Jack’s favorite toys are blocks. He now has a few different sets, and he loves them all. He loves knocking towers down, and banging blocks t

ogether. He has also learned how to drum on empty containers and tables.
We were in New Hampshire for 18 days this month, and we were happy to see a lot of our friends. Jack didn’t take too well to the time change, so spent the first week being cranky and not sleeping well at all. The

second week, he was great, but because we lost the first week, we didn’t have a chance to connect with everyone we wanted to see. On October 8, we had a small dedication ceremony for Jack, at which his godparents and parents promised to look after him in all ways, including spiritually. As we are not members of a church, this occurred at his godparents’ home. His godparents are Marc & Joanne Gamache, of

Bedford, NH. Jack was a big hit at the Swonger household, where our flower girls, Jenn and Katie, clamored for his attention. They spent lots of time constructing elaborate towers and then letting Jack destroy them.
He still sleeps well at night, going to bed between 7 and 8pm and waking

up between 5:30 and 7am. Naps continue to be a challenge. So what else is new?