Reaghan turned 9 months old on her daddy's birthday on the 17th! We were gone in Texas so I'm just now getting a chance to write down all of the things she did and learned this last month. It seems like every day is something new! I can't believe she is getting so big; she feels less and less like a little baby. I am starting to think about her 1st birthday and just can't believe that its almost that time!

• At her 9 month appointment she weighed in at 16lbs, 15oz and 26.75 inches - she is in the 25th percentile for height and weight, so she is a little tiny thing.
• She has returned to sleeping through the night - thank goodness! She sleeps about 10-11 hours, going to bed around 8:30-9 and waking up anywhere between 6-7.
• If she is up past her bedtime she tends to get super giggly! Everyone says she comes alive at night! 
• She's learned how to wave, play games like peekaboo, blow kisses, and pull things off of her head. She brings her hands together like she wants to clap, but can't quite figure it out.
• We took our first family vacation to the OBX and had a blast. She didn't sleep well in her pack n play at night, but otherwise stayed on a great schedule and took good naps and played really well with her cousin Brooklyn. It was also the first time that BB and TomTom and Aunt Ann babysat her so Mark and I could have a date night while were there.
• She got her first rash that started the last couple of days we were at the beach. It started out with a fever and an upset stomach and then appeared all over her trunk. When we called the Drs they didn't want us to come in, they said it was just a viral rash that was nothing to worry about since it didn't occur at the same time as her fever. She was back to normal in a couple of days.
• She's learned how to hold her own sippy cup to drink from it - she LOVES water!
• She's eating with her fingers - puffs, cut up fruits, and soft cookies/wafers. She's always interested in whatever someone else is eating so we've been giving her more and more little bits of whatever we are having.
• She's making new sounds every day - our favorites are when she goes "ooh-ooh" or makes a fake laugh. Her Aunt Erin is convinced she says "nin-nin" when she see's her. :)
• She can go from her belly to sitting all on her own! She tries to quadruped crawl but scooting on her belly is just easier for her, so she does that instead. haha We are having to keep an extra close eye on her because she can move around so much faster than we think!
• She has an inability to actually suck on a paci, but she'll hold her paci in her mouth with her hand to keep it in place when she's trying to calm down from throwing a fit or when she's trying to fall asleep.
• She has been super clingy, wants to see and touch mommy if I'm in the room with her but she'll do okay if she can't see me at all, which makes it easier to leave her to go to work or on a date night.
• She's started to climb on me if I'm laying on the floor with her, so I know pulling herself up will be right around the corner! (She actually just learned to do this, but its going to go under a 9-10 month milestone!)
• Her hair is getting thicker and has almost a reddish tint to the brown color. I can almost put a clip bow in it!
• We are still waiting on teeth to show up! It's hard to try new foods when no teeth are there to help chew!
• I got shingles on my chest and had to stop breastfeeding for a week. Thankfully I had a few days worth of milk in the freezer, but I did have to supplement with formula for a few feedings before returning to nursing. This broke my heart, as I could tell she wasn't happy with having the bottle all of the time. She missed the connection and closeness that comes with nursing, I'm so glad I had a mild case so we only had to deal with not nursing for about a week! (Also thankful she didn't get the chicken pox since she was exposed to my rash before I knew what it was!)
• She took her first plane ride to Texas just days before turning 9 months old and she did fantastic. Many people commented on how well she did and she made sure to share a smile with almost everyone.
• She is learning sign language to help her communicate with us without screaming/whining. So far she has mastered the "please" sign! Watching her learn gives me so much joy!