nine months old.

We had serious struggles during this month's photo shoot.

Carly isn't a fan of sitting still.

And she is a big fan of grabbing at anything and everything.

Especially the camera.

Only three left.

(I'll be stopping at a year.)

Time flies when you're having fun.

~

Carly, at nine months old you . . .

*are an energizer bunny. Every day you go - go - go. You are a busy girl and have so much to do, so little time to do it.

*get into everything. Cupboards, drawers, closets, shelves. Nothing is safe. You are even able to push doors open when I think I've shut them tight. You have a magic touch. But your favorite things to get into? The dishwasher and the fridge. I'm currently considering getting a safety gate to block off the kitchen.

*have a slight obsession with shoes. Like mother like daughter, I suppose. Only you don't like to wear them. You love to suck and chew on them. It grosses me out. We are learning to keep our closet doors shut, because no matter where you are your internal shoe radar will lead you straight to them.

*love love love your daddy. You love to play with him and you are so excited when he gets home. When he walks into a room you grunt and squeal like "Ok, daddy, lets play!".

*are just starting to grow out of your 3-6/6 month clothes. Finally! You have a ton of 9 and 12 month clothes for the summer and I'm stressing that you won't fit in them.

*are so funny when you wake up. You never cry. You just lay in your crib and moan until I come get you, and when I open the door you whip around and pull right up in your crib with a big smile and start jabbering away. You obviously have a lot to tell me every morning.

*continue to be our expert sleeper. About 10-12 hours every night.

*continue to be our lousy eater. You seem to find other things much more important than eating. But I've found that if I time it just right it works. You can't be too tired or too hungry, but you have to be tired and hungry enough. I have started giving you real banana pieces though, and you love feeding yourself and chewing the food. Maybe you're just not a fan of baby food. I wouldn't be either.

*have so much personality. We call you a diva and your daddy says "I have no idea where she got that from." That's called sarcasm, because he seems to think you got it from me. One example is you love giving kisses . . . if you're in the mood. If not you will literally push our faces away with your hands. And sometimes when we try to snuggle you, you wave your arms like "Give me my space!". Its hilarious.

*love attention. You love when people look at you and smile at you. You smile back and make happy squawking noises. And everyone tells you how cute you are. You are such a ham.

*are so beautiful. We can't get over how much joy you bring us.

Happy nine months, Car. We are glad you joined us.