Bethany 9 Month Well Check

We took Bethany to the doctor for her 9 month well check on April 4th and I'm only now getting around to posting it. Sorry! Here are her stats:

Weight: 14.97lbs (2%)
Length: 27.17in (32%)
Head Circ.: 17in (26th%)

The doctor was very pleased with her growth but concerned that she is not rolling regularly, crawling, or pulling herself into a sitting position. He wants us to do therapy with a motor skills early intervention team, but Casey and I are still debating whether or not we will sign her up. She just seems to be blossoming in so many ways, and although her progress is slow and I know that she is behind, she doesn't seem stagnant by any means. I hesitate to pay hundreds of dollars to get her intervention she may not need. My gut instinct tells me that this is a little girl who just likes to do things in her own time and that everything is fine. We'll see. The jury is still out on what to do.

In the mean time, here is a list of some of the adorable things she does:

• Clapping her hands
• Making kissing noises
• A different growl to express every emotion: Happy, frustrated, angry, sad, lonely, etc. I've never know a baby who growls so much! 
• Standing up (supported-- she doesn't pull herself up to furniture yet and will eventually tip over if left on her own to lean against something, but she loves to lock her knees and stand while we hold her)
• Sitting up independently (if we put her in that position)
• Rolling from her back to her stomach and back again (from the right side only)
• Thumb sucking. This little girl LOVES her thumb! The moment she becomes slightly tired or frustrated, the thumb immediately goes into her mouth. When she sleeps, she sucks her thumb as well.
• Sleeping through the night. We've had two consecutive weeks of consistent sleep from 7:00pm until 6:00am. I think we've made it! It's a MIRACLE. Sleep training her was like pulling teeth without anesthetic. 
• Squeals and shrieks when she sees the cat.
• Flaps her arms and pumps her legs with excitement when Daddy comes home and cries if he walks past without picking her up. She is such a Daddy's girl. It's adorable.
• Pushes out her lips and snorts. 
• Crinkles her nose
• Chortles and honks when she laughs
• Babbles constantly: Dada, mama, baba, lala, and a whole assortment of lovely consonant and vowel sounds. Makes me so happy!
• Bounces up and down on her bottom when she's excited
• Constantly plays with her tongue and sticks it out. She is extremely talented and can even flip her tongue upside down!

Bethany loves it when Emmett reads to her. He is such a sweet big brother sometimes.

Being outside lots of fun! We're so glad the weather is finally starting to warm up!

There's that tongue!

One reason I'm hesitant to have intervention is because she is always making progress, though it is slow. Here she is pushing up on the floor during tummy time. A few weeks ago and she wouldn't have done this at all.

Daddy's girl!

I love her pudgy round cheeks! I could kiss them all day!