9 months

Eli is officially nine months old, 3/4 the way through his first year of life. It is truly amazing how quickly the first year goes.
His doctor visit proved that he is still a big and tall boy. He weighed in at 22lbs. and is 30in. tall. Dr. Lopez gave us the go-ahead to switch him over to whole milk if Eli cooperates. That is a big blessing considering a can of generic formula costs $15. We use close to 2 cans a week for a total of $100 a month in formula. That quickly adds up! He also gave us the go on switching Eli to 100% self-feeding and giving up on the jars of baby food, as long as he still gets his fruits and veggies every day.
Last week, Eli really started crawling and getting into everything. He pulls up at every opportunity, and is just staring to cruise. He can get from room to room on his hands and knees, and has already pulled a number of objects onto his little head. (Including the giant snowman at Picture People. Ouch.) He can pull books off the shelf and open and close cabinet doors. His disposition has become bearable as he has become more mobile. He is starting to like books (kinda) and he still enjoys cuddles, kisses, jumping, flying, and being with mommy. He loves his mommy and daddy, and cries everytime daddy leaves for work in the morning. The tears are every bit worth it when I see the daily reaction to daddy's homecoming. His excitement can't be contained as he squeals, smiles, giggles, bounces, and tries with all of his might to fly himself from the front porch into his daddy's arms. I can't believe in 3 short, fast, furious months, our last little baby will be a year old! We will be cherishing his First Thanksgiving and First Christmas and looking forward to his First Birthday as his "firsts" are quickly drawing to an end.