9 months

Dear Caden,
On Wednesday you turned 9 months old. As with every day Daddy and I still are trying to figure out how time can pass so quickly. You are growing so big and so strong and we couldn't be more proud of you. You crawl, stand, cruise, laugh, play, dance, walk (holding our hands), "talk", chase kitties, bounce, and so much more. You have 5 teeth now - three on the bottom and 2 on the top.
You are such a funny baby. You make Mommy and Daddy laugh and smile a million different times every day. You announce the day by standing up in your crib, bouncing, and babbling. I walk into your room and greet you with a "good morning" and you squeal in delight as you smile, laugh, and bounce even more. Once you are changed and ready for the day you happily play on the living room floor while I prepare your breakfast and then we eat together - you love oatmeal. There is very little you don't like to eat... whenever Mommy and Daddy are eating you're are always eager to try a bite. You love cheerios and puffs and are eating more and more table food. Your doctor gave us the go ahead to start to increase all the different foods we give you and I know that will make you happy :).
Each day is different. If the weather is nice we will go outside play on the swing set Grandma gave you or we will go on a walk - you love to be outside. Some days we run errands and you are always such a good baby. You love going new places and everywhere we go you meet so many new people who love to play with you and see you smile. People always stop to say hello and say how cute you are - you love meeting new people as long as Mommy is near by.
Some days we go to Grandma's house and you visit with her and Riley... you always have so much fun and love to explore. Some days we just stay home and play just the two of us. When it is time for Mommy to clean or cook you always stay near by to lend a helping hand if needs be but usually you just play with all of your toys. You love your three kitties so very much and squeal and shout in excitement whenever they come into a room.
When Daddy comes home from work you always greet him with a big smile and crawl to him to say hello. We eat dinner together and you have such good baby table manners. After dinner Daddy gives you a bath and you have so much fun splashing in your tub - your favorite bath time toy is a purple tug boat. After your bath Daddy gets you dressed in your jammies and we all play for a while. You love to play "pookzilla", silly mommy, Ah-boo, patty cake, and you love it when we tickle you. Before long its time to go to bed and start our day again. You are such a happy baby and we hear that all the time from everyone we meet. A silly look on my face brings a smile to yours and a smile on your face never fails to melt my heart. I love you more than I ever imagined I could love anyone or anything in this world. Every day my love for you grows - you are my baby, my little boy, my life, and no matter how big you get or where life takes us you will always be my perfect little boy. You are perfect in every way and Mommy and Daddy, and everyone around you, loves you so very much. You will never be alone in this world, you will always be loved, you are so very special.

On Wednesday Mommy and Grandma took you to have your 9 month photos taken. Since we are going away for a week right before Christmas I had them take some holiday photos of you, too. And since Halloween is right around the corner we also took pictures in your costume. You did so well but you always do - you love the camera! You wore an adorable little sweater Mommy bought you and in some photos you wore nothing at all! I'm sure my collection of naked pictures will embarrass you when you are older but as of now you are quite the little nudist. You love running around and strutting your stuff - and your little baby butt is too cute for words. All of your pictures turned out so cute! Grandma also bought you an adorable winter teddy bear that you love to play with.On Thursday you went to the doctor for your 9 month check up. You weigh just under 22 lbs (21lbs, 15oz) and are 28-1/4 inches long. You are in perfect health and got your first dose of the flu shot and had your hemoglobin checked and you were tested for lead - both tests came back perfect.
Your first Halloween is coming up and we are excited about that - you are going to be a skunk and Auntie Becky, Uncle Neil, and cousin Riley are all coming over to go trick or treating with you. Grandpa wants to come see you in your costume, too. You look so cute in your costume. We are all looking forward to your first holiday season and have so many special days planned. We are also starting to gear up for your first big vacation! We are spending a week in the Caribbean in December and cannot wait to take you to the beach.
Well, I suppose I should wrap things up here. Happy 9 months baby boy - I love you more that words can describe.
Love,
Mommy

**The rest of Caden's 9 month photos will be uploaded to our website soon!!**