Vincent's 9 and 10 month update!

Well, I totally failed at the 9 month update. I had it written out, but since I'm always in the photos with Vincent and Mike has been working so much lately, we just never got around to taking them! So I added those updates to this post. :)

Height/Weight: According to our home scale and measuring tape, Vincent still weighs 20 lbs (42%), is 29 inches long (76%) and has a head circumference of 48 cm (98%). 

Daily: For the most part, we have stuck to the same schedule that we started at the end of my last update, which is waking at 8 AM, taking a morning and an afternoon nap and going to bed between 7 and 8. After Thanksgiving, we purchased a baby gate for Vincent, which wraps around his whole play mat. It allows him to crawl around and explore freely without messing with the animals or the animals messing with him or his toys. It's nice for him to have his own space, where he isn't disturbed and I don't have to worry if I need to turn my back on him for a moment! He loves playing with all his toys and moving about! He still loves his horse bouncer - sometimes I think he is going to shoot out of it like a rocket because he bounces in it so hard! We haven't used his bouncy seat in a couple of months, because he would fall forward out of it, so I am going to take it apart and put it in storage. :(
He likes to hang out in his swing in our bedroom, but now, I HAVE to use the whole 5 point harness. I am ashamed to admit that I wouldn't use the shoulder straps in the past, because he just never needed them. But now, he will manage to sit forward and fall out otherwise. He has become a total wiggle worm! He doesn't sleep in his swing at all anymore - he only sleeps in his crib, or in his pack n play when we are at Auntie's.
Vincent also has his own room now! Timothy moved out a week or so before Christmas and he has been doing really well in his own room. Now Mike and Vince aren't waking each other up anymore!

We continue to do the same bedtime routine: bath, zippy, bottle, book and sleep. :) He loves "The Going to Bed Book" SO much, that when I tell him I'm about to read it to him, he will start to laugh! And he likes to flip the book shut when we're done. :D

Sleep: On December 25th, Vincent slept through the night for the first time! It was a wonderful Christmas present. We decided that it was the solid food that helped him sleep such a long stretch. The fact that he is in his own bedroom now definitely helps as well!

I've also started to cut his naps a little shorter; we are still up at 8 AM every morning. The first nap generally goes from 11 AM to noon and the second from 3 PM until 4 PM. Bedtime has been moved until about 8 PM unless he shows signs of being tired earlier.

I've stuck with not letting him have a bottle to sleep, unless it's for a night feeding. I feed him between naps and an hour to half an hour before bedtime. It gives him a little time to digest and has helped him not become so dependent on using it to fall asleep. I've found that if he falls asleep nursing or in my arms and wakes up in his crib, he becomes confused and upset, which results in crying. When he falls asleep on his own in his crib, he is much better about sleeping longer stretches and getting himself back to sleep without my help.

Eating: Between months 8 and 9, I slowly weaned Vincent off of breastfeeding and over to formula. I could no longer deal with the stress of my supply issues. I've become much more relaxed and Vincent has as well! I really hoped to breastfeed until he was at least a year old, but that's okay. He is happy and healthy and that's all that matters to me! And I'm proud of myself for nursing him as long as I did and will always treasure the bonding experience.
Since Christmas day, Vincent all of a sudden wants ALL the table foods! Haha - he went from having little to no interest in solids, to wanting more and more. And my mother in law taught him how to tell us he wants more by saying "Nomnomnom!" He seems to like just about everything we feed him now - I hope he continues to like everything! I am going to begin cooking a wider variety and a little healthier to get him used to eating and liking things.
We shoot for at least two solid meals per day now and he drinks between 3 and 4 8 oz bottles of formula as well.

Sizes: Vincent is now in 12 month clothing and some 9 month. I can't believe 12 month baby clothes are considered toddler...what happened to my baby?! :( 

I imagine he will be in size 4 diapers for quite some time, especially since blowout diapers are a pretty rare thing now. 

Milestones and Changes:

• Towards the beginning of November, Vincent began to stand unassisted, while holding onto objects.
• Vince got his first owie! Little man managed to fall out of his swing, because I only used the 3 point harness instead of the 5 point. I felt AWFUL, but luckily he didn't fall far at all and the bed broke his fall. He cried really hard, but other than a little bump on the head, all was okay!
• In November, Vincent learned to sit up on his own. He gets on his tummy and pushes himself into a sitting position with his hands.

• We celebrated Vince's first Thanksgiving at Aunt Marcy's!

• On December 5th, Vincent pulled himself up in his crib for the first time! So we lowered it all the way to the bottom. He is now pulling himself up on EVERYTHING, including the play pen, entertainment center and mommy and daddy! 

• Vincent can walk assisted, meaning by either pushing a walker or by holding somebody's hands. He has gotten better and better within the past month! He can also walk along furniture.

• Vincent got his first haircut from his auntie Danielle! No more baby mullet! :D

• Vince crawled on his knees for the first time the week before Christmas! He has continued to do so ever since.

• Vincent met Santa for the first time! He was getting grumpy while we were in line and we were almost certain that he would cry. But as soon as he saw Santa, his face lit up! He loved him! :D

• On the morning of Christmas Eve, I was skyping with my mom and she said "Hi!" to Vincent. He then started clapping for the first time! It was so cool for her to be able to witness a first from so far away.
• Vincent celebrated his first Christmas! We had a fabulous time with family this year and Vince got a kick out of helping me unwrap presents. I can't wait to witness his excitement next year when he is a little older!

• As I mentioned before, he slept through the night for the first time on December 25th! Meaning from around 9 until I woke him up at 8:30! 

• Vincent got his first cold and fever after Christmas :( Poor guy had a 102 degree fever and was not a happy camper! Luckily it didn't last very long.

• Throughout the past two months, Vincent has eaten eggs, rice, beans, cheese, stuffing, turkey, chicken, spaghetti, mashed potatoes and gravy, cranberries and a little bit of pie filling! He has also tried various tastes of things off of our plates, like salad and ranch dressing, white and brown gravy, salsa and even french fries. He seems to like just about everything now.