Ari turned 9 months old yesterday. I can't believe it. He's already starting to evolve into a little boy. He's so curious and determined about everything. He has learned to climb the stairs, and is at the top in a flash if I forget to put the gate up. He also likes to climb onto the treadmill and then whine for me to come get him.

He has four teeth now, with two more coming in on top. He has a strange tooth cutting pattern compared to his siblings. First he cut the middle two on bottom, then a third on the bottom, before getting one on top. Now he has two coming in on either side of the newest top tooth. Poor guy has been pretty grumpy with them the last week or two.

His solid food repertoire is growing by leaps and bounds. He seems to like bread the best of anything he's tried thus far.

Ari is crazy about his daddy. He waves his arms when he gets excited, and this morning when Paul came downstairs, I thought the baby was going to fly out of my arms trying to get to him. So sweet.

Bad mommy-airhead moment:

Aristotle learned to climb the stairs (there are four steps between the lower and upper levels) yesterday. I was chatting on IM and he was playing under the dining room table. One minute later, Libby's yelling from the top of the stairs, "He did it Mama! He did it Mama!" I jumped up in a panic, and he was happily playing in the bedroom off the top of the stairs! Apparently, Libby had been cheering him on the whole time and they were both thrilled! Libby kept saying, "Ari big boy now!" Paul was super impressed with his son, and I was shaking. Time to put up the gate, right?

WRONG! Dummy sleepy mommy didn't think to put it up this morning, and was trying to get through her first cup of coffee, when Paul started calling me from upstairs because Ari was up there, pulled up to the bed and talking to Daddy! Oh man, I'm in trouble and need to get my stuff together! He is sooooo fast!

I'm really not a bad mommy...I just do a lot of parenting by 'ear'. I'm blessed with noisy kids, so 99% of the time, I know exactly where they are and what they're doing just by listening. I glance up every minute or two, and redirect as needed, and just let them play and explore. It's that 1% of the time when things get eerily quiet that I panic!

So Ari has a new nickname: "Flash"

Aristotle is on the move, big time. He does not want to sit at all! He's pulling up to everything and everyone he can, and will lock his legs when we try to put him down in a sitting position. He's even letting go for a second or two at a time. Scary, exciting stuff!

He's chowing down on everything I can give him, and eyeing the stuff he can't have yet with envy.

He did not enjoy the fireworks. He woke up just in time for our grand finale, and was scared to death of the big booms. Libby was scared too. Fourth of July just ain't what it used to be.