9 months.

Now that Miles is almost 10 months old, I thought it was time to finally post his 9 month update. It has taken me forever to finish writing this (obviously)! So without further ado...

Okay, first off -- look at that face!! Ahh! 

Second -- this was definitely the most challenging photo shoot yet. Little man can MOVE! Whew. Most of the shots look like this:

And this: 

I recruited my mom on FaceTime to try to help him stay focused and entertained while I snapped away (hoping it would keep him from climbing the walls!). She did a great job. The picture below was taken as he burst into hysterical laughter while she said "wiggle worm" in a silly voice over and over. Whatever works!

This was another big month with lots of ups and downs (the downs mostly due to teething pain). Four more new teeth emerged (in addition to the two he had before)! The days before they popped were pretty tough, poor guy. But his smile is adorably toothy now :) Some of his favorite things to do are: crawl (everywhere, all the time, really fast), hang upside down and -- a new milestone this month -- pull himself into standing position, which he is so good at now I am starting to think that walking is probably not too far off (yikes). We are always joking about how busy he is -- going here, there and everywhere, always on a mission it seems. It's exhausting to keep up with him yet oh-so-entertaining to watch. 

He loves stealing coasters (see above), iphones, and remote controls, often times preferring to play with those things rather than his own toys. He's also talking up a storm these days, carrying on full and impassioned conversations (lots of dadadadas and babababas) with anyone who will listen. I love hearing his little voice.  

He is turning into quite the little charmer, winning over entire tables of diners, plus all the wait staff, whenever we go out to eat. Sometimes he'll pick out one person who isn't paying attention to him and will let out a loud squeal until they look up at him, at which point he flashes them his best smile. Hilarious and adorable.   

Since his naps are way more predictable now, thank goodness, we can actually plan outings and play dates with friends much more easily. There have been many picnics in Central Park (my favorite), which is perfectly fine with Miles, it seems, as he loves the freedom to crawl all over the vast, grassy spaces. And it's been so fun to see him interact with other babies his age. Whereas before they mostly just stared at one another or did their own thing, now they are old enough to actually share toys and "talk" to one another.

I could go on and on with more details and highlights, but I will stop there :) This is a great way to keep a log of milestones and such, which I know we will cherish in the future. If you're still reading at this point, thanks for following along in the minutiae of Miles' life!