Every year since we were engaged we’ve gotten professional pictures taken on or around our anniversary. It was just too easy to continue since we had engagement pictures and wedding pictures taken back to back years. With the exception of our 1 year photos (where we went a little more budget then I wish we had) we’ve been so happy with our pictures every year. This year Jessica Crawford took our photos again (she did last year’s and Helen Jeanette’s newborn pictures). I picked out the top 25 and she will edit them for us. In the meantime I’ve picked out my second favorites to share here unedited. So if you look at one that’s super cute there’s probably one similar that is even cuter that I’ll be sharing soon!

Helen Jeanette did decide this would be a great opportunity to blow unlimited raspberries, so there’s a little more tongue and drool in these pictures then usual!

Last night our neighbos not only babysat so we could go out to dinner, but she also took some great pictures of Helen Jeanette and put them on a cd for us! Here’s the link to her website, http://hollydwanphotography.com/

Thanks Holly!

Now that we’re actually closer to 10 months we finally had our 9 month appointment and I can share Helen Jeanette’s stats!

She is 28″ inches exactly (52%) and weights 18 lb 10.6 oz (53%) and she continues to rock out the 18.11″ head circumference (92%!).

She has one tooth that finally just broke through after 2 weeks of struggle. We first noticed (Uncle Daniel noticed first) Friday June 13th and it finally emerged yesterday.

Last night she was building with mega blocks! I uploaded a not-that-clear video to facebook but really it was amazing. She will try kind of clumsily but it only takes her a couple tries to get them to nest. I’m prouder then is reasonable.

She’s growling like a lion when she sees pictures of lions, tigers, bears and sometimes with no trigger at all. She’s definitely making the association though because today she was quietly listening to her baby Bible but as soon as we got to the page with Daniel in the lion’s den she starting growling.

Before I forget I need to post about Helen Jeanette at 9 months!

She doesn’t go to the doctor until the end of the month so I don’t have any stats, but at 9 months she:

Is crawling everywhere!

Is standing up a lot! She can stand for a minute or more without support and she loves to. She doesn’t seem to want to walk though, unless she’s supported by a table. She will try to reach to get from table to table but if it’s too far she’ll drop to her knees and take a couple crawl steps before pulling back up.

She has no teeth! Although she’s been doing a lot of night wakings and we think they may be coming.

She’s really exploring the world of food and has yet to turn anything down, although somethings give her a very peculiar look while she eats. Watermelon for instance gives her this face that says “This is completely disgusting” while she’s chewing, but as soon as she swallows she smiles and opens her mouth for more!

She says “Mama” and “Dadda” or “Dadee” a lot but so far we haven’t been able to definitely say that she’s directed them at one of us. She did stand up and look right at me the other day and said “Mama” but it still could have been a coincidence because she hasn’t done it again. Her other favorite thing to babble is “Babababa”.

She’s gotten a little clingy to Mommy, and is starting to really like sitting on my lap and reading books. Right after a nap she might be cuddly enough to sit through 4-5 books before she wants to get down and move.

She doesn’t appear to be showing any stranger anxiety and she is at her best and brightest when she’s being adored by lots of people. When I take her out I can see her watching people and sometimes she seems confused when people don’t look/wave/smile back at her.

She loves babies, kids, dogs, and cats and she just lights up when she sees them!

These pictures are from last weekend at Chris’s cousin Angie’s wedding in Ohio. She did a great job on the 16 hour round-trip car ride, but we made a lot of stops!

I’m still going through photos from Hawaii and I also owe a post about Helen Jeanette at 8 months. In the meantime I might upload a few family gems as I come across them.

This was Helen Jeanette’s first beach adventure and was a roaring success.

Helen Jeanette with Oma before our run.

How tall is too tall when it comes to standing in a crib? This scares me and I think it may be time for this crib to go. (This is the lowest it goes)