Baby Wrangling

I have been an absentee blogger lately! Probably because I have been spending most of my days baby wrangling! We officially have a VERY mobile baby! I was so concerned because as of her 9 month birthday she hadn't started officially crawling yet. She would scoot, army crawl, and roll and scoot some more to get places and would get on all 4's and rock but then get on her tummy to scoot around. She loved sitting and playing and LOVED standing. 

Here is her standing during her 9 month baby photo shoot

I talked to the pediatrician (who was not concerned at all ) because all of Ava's baby friends were crawling already. .... That is right I broke Mommy rule #1! You cannot compare your baby to other babies! Ava is very advanced in eating, lol! But she really is. She only eats finger foods, no purees anymore. She is a and has been a fabulous little sleeper since 3 months, and is very very vocal but physically she was content not pushing herself when there are other toys closer by to play with. Well that all changed at 9 months and one day. Ava started full crawling and then later that evening decided to walk by herself with her walker! I could not believe in one day she went from contently playing to walking and crawling. 

Ava in full crawl for the first time. Yes I bribe her with the ipad! Hey, I play educational games! 

Now this walking thing has gone from 0-60 in 2 weeks. Tiny Toes (We call her this because she has INCREDIBLY small feet! She just now fits in 0-3 month shoes. I do not know how these tiny toes can support her body weight but somehow they do) wants to walk all day! She still cant walk alone but is starting to walk only holding 1 of our hands and she walks all over the house with her walker. I always follow very closely to catch her if falls. I know walkers are "dangerous" but I have no stairs and I am not going to let her use it when I am not 6 inches away to catch her. So basically from 7am to 7pm minus 2.5 hours of napping, possibly 2 hours of errands, we are walking around. She has started to loose her chubby thighs, saddest thing ever, her appetite has almost doubled, and she is taking some awesome long naps! 

Ava walking with her walker. She can get it off the wall, flip it around, and take off. 

This is Ava pushing her stand and play table because I had moved her walker so I could leave the room and get the laundry. Guess I can't leave her alone anymore. Even for just 20 seconds! 

It is so funny to me how we Moms worry so much about our child development, especially during the first year. I think SAHM and first time Mom's are even worse at it, but we obsess on when they roll over, when they start sleeping through the night (That is a big one because Momma loves her sleep), when they crawl, pull up, walk, eat solids... I know I am at fault for comparing her to other babies but she is going to do what she wants to do when she wants to do it! I went to library story time on Tuesday and there was a little boy who was 5 days older than Ava. He was crawling around so fast, pulling up on everything, and far more advanced in terms of agility but his Mom was saying how he hates trying to walk. She tries all the time and he just bends his knees when she tries to hold him up to walk. He found his way to move and is sticking to it. Whereas Ava is still clumsy while crawling can pull up to her knees and sometimes all the way but not always, but can totally run while she is holding both of our hands. 

So my Mommy advice to you Mom's out there let your child advance at their own pace. There aren't many adults out there that can't walk or roll over or sit or eat solids... Just relax, have a glass of wine (preferably after the husband gets home but to each their own ;)) and enjoy your baby at every phase!