Our shrimp

Parker had his 9-month appointment today. He is absolutely not following in his sister's footsteps when it comes to size. He's currently in the 25% for head circumference, 25% for weight (20lbs.), and 50% for height (28.5in.). Although he looks and feels big to me, he's not the big boy we thought he'd be. But what he lacks in size he's making up for in determination. It's a good thing Madeleine is so much bigger than him because he's a force to be reckoned with. He will dive head first off the couch if you don't keep your eye on him and he's already defying gravity and balance by trying to let go of furniture while side-stepping. He crawls over us like we're mere speed bumps and scales my pant leg to stand up and beg to be picked up while I do dishes. Because of his increase in activity and slight dip in growth curve, the pediatrician advised me to start feeding him more throughout the day and to introduce more protein in the evening to see if that helps him sleep more at night without waking up hungry. She also suggested starting him on some soy milk (due to his dairy allergy) which will help him not be so dependent on nursing. So tonight he had some chicken and stars with mixed vegetables which went over pretty well and half a sippy cup of plain soy milk! He didn't even flinch at the milk...just gave it a curious look after taking the first sip. I am excited and somewhat overwhelmed at the amount of work I have ahead of me negotiating his movements and eating habits, along with his sister's reactions to all of this. However, he is a healthy and very happy baby and that's something to be very thankful for!

(P.S. More Cline/Arey staycation pictures will be posted later. Papa and Mimi left this morning just after Parker and I left for the doctor. We would have been lost without their help this past week and look forward to hopefully another visit in '09!)