Wow.  How is it possible that I now the parent to a 9 month old?  Where did the time go?  Yesterday we went to the doctor for his 9 month appointment.  He is now 29 inches and 21 pounds/13 ounces.  He is growing right along the 75th percentile curve, which the doctor was very happy with (especially since he is still mostly breastfed).  I'll give you his stats and then I'll tell you what the doctor said regarding those stats.

Physical
Can sit on his own.
Can go from his back or stomach to a sitting position.
Can pull himself to stand on his own (in his crib or on the ottoman).
Can army crawl backwards.
Can crawl forward one or two times (then gives up and sits).
Likes to use his thumb and first finger to make pinchers to pick up the tiniest things off of the floor.

Non-Verbal
Waves bye-bye when you wave to him.
Reaches for you when you ask if he wants "up".
Turns to look when you say "where is daddy" or "where is the dog/cat".

Verbal
Says "dada" on occasion.
Babbles when he is by himself (in his crib before he goes to sleep or when he gets up).
Screams/grunts/cries when he wants you to pay attention to him.

Food
Still breastfeeding or taking bottles of breast-milk every 3 1/2 -4 hours.
Wakes up at least once a night to breastfeed.
Loves pureed baby food including all veggies and fruits.
Gums baby teething biscuits.
Gags and throws up when eating anything that is semi-solid (bananas, avocado, egg yolks).

Sleep
Takes 1-2 naps a day ranging from 45 min to 2.5 hours.  Totally variable!
Has slept up to 9 hours straight, but averages about 6 hours straight.
Goes to sleep around 6:30 PM, usually.
Wakes up around 7 AM, usually.

Activities
Goes to music class once a week at his pre-school that he will start attending in the summer.
Takes swimming lessons once a week and love it!
Has occasional play-dates with my friend's children, although not enough of them!
Loves reading books before bed.
Loves playing with his toys.
Loves playing peekabo

So I am not sure if this is the picture of a "normal" 9 month old or not.  The doctor told me that she would like to see more in the way of verbal skills by this point although she was ok with the non-verbal.  She told me that if he didn't make a ton of progress by 12 months that she would refer him to early intervention.  I hope that he makes progress in the next 3 months, which seems like a long time to wait if there is an issue, but I guess that is just how things work.  She also told me to start pushing more real food and to continue giving him water in a sippy (which he just pours out all over himself).

I am trying to keep to the assumption that all babies develop at different rates.  What is "normal" for one baby might not be "normal" for another.  It is tough because we live in a society where everyone compares everything to something else.  I guess I'll jut wait it out like they say.  Anyone else have any experience with "delays" such as this in a 9 month old?    

As for the Paleo Challenge, I am still going strong with the diet, although I could really use a chocolate chip cookie and a glass of red wine.  Those cravings have NOT gone away as it was suggested that they would.  I am keeping up with the 2-3 days a week of CrossFit and 3-4 days a week of running, too.  I have also forgotten to pay my car payment, forgotten to pay the electric bill, and screwed up the electronic payment for the mortgage so that they assessed me a late fee and refused to take it off even though I made the payment on time, but the account somehow didn't get set up correctly.  Aye.

One really great thing that happened though, was that I "won" my first race, for the females and got 4th overall!  It was a small race, but still a great ego booster.  I am getting closer to breaking 20 minutes in the 5k!!