Joanne and her antics

Joanne turns 9 months tomorrow. Time really flies. She can now crawl very well even with her long pants, walk around with support (cruising) with her socks, on our marble floor! She's also climbing stairs at my parents' house with gusto! She explores on her own and would be caught red-handed messing up the newspaper or the things on the coffee table. She has learned to pull drawers and attempted to open my TV console doors.

She has her own toys, but she loves to disturb her brother and touch his toys. and what does Matthew do? sit there and "scream"! funny thing is that when she's all alone (like early in the morning when Matthew is still sleeping), she will play with her own toys. She loves trains and cars, so tomboy. Unlike Matthew at her age, Jo doesn't like to flip books, she chews books!

She is now making lots more sounds and noise, shows her excitement seeing me or Mike and DEFINITELY when she sees Matthew. She directs people in the direction she wants to go (not me, her grandparents!).

This is from one of my fav parenting websites > CanadianParents.com

At Nine Months, Baby Wants You To Know

How I Grow
I may crawl and turn around while holding something in one hand. Tick
I can crawl up stairs, too. But I may not be able to crawl back down yet. Tick
I may sit by myself and turn my body all the way around -- without losing my balance. Tick
I stand for a little while if you hold my hand. Tick
I poke my fingers into holes and other interesting places. Tick
I pick up small things with my finger and thumb Cross, and big things with both hands. Tick
I pull myself up by holding on to furniture Tick, but I may have trouble getting back down. Cross, sit down from standing position with ease

How I Talk
I understand some words, my name and simple sentences. Tick
I repeat one or more sounds over and over. Tick
I listen to people talking and try to imitate the sounds. Tick
I begin to say two-syllable sounds like choo-choo, da-da and ma-ma. Tick

How I Respond
I like to watch people scribbling on paper. Tick
I like to perform for people. I love it when they applaud! Tick
I sometimes want praise for my accomplishments. how do we know? just load them with lots of praises?

How I Understand
I try to figure things out by myself. Tick, very good at it
I know that if I look at things upside down or cover my eyes, they'll look different. ? how do we know she know?
I get upset if my toy is taken away from me. Tick, that happens to most kids, right?
I may remember a game, person or toy from yesterday. very doubtful on this point
I can tell what mood people are in by looking at them. She definitely can tell if I'm angry and she would be very quiet...

How I Feel
I'm very sensitive. If I see another baby cry, I may cry, too. Matthew does that too when Jo cries!!!???
I may become afraid of a lot of things that didn't bother me before, like taking a bath. Tick, to a certain extent
I'm afraid of heights. another question mark? baby know definition of heights?
I'm very determined, and sometimes stubborn. It's all part of my growing up! we parents try to understand that :)

How You Can Help Me Learn
Talk to me. Listen to me. Take turns.
Praise me when I do something new. I need your encouragement.
Give me finger foods so I can practice picking up small things.