This sweet boy turned NINE MONTHS OLD on the first of this month and I am feeling all the feels right now. It is so amazing how sometimes, the days seem to pass so slowly, but yet, as I look around I feel as if he should still be that sweet, tiny newborn and I wonder where the moments have gone.

I know I say this on every single monthly update (which I guess is a good thing) but seriously, this stage is my favorite. Between Benaiah’s toothy grins, belly laughs, and mobility- this new season is so much fun. Busy, but fun.

Sleeping

Benaiah is doing so much better with sleeping than he used to. Sure, we still have a few wake up calls throughout the night, but normally he will wake up around 1-2 times during the night for a quick feeding and sleep until anywhere from 5:30 (early riser!) – 7:30. I think it all depends on the day. Normally, he will go down easily around 7:00 pm and we have his bedtime routine down to a science. Dinner – Bath – Read – Nurse – Songs – Bed. BOOM.

Sleep has been the biggest hurdle for us and having a good bed time routine and a Benaiah who will now go done easily at night is a huge victory for us. I am so thankful for the hours I get in the evening.

Naps

I am happy to say that naps time is getting better. We still aren’t perfect, but we have made great strides this past month! Recently, Benaiah has been napping in the morning anywhere between 8:30-9:30 and will sleep around an hour or an hour and a half. Some days, he will take a cat nap around 11 or 12, for around 45 minutes to an hour.

Depending on what we are doing on any given day, afternoon naps are a hit or miss, but on a good day, he will nap for an hour and around 1-3.

Social and New Skills

I have a feeling we are going to have quite the talker on our hands! Benaiah is constant chatter, (unless he is in his intense observation mode) and can say ‘da da’ ‘ma ma’ <normally when he is crying, and ‘ba’ (< his new favorite word). He loves to giggle, crawl around everywhere, and cuddle. Recently, he has started laying his head down once he gets tired and loves to sing with mommy and daddy. He also has started copying noises and loves to mimic the noise of the blender when I make my morning smoothies.

Benaiah is always on the go and loves exploring. He is learning not to touch the treadmill and trash cans and he loves going on runs with mommy.

Eating

There is no doubt about it, Benaiah loves his food- especially bananas. I am confident that if he had bananas all day long, he would be one happy camper. Thankfully, we are eating more than bananas around here and some of his current favorite foods (aside from nanners) are: sweet potatoes, plain Greek yogurt, scrambled eggs, pinto beans, broccoli, carrots and applesauce. He’s recently tried brown rice, quiona, and a little bit of whole grain bread and wasn’t a huge fan of the grains.

Benaiah nurses through the day, normally right away in the morning, before naps and after and right before bed. However, I am not super strict about how much he nurses during the day, since I love those nursing cuddles – now more like wiggles!

How am I Doing?

I think it may have taken nine months, but I finally feel like we’ve made it to a good routine and I am loving it. I am a person who thrives on schedules and check lists, so feeling like we finally have a little routine good feels really, really good.

As I look back these last nine months, I can see God’s good hand of grace through all the changes, the difficulties and the beautiful moments. Going through postpartum anxiety proved to be probably the hardest thing I’ve gone through, but seeing God’s grace wrap around me through those months was one of the most amazing things I’ve experienced yet. I saw just how much God loves me, knows my needs, and just how much I need him.

I’ve also learned that it is OKAY to not have it all together. SO MANY TIMES, Instagram, Facebook, etc. shows us the highlights of motherhood and not the ‘spilled milk’ moments. I am someone who hates letting others down and always strives to be the best version of me and when I can’t reach those goals, I easily become discouraged.

However, over these beautiful and crazy nine months, God has shown me just how weak I truly am in my own strength, yet when I turn to Him alone, He never fails to supply every single ounce of strength, joy, courage, peace, etc. that I need.

I’ve also been blessed with some other great mama friends who I’ve connected with in the past nine months and have been so encouraged and loved on by these women.

Physically, I feel strong and excited for the goals I am chasing down and loving this marathon training process! As I see my body grow stronger and faster, I am amazed by how wonderful God has created our bodies to be! I am thankful to be able to run and definitely feel in the best running shape of my life! WOOHOO!

There really is no better ‘job’ than being Benaiah’s mama and seeing the light in his eyes when I walk in the room makes everything so, so worth it. Raising Benaiah and loving him brings me joy each day and I am so thankful that God chose me to be his mother. I love you, my sweet son. I know you will do amazing things.