And, Ella, too.

Ella, not to be outdone in the world by her big brother, has updates.  She's been cruising through the various stages of baby food:  pureed, thick puree, blended mostly, chunky puree, yogurt, diced canned pears, and now- in the last four days- actual food.  We started the actual food category with none other than- Cheerios!  I was hesitant cause it takes actual teeth and knowhow to take on Cheerios.  Gerber puffs work when you're on old lady denture status but Cheerios take actual chewing.  And, she handled it like a pro.

Now, we've moved right up the big girl food ladder to small seashell pasta, steamed broccoli (the very tops of the trees, not the chunky stems), stewed tomatoes, turkey meatballs, rice pilaf, pancakes, and scrambled egg yolks.  I have to say, this girl LOVES to think she's a big kid.  She gets the biggest kick out of having real deal food on her tray and grabbing it with all five fingers, squashing it down with her fist, and swiping her entire hand across the general surface of her face until something falls in her mouth.  If she really concentrates and stops making googly eyes at Daddy across the table, she can pick up something with just two fingers and delicately place it in her mouth for her two, tiny teeth to mash.  But, usually, she's looking around trying to get noticed and half-assing it.

Also, now that she has actual food to power her super chunky legs, she's a moving machine.  Not crawling by definition but still able to get from nice, cozy playmat to the power outlet before I can say childproof!  Sure she jumped from the 50th percentile at 6 mos old to the 95th percentile at 9 mos old at a mere 21 lbs but that's only because she is gearing up to motor like no one's business and needs some extra chunk on her knees and booty to get that baby body moving.  She LOVES to stand on the couch and peek over the back at Daddy.  I would not be surprised at all if she crawls for 9.2 nanoseconds and switches right to walking.  You go, Ella.