Super Video Post!

Dear Sadie,

You've been doing so much cute stuff lately that we had to capture it all on video.

Fun with books 1:



Fun with books 2:



Fun with books 3
(You are so darn cute talking to your books that I had to put up 3 videos.)



Here you are crawling across the floor to eat the camera:



The other day you learned how to clap:



And finally, the funniest game ever:



If the camera work looks shaky, it's because it is hard to film while laughing.

Love, Mama

Pictures of Laura's Visit

Dear Sadie,

It turns out your Nana had some pictures of Laura's visit last month of the two of you playing.





It was so nice to see her.

Love, Mama

Nine Month Recap

Dear Sadie,

Your ninth month came and went so quickly I didn't get a chance to post an update and suddenly you are already 10 months old. But so much happened in month nine! Here are the top nine events/developments in (mostly) chronological order:

1. You learned to crawl!
On August 6 at about 11 am you took your first wobbly crawl across the living room floor. I got so excited I started shouting and your daddy came running thinking something was wrong. First you learned how to scoot backwards so you could get your knees back under your belly. Then you rocked around a bit on all fours. Next you moved all four limbs in a jerky stutter forward. And finally you just figured it all out and crawled across the floor. The very same day you learned to crawl, your dad went out and bought all the baby-proofing gear he could think of. We now have gates on the two living room doors, the tables are padded up like hockey players, all the electrical outlets have been plugged or blocked, every floor-level cupboard in the house has baby-proof latches, and a Pack 'n Play resides in front of the fireplace where Larry gets to hang out when you are on the prowl. It is not the chicest decor, but it puts our mind at ease to have the main room in our house a safe place for you to explore.




2. Aunt Laura came to visit

Your Aunt Laura came to play with you. You are so much bigger (and blonder) than when she last saw you at Christmas that she almost didn't recognize you. You liked to grab her pretty earrings. Unfortunately, I missed getting any pictures of her visit and our house photographer was out of town. But we did have a nice birthday dinner party for your Nana while she was here.

3. We took a trip to Crested Butte, CO

You went on your third plane trip to Colorado to visit your Auntie Megan. She is having a baby soon and we loved seeing her strut around town with her big belly. Your grandparents Ruth and Steve met us in Crested Butte and we had a really nice time together in the mountains. We decided it was the first annual Crested Butte Briggs Family Vacation and we intend to come back every summer. You were excited by all the big dogs. Megan has a gentle giant of a dog who loves babies. You got to sit on his back, which might look like dog-torture, but Duke was wagging his tail and trying to lick you the whole time. We also got to meet Thorley, your grandparents' new German Wirehair Pointer puppy. Other highlights from the trip include a day at Blue Mesa Reservoir, a hike through the wild flowers and Megan's baby shower BBQ.









4. Uncle David came to visit

The next visitor was Uncle David. He has a funny beard you liked to poke with your fingers. We went to the beach with David and you got to kick your feet in the water and play with the sand. We have been down to the beach a zillion times for walks, but this was the first time you got to get out of the BOB and play in the water. Mostly you liked it. On the way home we stopped for frozen yogurt and you fell asleep.









5. Clive and Jes came to visit

Clive and Jes arrived the day you learned to crawl and they got to watch you master it. They played with you on the floor and Jes taught you how to bump foreheads softly in a sort of headbutt kiss. Cute stuff. We also had another trip to the beach, but this time you didn't like kicking at the water as much. It was so fun having Clive and Jes here that we are already scheming for a Thanksgiving visit.







6. Your current list of words:

• cat
• dog
• hi
• bye
• car
• daddy

You are very talkative and make lots of complicated sounds in your baby babble. I can't wait to understand some of it.

7. You LOVE your books

Your favorite things to play with lately have been your books. You sit on the floor and turn the pages and just talk and talk and talk in baby chatter. It looks a lot like you are reading them, or at least carrying on an animated conversation with them. We still read Where the Wild Things Are every night as part of our bedtime routine. You laugh and get excited when we turn the pages and you point to what you see on the pages. It really pleases me that you like your books so much.




8. You are eating more

You are still not willing to eat very many different things, but you like to sit in your highchair several times a day and eat things you can pick up yourself. You like baby cereal puffs, bits of bananas and grapes, occasionally a well cooked carrot, and the baby yogurt is still your favorite. When you get something you like in your mouth you do your funny little seated dance as you mash it with your gums. You still do not have any teeth.








9. Auntie Amy came to visit

Auntie Amy is also about to have a baby and she came to visit you before her life gets very very busy. We did the usual things Amy likes to do here like get pedicures and eat at all of her favorite restaurants. We also made some sweet little pink things for her baby to be. Amy made burp cloths and bibs and I made a little pair of shoes. We can't wait until little Maddie is born and she can come visit us too.






You still like to go to Baby Club. Here's a photo of you and your friends getting soggy bottoms on the beach:



You are getting so big and more and more fun to play with. We love hearing you laugh and shriek when things delight you. You still like to do funny little seated dancing whenever you hear music or just when you are feeling spontaneous joy. And when you wave and say "hi" in your sweet little voice it is so cute it just about breaks my heart.

We love you so.

--Mama