9 Months of Our Vivacious Hayes
9 months of Hayes Nolan Fisher. This one feels extra special because it’s how long he was inside me. It really puts time into perspective. Every of his life has been so different but wow the change from 8 month to 9 months was crazy.
This man is on the move every moment of the day ~ rapidly crawling, exploring every corner, babbling away, mimicking everyone that talks to him (peaches included), climbing anything he can, and watching us constantly. His zest for life is infectious (and exhausting hahaha). One of our lovely neighbors said he’s a “vivacious boy” and I think that’s just the most accurate way to describe him.
I feel like I’ve known him in many other lifetimes. And I think he’s also lived so many lives already. He just knows things. You can see how hyper observant he is in his eyes and facial expressions. It’s so fun to witness. He already knows if I give him my debit card, to hold onto it through the store and then recognizes the machine to tap it on.
We’ve been diligent about ‘elimination communication’ since birth and this week he independently crawled to his potty chair and got on it to poop (while I was in the other room)… obviously very messy lol but I was shocked to see him do that on his own already.
Keeping his mind and body stimulated is a real effort so everyday we’re on the go from swimming to bike rides to park play dates to library hangs. Of course he works up quite an appetite so I’m still breastfeeding every 3 ish hours, even at night time (aka I haven’t slept more than a 3 hour stretch since he was born). I am thankful he will eat absolutely anything (except a puree) from salmon to broccoli to onions to a snail that crawled into our kitchen. I’m getting a glimpse into how much he’s gonna eat during puberty 😆
From the day he was born, one of my nicknames for him was ‘brave boy’ and it’s certainly still true. Nothing phases him... his curiosity outweighs his processing of danger. He’s alll about all of it ~ loud sounds, music and dancing, animals, being tossed around, park swings and slides, rambunctious kids, being dunked under water, hanging upside down, you name it.
I’ve always been quite a germaphobe but he’s quickly teaching me to let that go. Now you’ll find me crawling under tables after him, accepting his sticky fingers grabbing my face and being shoved in my mouth, getting into the play gym ball pit and into the community pool.
But after all his exploring, he needs his closeness and cuddles. Probably 95%+ of his naps since he was born have been in mine or Clay’s arms and every single night he’s in our bed and on my boob. My goal was to make it to 9 months and we did it. Maybe the hardest most selfless thing I’ve ever accomplished. He’s not showing signs of weaning anytime soon so I’ll keep chugging along.
All in all, it’s such a joy to hang out with this vibrant boy. Another month down without daycare and without screens. But I did cave and give him a bite of ice cream haha. He challenges me to expand my capacity everyday and I’m grateful to be his momma 🫶🏽🦋🩵