a portrait of Ena at 9 months

My baby, my dear Bumble BeEna, my sweet darling.
2 days ago you became 9 months old. How can you only be 9 months, when it feels like you have been here forever?
You are a joy and a delight, a light in our lives.
You are 9 months old,
you have 4 little teeth and more on the way.
Your hair is growing, you have a quiff like your daddy's and tiny little curls that hang over your ears.
You have just learnt to crawl and creep slowly around the room, picking up everything I don't want you to.
You pull up to stand, delighted with yourself and take big, clumsy steps with a grin on your face. You will never hold on with 2 hands, always letting go with one, preferring to feel your own balance.
You say hello to everyone, especially that baby in the mirror. Your little arm outstretched palm open and facing the person.
You love kids and babies. Kissing your older brothers and sister and watching them with concern on your face if they are upset. When we are with other babies you try to get to them, to touch them and coo at them, and if she cries then you cry too.
You love sitting at the dinner table with us all, dropping little bits of what you have to the dogs.
We play a game together, all banging the table with our hands like you do, following your lead, stopping when you do. It makes you laugh.
You like eating. At the moment your favourite things are soup and home-made gingerbread. Yesterday you asked me for a drink of my water from the glass and you learnt to drink, just like a big girl.
Bath time makes you happy, although it drives me nuts as you spend your whole time trying to stand up using the handles on the sides of the bath.
You love music and danced before you could stand or crawl. You shake your head and bounce up and down or if you're in the sling or being held in daddy's arms you kick your legs and wave your arms. Your favourite song is still Uptown Funk.
At night you sleep with us, needing to feel our closeness, often with daddy's finger clenched tightly in your little fist.
When you wake you look for me and snuggle in close for a few minutes before drifting off again. You are pretty rubbish at going to bed though and need comforting every hour or so, which can be tiring, but I know it won't be forever and after all you are only little...but I would really like it if you could stop biting me please.
Darling girl, you are so loved, we are so blessed that you chose us, how we have loved every second of these past 9 months