Darwin spends most of his 9th month in Canada!

This month Darwin took his first trip to Canada to see his family. It was quite a different experience for him since the weather was cool and he slept in a playpen near our bed. For me, that meant waking every couple of hours with Darwin to put him back to sleep. So I was quite exhausted during the day. However it was nice to have Grandma around to take care of Darwin while I slept in or wanted to take an afternoon nap.
We would also take Darwin for walks in his stroller downtown. We would walk along the harbourfront and around the Roger's skydome. Peter and I would take walks to get some lunch nearby or in the PATH. Darwin just loved these walks and most of the time he would take a nice long nap.

One day Grandma accompanied us to Eaton's center by subway and it was a nice little adventure since I found myself some great pairs of shoes. Most evenings in Toronto however were spent visiting family for dinner and introducing Darwin to everyone. They all just adored him. And Darwin was especially fond of his cousin Darius who he got to play with twice on his trip.

Darwin also became very close to his Auntie Rhea and Auntie Julie and loved all of their attention. He loved the drums at Rhea's and couldn't get enough of Julie's cuddles. His Grandma was just the best and cared for Darwin so well. She gave him baths, changed him, fed him and even put him down for naps. And I got to relax!

We also stayed with grandpa in Milton for 10 days and it was very relaxing. There was more space for Darwin to play and he slept much better in his own room. A couple of days after we arrived we noticed that Darwin's top three teeth were poking through and then I knew it was his teeth bothering him all along.
Darwin got to visit his Uncle Brandon in Guelph for one night. He was quite fussy in the later evening as a lot of other guests came over like Brandon and Nicole's parents. But he was great for naptime the following day and we got to relax and hang out like old times.

This past month Darwin really developed in both his mental and physical skills. He learned to clap this month and by the end began standing on his own for a few seconds. He also used a walker at Grandpa's to help him walk and we noticed him putting some rocks into a pail.

He's been eating so well too. He'll eat almost anything pureed or in chunks and just loves food. He's still working on drinking on his own. I've got a couple new sippy cups for him to practice.

Overall he did very well. Our flight to Canada was fine except maybe the last hour. He was crying and screaming but surprisingly people were tolerant and tried to cheer him up. I think the combination of ear pressure and lack of sleep was really getting to him. The Admiral's Lounge in Miami was wonderful and the flight back went great. The sleep situation throughout our visit wasn't ideal but we dealt with it the best we could. I think it was too long of a trip but necessary for Darwin's first visit. I can't wait to do it again!