I’m 9 months old today, so it’s time for my score sheet! Let’s see what I’m doing better this month (I put my progress in bold):

• 100% = Sitting upright without support
• 100% = Crawling on my belly (but I’m always moving on all 4 now)
• 100% = Moving on all 4 (It’s been a month, almost… I started when my parents were on their NY trip, to surprise them. Now I’m lightning fast!)
• 100% = Climbing and standing upright
• 100% = Moving along the furniture, and from a piece of furniture to the next
• 00% = Standing without support
• 10% = Walking (I use the walker)
• 80% = Using a sippy cup

I’m still hopeful to meet my objective, which is to start walking in a month - we’ll see how that goes. Oh, and remember, how I was sleeping so great last month? We lost some ground on that front - teething and colds bother a lot, ie. twice a night. I’m a very awake and alert young lady, as strangers like to comment (and mom to reply “Oh, you have no idea…”).

What’s new besides all that? Well, I scared mama a little the other week: I fell on my back and hit my head - but that happens all the time… except this time, I wouldn’t roll over to get back up! I would do other activities as usual (I was even pretty joyful that day) but, all day, once I was placed on my back, I would stay there like an upturned turtle. Eventually, I would get frustrated at being thus immobilized - I didn’t express pain, but I refused to roll onto my belly.

There was some worry about back injury, but at the end of the day, I started rolling over again, carefully. My auntie Annie, orthotherapist and future osteotherapist, still came to check on me that night, but I was all ok. Probably just a sore muscle. Ah, good! (Thanks Annie!)

Oh well, if it doesn’t count, with the walker, I better continue working at the walking thing… see ya!

- Orly, 9 months

PS. Some of my favourite things: walking on all 4 around the kitchen island with mama and Xavier, dive head first into a pillow or Xavier’s bed, shake my booty to the sound of music, take apart the magnetic Dora puzzle on the fridge, eat small dry apple pieces with my hands (in fact, it’s often the only thing I’ll eat these days, with sore gums), watch daddy through the window in the morning.

The French sentence was “Mon Vieux, Tu M’As Jeté Sur Une Nouvelle Planète!” - ie. “Old buddy, you threw me on a new planet!” - for Mercury, Venus, Earth (la Terre), Mars, Asteroids, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. And very ironically (Simon won’t fail to tell me if I’m misusing that word), Pluto’s acronym word was “Planet”.

But I’m sure they considered that carefully when they decided to ditch it.

It spits out a new horoscope each time you reload. Don’t even need to tell it your sign! It’s a powerful generator!

(Unfortunately for you anglos, it’s French only. But isn’t it worth it to learn French just for a laugh?)
Here’s your totally genius and true horoscope!
Have fun.

BUT, we had to head back home, which didn’t make everyone happy…

It was for a good cause. We had to prepare the lasagna, because tonight, we’re celebrating someone…

CHRISTIAN! Yup, happy birthday to this brother of mine. 27 years old, wow, he’s aging as fast as I do!

Here’s our menu. Why? Just so that I can take comfort in the memories of delicious food as I’m chewing away on celeri sticks for the next 12 months.

Friday

Brunch on the road at the Golden Corral
- Greasy breakfast buffet for us both

Dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe
- Shared appetizer: Garlic olive oil dripped on toasted baguette bread, topped with herb cream cheese and bruschetta
- Frank: BBQ Hamburger with bacon, and fries
- Émilie: California Club Sandwich (a good grilled chicken & bacon sandwich, but I ordered distractedly… what I really wanted was a grilled chicken sandwich with avocado, tomato and swiss cheese)

Saturday

Breakfast at the hotel (Newark Liberty Marriott)
- Buffet set up for our group: eggs, potatoes, oatmeal, yogurt, bagels, pastries, fresh fruit. It was good quality food, and it’s where we ate breakfast all three mornings.

Lunch at the Positano, pasta place in Little Italy
- Frank: Carbonara fettucine (incredible stuff) and a glass of wine
- Émilie: Bolognese lasagna (which arrived before me 5 minutes after ordering)

Dinner at Uno, South Street Seaport
- Frank: Breaded and baked chicken topped with salad.
- Émilie: Grilled chicken breast stuffed with spinach, tomatoes, brocoli, pesto and cheese; side of twice-baked grattin mashed potatoes, and grilled veggies.

Sunday

Lunch at 2:30pm (starving!), at Big Nick’s Burger & Pizza Joint Too
- Both shared a whole 16″ pizza with chopped beef, mushroom, garlic…

Dinner at Planet Hollywood
- Frank: Salad with grilled marinated chicken and blue cheese dressing
- Émilie: Bruschetta appetizer (which betrays my sweet spot for bruschetta, and which was quite enough - I was still stuffed from mi-afternoon pizza).
- Back at the hotel: Each a slice of strawberry cheesecake from Junior’s

Monday

Lunch at the Essex World Cafe
- Frank: Turkey Panini
- Émilie: Tuna melt sandwich
- Shared an Oreo Brownie for dessert

Dinner on the road at the Golden Corral, again
- Dinner buffet for both

——
That wraps it up for the trip - visiting and eating covers pretty much all we did during our stay. We might go back on other visits meanwhile, but we reflected that it would be neat to go back in ten years for (quick calculation) our 20ieth anniversary, with the kids aged 12 and 10.