Nina now climbs up steps and places she can reach. Luckily she also learned to descend from her legs, instead of head. It's a count down to a crazy time.

We had a lovely hanami play date  in a perfect weather. Sakura, we'll miss you, see you next year!

Nina loves chicken and tomatoes. She has some yogurt with fruits as a dessert, as well.

Chicken n tofu meatball:

Ground chicken, silk tofu, shiitake mushroom, dill, onion, egg, potato starch, grated garlic, a hint of miso

Nina has been difficult when she's fed by spoon. She tries to steal a spoon and self- feed or bang the spoon, make a mess, and drop them all. So, I decided to make a finger food that's more like a meal. I started off with turkey and tofu mini humburg. To give some flavor, I added chopped onion, grated ginger & garlic, and aonori flakes. She ate like 7-8 small pieces! She first mushed the humburg into smaller pieces, then ate and played. Now that the tip of her bottom-front 2 teeth are out, she can kind of cut up some food. I'd say it's a great start.

Nina's first instrument, "Yuki" the ukulele has arrived yesterday. She was already familiar with the sound since her papa played for her sometimes. This is the video of her first contact with her own ukulele.

Nina went to a park for the first time yesterday. Though she can't walk yet, she was able to try a swing, slides, and some gyms. Now that it's nice out, we'll be exploring our local parks.

Nina loves her sippy cup with a straw. She now likes to do things by herself. When we go out, I take her sippy cup and give it to her when she gets loud, instead of her toy. With a toy, she tosses it when she gets bored, but with a sippy cup, she holds on to it. I put water in it, so she gets hydrated with no mess. That's nice.

Nina now strolls with her walker by herself. She can walk from the window side of our kitchen to the bathroom, if I cut the corner for her. She already has a pretty good balance and can sometimes stand or squat hands free for few seconds.

Nina just turned 9 months old his morning. She used a walker to the longest distance by herself. She also attempted to self-feed her breakfast with a spoon. It got real messy, but made her proud of herself. I guess I gotta start letting her use a utensil, and be ready to clean up a mess after meal.