At around 9 months too. Thought "what's the point?" when DD was picking up stones and all sorts and shoving them in her mouth. Once caught her hauling an empty butter tub out of the kitchen bin which she had pulled over and licking out the dregs!!! :D
bottles not such a biggie, I would steralise teats if its not too much hassle especially if they dont get washed/rinsed immediately after use. Its ony because milk residue can breed really harmful bacteria which can lead to a nasty tummy bug, you dont need to keep their environment sterile in general even when they are teent tiny.
I think general current advice is to sterilise bottles until children are 1 although I stopped earlier with my children, around 8 months, and had no issues.