8 months

What happens when life gets super busy? The blog takes a back seat for too long! There are oodles of updates to give, but I will just post about Emily's 8 month happenings first. Next post can be about our trip to Texas!

8 months sounds so old. Like we are officially out of little baby stage and into "big baby / not yet toddler" stage. I'm sure every parent has an age determined for when these transitions happen, but I always thought 8 months sounded like we were on our way into something new. And so far I think that has proved true. Emily is more interactive than ever and is starting to "talk" more and study what I do. This week she mimicked me patting over and over during dinner and might have tried a clap once. When I changed from patting to clapping she furrowed her eyes brows and brought her hands together in her mouth. Too cute!

I also felt her first two teeth for the first time on her 8 month birthday on Monday. They keep scooting up ever so slightly this week and are sharp little suckers. She is handling it so well! I am thankful that she is getting them now when she is more able to use teethers than when she was younger.

Emily is also getting better at moving from sitting to supporting herself on her arms and seems delighted that she can reach more toys this way. Last Friday she stayed up with her arms extended all the way for a few seconds for the first time and she's been doing it more and more every day. Way to go, Em! She is also wanting toys that are out of reach when she is on her belly now and is fussing and kicking to try to get them. Once those muscles develop to catch up with her motivation, we'll be in business. I give it 2 months max til she's crawling and probably sooner. She also said "baba" a couple of times while we were in Texas and is vocalizing and squealing more (usually when she is getting tired and is fighting it!)

The unfortunate new development is a delight in spewing food everywhere! It has made mealtime interesting and has given me the first real reason to try out the word "no" with her. Recent food introductions since the last post have been green beans, plums, peaches, and summer squash. The only one she wasn't too enthusiastic about was peaches, so I have decided she doesn't like tart flavors too much. But really I have been impressed with how well she has accepted everything. We have a good little eater so far! Not sure what will be next on the list. We are entering the age when I can start trying a lot more things like meats, eggs, puffs, corn, and wheat. When those teeth come through a little more we might be able to do cheerios or crackers and cheese. This is all assuming there is no gluten intolerance. She reacted to oatmeal, so there is a chance that she has that. I am praying that is not the case, though! Gluten is even harder to avoid than milk and if you can't handle gluten, it is a lifelong problem. We'll just have to be brave and try wheat and see how it goes.

Sleep has been going well many nights also, and she did amazingly well considering all the changes we had while in Texas. Now that daylight savings has moved us forward an hour, Emily is going to bed around 7:45-8:15, eating once around 4-6 and then sleeping til at least 7. Woohoo! I know most people adjust their kids back to their original schedules with a new time change, but I was ready to move her forward an hour. This mama is much happier if I can see my baby at 7am and not 6am! Em still takes 3 naps a day most days, 1 at least an hour and the other two 30-45 minutes. I'm thinking we might be able to stretch it to 2 pretty soon, but since that would mean an earlier bedtime and possibly an earlier wake up time, I am in no rush to change things yet.