8 months!

Dear Adeline Grace,

            How are you 8 months old?! This was definitely the month that flew by the fastest! I feel like it was just last week that you were turning 7 months old.  This month was full of your personality shining and developing even more (how is that possible?!).  You continue to amaze us!

So what have we learned about you this month and what have you been up to in your eighth month of life?

Here are some of your firsts this month...
 

On 6.10.12, you went to the church nursery for the first time.  You cried a lot.  We are still working on this!

On 6.14.12, you got yourself from laying on belling to sitting up on your own by yourself for the first time.  Now, already, you get up and down like it's nothing.  You are a pro!

On 6.15.12, you sat yourself up in your crib for the first time during a nap time.  You were very proud!

On 7.4.12, you celebrated your first 4th of July.  We went to your grandparents' and had a cook-out and swam!

This month you also:

-started full-on crawling! (belly off the floor!)

-starting waving "bye bye"
-put together two words: "hi da da" (Your daddy worked very hard with you on this...and now you say it all the time!)
-started saying "buh"--we think it's Boone, because when you say it and then we call for him to come to you, you smile and get excited
-tried gobs more food (zucchini, mango, spinach, etc.) so far you are still liking everything
-started drinking from a straw sippy cup instead of the nozzle kind
-started making music with your toys (you love to have a toy in each hand and bang them together)
-brought table food to your mouth for the first time...baked potato (your face was priceless)
-started being able to pull-up on occasion
-using the walker toy
-putting puffs to your mouth (you hoard them with your hands and grab as many as you can, and then will occasionally put a piece to your mouth)
-started showing some signs of separation anxiety (you are a momma's girl!)
-started getting yourself to your knees sometimes and sitting like that while you play
-started crawling or reaching for mommy or daddy when something is too loud
-started laughing when you get tickled
-got a second tooth on the bottom!

So what do you like and dislike?

You love…

-swimming (you are getting such a tan, missy! your little chunky rolls have white lines in between them.  So cute!)
-talking (hi dada, buh)
-being around people/people watching
-making funny faces ("ohhhhh" face and a nose scrunched up face)
-your mommy and daddy (and Boone, of course)
-playing and crawling around on the floor with your toys
-your huge teddy bear that your daddy bought you
-touching people's faces (and pulling mommy's hair)

You dislike…

-diaper and clothing changes

-when you are awake in your crib and Mommy or Daddy leave the room

-sitting still for any period of time

-going down for a nap (unless we're in the car)

-having shoes on (you kick them right off)

-chunky food

 

What are your sizes?

You are in 9 month sleepers.  You are also in 9 month clothing.  You are in size 3 diapers when in disposables and are in second snap setting on your cloth diapers! You still have lots of chunks and rolls....love it!

I'm not sure of your weight and height this month...your next check-up is at 9 months!

What are your eating habits like?

You nurse around 7-8, 12-1, 4, and 7 for anywhere from 5 to 12 or so minutes.  You also wake sometimes once or twice during the night and nurse.  I am trying to now limit you to doing this just once a night so that you eat more during the day.  This happens usually around 3 or 4ish

You are also eating "real food" at each meal. You eat oatmeal every morning, you eat a fruit and/or veggie at lunch, and a fruit and/or veggie as well as oatmeal for dinner.  You are eating everywhere between 4 and 8 oz. a day of baby food.  We have gone to mostly jarred natural and/or organic baby food right now.

You love drinking water.  We have to limit you and make sure you don't do it before your meal...it fills you up! You also still love to chew on items that we put into your little food sack.

How is your sleeping?

You threw us for a loop with your sleeping this month! You have never been a napper, but really started seeming to boy-cot naps, even though you still seemed so sleepy.  We are in the midst of doing some loose sleep training again.  I think you being able so sit up in your crib on your own has really messed with you.  You get very frustrated and mad that you are in your crib and fight sleep like it's your enemy. You also get really unhappy when you wake up and realize we aren't in the room.  So here's what it looks like tentatively right now while sleeping is "under construction" and, knock on wood, we are making headway:

Bedtime routine and down for night: 7 pm

-you wake-up numerous times throughout the night often; we do all sorts of things to work on it right now as we try to wean you from being picked up and helping you through this phase of separation anxiety...patting you on the back, talking to you, shhhh-ing you, sitting in your room, etc.

Wake-up:  between 7 and 8 (you seem to get 12 hours of sleep no matter what.  You tend to adjust your wake-up time according to how much you were up during the night)

Nap: 9ish for around 30-45 minutes

Nap: 2ish for around 30-45 minutes (on occasion this will be a longer nap)

So what makes you, you this month?

You are one spunky, feisty, full-of-life little girl.  You are so full of joy and fun.  You are so smart and inquisitive.  You soak in the world around you and go with the flow as you are introduced to so many new experiences and interactions.  You never stop and are always, always on the go.  You love meeting people and often will make eye contact and talk to people that mommy and daddy don't even see until we hear you saying "hiiii" to them.  You have never met a stranger.  We laugh at you, squeeze you, and kiss you constantly.  We often just sit back and watch you and we stand over you as you sleep just shaking our head in amazement.  We cherish every single memory and day we have with you while we get so excited thinking about all that God has in store for you, little one.  We pray for you daily, that you will love God with all your heart and will find your purpose in life...both in and through Christ.  You have made our days so bright and our life so much sweeter.  We love you so much, baby girl.  You are our world and we are incredibly grateful for this most amazing gift God has given us in you.

                                                                                                    Love,

                                                                                                    Mommy and Daddy (Dada)