8 Months!

Dearest Sweet Girl,


You have now hit 8 months old. I can't get my head around that fact. I remember reading other people's blogs seeing what their 8 month old looked like, and I still see you as my teeny baby girl (well, you are still our teeny baby girl.)


This has been a very exciting month for you. It's like everything is clicking all at once. Your new tricks include:


1. The double hand wave. I call this one the "Lane Frost". If anyone out there has seen 8 Seconds, then they know what I'm talking about. When we ask you if you can wave, you will wave at us. If we say "bye-bye", you will wave. If we say "hello", you will wave. If you see Zoe walking by, you will squeal, then wave. SO cute!


2. Clapping. I think I mentioned it earlier, but you are a huge fan of clapping. I think because I'd always clap when you were getting fussy (which rarely happens), you picked up on clapping very quick. Usually you clap when you are happy or when we say "yay!"


3. My absolute favorite - kisses! I love that you now give me (and sometimes daddy) the sweetest kisses! Your kiss is an open mouth on the cheek, then a lick. It might be why you and I are sharing a snotty nose right now, but I don't care - I love it!


4. Kiss the baby. Since you've learned how to give kisses, we can show you a mirror and tell you to "kiss the baby" and you will lean in and open your mouth on the mirror. This is something that I did when I was a baby and your Grams took a cute picture of me doing it. When you started picking up on things, I knew we had to teach you to do that too!


5. Sounds that sound like actual words. When Uncle Mike & Aunt Donna were going out for the night a few weekends ago, they were waving and we were all saying bye and you waved and said "bye-bye". I like to think that you were actually saying bye-bye, even though it was probably coincidence. Also, you were sitting with your Daddy in Oregon and said "Dad-ee." Whether you were associating it to him or not, we don't know, but all I know is that we both heard it and your Daddy has been trying to get you to repeat it every since! You've also been saying sounds that sound like "mama". Like I said, you may not associate it, but we love it.


6. Copy-cat. You try to mimic anything you can. Blowing raspberries back and forth, making the mmm sound. We have fun when you are in the high chair, making the mmm sound. You shrug your shoulders at the same time.


7. Crossing your legs. Your favorite way of sitting now consists of crossing your legs at the ankles. It's so cute and prissy!

8. Playing! You play so well. You are very precise in what you do. Like picking things up, moving those wooden pegs on the toy above. I think it has become your new favorite toy.

9. Teeth! Your first little tooth has poked through and his neighbor is almost out (both bottom teeth.) You coped with the first one swimmingly - the second - not as much, but still not the terrible, horror stories that I've heard so many others tell. I've only had to give you tylenol once. I ordered one of those amber necklaces for you to wear, since "they say" that the oils help. It might just be hippy voodoo stuff, but its cute and worth a shot. It's funny to watch your faces as your play with your tooth with your tongue, it's like "what's that in there?!"

So many things. I'm afraid that any day you will learn how to crawl and it scares me. I'm not near prepared for this, even though I've been talking about getting ready for it all summer. It will be a lifestyle change for your daddy and I, because we can't be so messy.

I've enjoyed having the summer off playing with you and I'm sad that it is back to work on Monday. We will have to make the most of our weekends together!

We love you so much! Never, ever forget that, sweet girl!

Love,

Mommy