8 months!
Dear Lucy,
Well, it's hard to believe, but you're 8 months old today! I didn't think it was possible, but you seem to be getting cuter and cuter, and more and more fun! You've always been very observant, but you seem even more interested in everything around you now. You play with (pick up, look at, try to eat) more of your toys now, and when you're not physically handling something you're looking around, watching, and learning how things work. We can tell you're taking it all in. You even mimic some of the things we do sometimes. You're just up to so much more these days!
You're a gal on the move! Rarely do you ever stay in one place for long. You like to crawl everywhere. You're also really into climbing lately- on things and people. You often prop yourself up on your knees, to see up onto the coffee table or sofa, and up against the big pillow we have next to the sliding glass door, so you can see over it and look outside. Sometimes you make your way to the coffee table, and then pull yourself all the way up to your feet and try to reach for whatever is up there, mostly your favorite target- the tv remote. Other times, you simply try to eat the coffee table.
You're also a good little eater! In less than three months of eating solid food, you've eaten rice cereal and oatmeal, sweet potatoes, carrots, acorn squash, butternut squash, bananas, avocados, peas, and today's new food: green beans! Right now you're eating two meals per day - lunch and dinner - in addition to your five regularly scheduled milk feedings. You've been a big fan of pretty much everything you've tried so far, your least favorites being carrots and peas. Part of the problem with those may have been that I didn't puree them enough. Or, you may just not be that into them right now. We'll try them again in a little while.
You're even learning how to drink out of a cup now! Since you want nothing to do with a bottle (*heavy sigh*), I'm hoping you'll get the hang of the sippy cup soon, so that you can start drinking milk out of something other than me sometimes. ;) The first sippy cup we tried was a Born Free and now we're trying a Nuby. You definitely seem to be having an easier time with the Nuby. You love to hold onto the handles and you're getting the hang of how to drink out of it. You probably aren't taking in too much water so far, but it's good practice. We also practice using a regular cup, which you seem to think is the most fun. You like to hold onto that cup with both hands when you drink. It's so cute!
You're still a good little sleeper, too! Being in your own room has made a noticeable difference in your sleep habits overall. You fall asleep much easier, and stay asleep much longer than before, and you're also able to fall back asleep easier when you do wake up. Yay for all of the above! You almost always fall asleep as soon as we put you down. We put you down in your crib with your paci and Elli (elephant lovey), turn on your crib soother (and make sure the white noise machine is on), close the door, and you fall asleep right away the vast majority of the time. Occasionally, it takes a little longer- you may need to burp or you may have accidentally dropped your paci out of the crib, or you may have sore gums. When this happens, we're usually able to get you a quick fix and you can fall asleep pretty fast afterward. Then there are the rare occasions when you have a really hard time- like when you're overly tired or teething. Sometimes we're able to calm you down without much effort, but other times it takes longer. Thankfully those episodes are not the norm.
Your bedtime is usually somewhere between 7:30 to 8:00pm. You stopped waking up for your midnight feeding a few weeks ago. Since then, you sometimes wake up in the early morning hours, but you usually fall back asleep, either on your own or with Daddy's help, until we start our day at around 7:00am. You usually take a morning nap from around 8:30-10:30am, and an afternoon nap from around 2:30 or 3:00 until 4:30ish. So far at least, your morning naps are generally longer and more predictable. Your afternoon naps vary more, in terms of times and duration. I don't really mind how much you want to switch it up, as long as you take your two naps. :)
I try to work our daily routine around your nap and feeding schedule. As a result, our most flexible time of day occurs during a three-hour block of time between your late morning feeding at around 10:30 and your early afternoon feeding at around 1:30. This is when we venture out to go shopping, run errands, or go out to lunch with Daddy. Fun things like that.
You're getting so big! You're definitely putting on some added poundage since your introduction to solid food. As always, this is a relief to me. Baby chub = good! You're also getting longer. Which means you're almost at max capacity in your infant car seat. This makes me sad, I won't lie. I love that SnugRide, as well as the Snap & Go style stroller that goes with it! That combo is the easiest, most convenient travel system ever invented! (Any future moms out there take note: you want these!) I'm sure I'll find your "real" stroller and way of doing things just as convenient once I get used to it, but for now I am sad about having to make the transition. Also because this means you really are growing up. I mean, if getting rid of your "infant" car seat isn't symbolic, I don't know what is. *sniff*
But, it's all good! You're doing so great! You're growing and thriving, and are such a happy little girl. I hope this never changes. :)
You're the sweetest girl ever in the world! We love you!
Well, it's hard to believe, but you're 8 months old today! I didn't think it was possible, but you seem to be getting cuter and cuter, and more and more fun! You've always been very observant, but you seem even more interested in everything around you now. You play with (pick up, look at, try to eat) more of your toys now, and when you're not physically handling something you're looking around, watching, and learning how things work. We can tell you're taking it all in. You even mimic some of the things we do sometimes. You're just up to so much more these days!
You're a gal on the move! Rarely do you ever stay in one place for long. You like to crawl everywhere. You're also really into climbing lately- on things and people. You often prop yourself up on your knees, to see up onto the coffee table or sofa, and up against the big pillow we have next to the sliding glass door, so you can see over it and look outside. Sometimes you make your way to the coffee table, and then pull yourself all the way up to your feet and try to reach for whatever is up there, mostly your favorite target- the tv remote. Other times, you simply try to eat the coffee table.
You're also a good little eater! In less than three months of eating solid food, you've eaten rice cereal and oatmeal, sweet potatoes, carrots, acorn squash, butternut squash, bananas, avocados, peas, and today's new food: green beans! Right now you're eating two meals per day - lunch and dinner - in addition to your five regularly scheduled milk feedings. You've been a big fan of pretty much everything you've tried so far, your least favorites being carrots and peas. Part of the problem with those may have been that I didn't puree them enough. Or, you may just not be that into them right now. We'll try them again in a little while.
You're even learning how to drink out of a cup now! Since you want nothing to do with a bottle (*heavy sigh*), I'm hoping you'll get the hang of the sippy cup soon, so that you can start drinking milk out of something other than me sometimes. ;) The first sippy cup we tried was a Born Free and now we're trying a Nuby. You definitely seem to be having an easier time with the Nuby. You love to hold onto the handles and you're getting the hang of how to drink out of it. You probably aren't taking in too much water so far, but it's good practice. We also practice using a regular cup, which you seem to think is the most fun. You like to hold onto that cup with both hands when you drink. It's so cute!
You're still a good little sleeper, too! Being in your own room has made a noticeable difference in your sleep habits overall. You fall asleep much easier, and stay asleep much longer than before, and you're also able to fall back asleep easier when you do wake up. Yay for all of the above! You almost always fall asleep as soon as we put you down. We put you down in your crib with your paci and Elli (elephant lovey), turn on your crib soother (and make sure the white noise machine is on), close the door, and you fall asleep right away the vast majority of the time. Occasionally, it takes a little longer- you may need to burp or you may have accidentally dropped your paci out of the crib, or you may have sore gums. When this happens, we're usually able to get you a quick fix and you can fall asleep pretty fast afterward. Then there are the rare occasions when you have a really hard time- like when you're overly tired or teething. Sometimes we're able to calm you down without much effort, but other times it takes longer. Thankfully those episodes are not the norm.
Your bedtime is usually somewhere between 7:30 to 8:00pm. You stopped waking up for your midnight feeding a few weeks ago. Since then, you sometimes wake up in the early morning hours, but you usually fall back asleep, either on your own or with Daddy's help, until we start our day at around 7:00am. You usually take a morning nap from around 8:30-10:30am, and an afternoon nap from around 2:30 or 3:00 until 4:30ish. So far at least, your morning naps are generally longer and more predictable. Your afternoon naps vary more, in terms of times and duration. I don't really mind how much you want to switch it up, as long as you take your two naps. :)
I try to work our daily routine around your nap and feeding schedule. As a result, our most flexible time of day occurs during a three-hour block of time between your late morning feeding at around 10:30 and your early afternoon feeding at around 1:30. This is when we venture out to go shopping, run errands, or go out to lunch with Daddy. Fun things like that.
You're getting so big! You're definitely putting on some added poundage since your introduction to solid food. As always, this is a relief to me. Baby chub = good! You're also getting longer. Which means you're almost at max capacity in your infant car seat. This makes me sad, I won't lie. I love that SnugRide, as well as the Snap & Go style stroller that goes with it! That combo is the easiest, most convenient travel system ever invented! (Any future moms out there take note: you want these!) I'm sure I'll find your "real" stroller and way of doing things just as convenient once I get used to it, but for now I am sad about having to make the transition. Also because this means you really are growing up. I mean, if getting rid of your "infant" car seat isn't symbolic, I don't know what is. *sniff*
But, it's all good! You're doing so great! You're growing and thriving, and are such a happy little girl. I hope this never changes. :)
You're the sweetest girl ever in the world! We love you!
Comments
Grampa and I love all three of you, more than we can say!
PS. LJ, i'm not a huge fan of peas n carrots either. :)