Month EIGHT ends, Month NINE begins.

G turns eight months old today!! I would say "I can't believe how fast the past month went," but I'd be lying. It was pretty dang hard! Illness, teething, lack of sleep, doing new things--it's been exhausting! Mostly fun and exciting, but very VERY exhausting. I was surprised at how fast month seven went, but month eight...I'll be happy to catch my breath!

At eight months old, G's home measurements are:
Height: 27.5" (hard to get because she didn't want to lay still, so it may be off a bit)
Weight: 17.2 lbs (thanks Wii fit)
Teeth count: two bottom front 

Here are some things G is doing as a big girl at eight months old:

Pulling up!! As shown on Wordless Wednesday. Her favorite thing to pull up on is her Winnie the Pooh rocking horse. She also tries to transfer between me and furniture. If I am sitting next to the couch, chair, or coffee table, she will climb up me and maneuver her way to the other object--and visa versa. She's tried a few times to go from object to object.

Eating serious amounts of solids. She eats lunch and dinner in her high chair with the family. She likes spoon eating, but LOVES eating her Organic Puffies or Cheerios by herself. I *think* her favorite food, so far, is raspberry.


Watching about 5 minutes of TV some days. Yes, I've loosened the reigns a TINY bit. Everyone in my family thinks I'm crazy for not letting G watch any TV...but I don't think it does her any good (and it's NOT recommended, either). Lately, though, I'll snuggle her in our bed in the morning and watch the news for a bit while she crawls around the pillow piles and mounds of covers. Then, I'll switch the channel to PBS and it's like she KNOWS that's for her. She can tell by the colors and voices that it's a baby show and starts to pay attention! She likes Super Why and Sesame Street, but to be fair, we haven't caught Sid the Science Kid (my personal fave) yet. We don't watch the whole show, only about 5 minutes...but she loves it. Ugh!

She is faster than ever in her army crawl--but still not up on all fours. I don't know if she will ever crawl on all fours. She will get up on her hands and knees and rock a lot, but then when she takes off, she decides her elbows are better. Her booty gets up in the air sometimes, and it's hilarious to watch. Her crawl looks a lot like a lizard.

G is getting into ANYTHING possible, including the edge of the carpet. She has pulled out the little frays and tried to put them in her mouth. I think I've stopped her every time, but who knows. I'm getting woven rugs to put over the edge of the carpet--hopefully that helps.

She is a great reader. She's always paid good attention when we read to her, but she seems to have jumped up in her interest level. Her favorite so far has been Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? Everyone has commented on how much she enjoys being read to.

Her favorite things in our house are her one month pictures. I don't know if it's the colors, or what, but she loves them. A close second is the cookie jar.

She has started crying when I leave her at the gym daycare. I suppose this is separation anxiety. It typically turns out fine, but some days I do have to come get her before I'm done working out because she hasn't settled down.

G behaves pretty well in church, but it's a workout for mom and dad. She climbs all over us and wiggles SO MUCH. She is quiet and mostly respectful (for a baby), so we'll count our blessings there.

She says "momma." Sometimes she says "ma-ma" but other times it really does sound like "momma," which, of course, excites me so much! She hasn't associated it with me, so no real "first word" yet.

She likes bath time until we try to rinse her hair. She always moves the wrong way. She also hates being diapered and dressed after enjoying her birthday suit for 15 or so minutes.

Among the many cute things G does, my favorite is:
She lays on her side and lifts the top leg, then kicks it back and forth. I don't know where she picked this up, but it looks like she's doing a workout video and it's absolutely PRECIOUS.

My favorite part of our day:
She will snuggle up to me a few times a day, only for a brief moment each time. She lays her head down on my chest or shoulder and sucks her little thumb; she is calm and I wrap my arms around her. Before I can really soak it all in, she lifts her head and is ready to move on. I treasure those few seconds so much... I actually just teared up thinking about it. Wow, LOL

Anyways, G has really grown so much in the past month and I'm looking forward to what month nine has to offer. I know she won't disappoint--she's a born superstar.

Momma loves you bitty girl!