Grace - Eight Months Old

The last two months in three words: Cuter. Happier. Chunkier.

The last two months in a lot more words:

Six months old

When Grace was six months old, she mastered sitting, began to pull to standing, began to say "mama" and "dada" (as opposed to "mamamama" and "dadadada," but without knowing what they mean). She displayed some major stranger anxiety for a couple of weeks, though being around students, coworkers, neighbors, and family all the time has really helped curb that anxiety.

When she was six months old, her favorite things included chilling in the stroller while I went on a walk or a run, playing with Auntie Jen (our housemate who she absolutely adores), tickling sessions, gumming on broccoli stems, and taking her vitamin D drops. Seriously, when I give her vitamin D, she kicks, smiles, and even giggles. When she doesn't feel like laying still for a diaper change, all I have to do is hand her her vitamin D bottle and she begins to gurgle and coo like a content two month old. You can't make this stuff up.

At six months old, Grace also detested being on the ground. She spent the day in my arms, being spotted while standing, or in her high chair.

Seven months old

When she was seven months old, Grace learned to wave goodbye, her first two teeth appeared, she caught her first cold at her cousin's first birthday party, and she sprouted just enough hair to make the tiniest, dorkiest ponytail. She has also begun to scoot on her belly to get to objects out of reach, though she rarely does it and she gets incredibly frustrated in the process. She really hates anything physical, except standing. She could spend the whole day standing. Today, she even started cruising a little. I keep wondering if she's going to bypass crawling and go straight to walking.

On Saturday, we had our first official parenting scare when, after some prolonged fussiness, Grace's entire breakfast came up out of her mouth along with a penny. My mom who is a pediatric nurse practitioner told me all that could have happened to her had the penny made it to her stomach or if she had breathed the penny rather than swallowed it. That night, Michael and I thanked God for taking care of our little human piggy bank.

What are Grace's current favorite things? She has a magnetic attraction toward anything that children aren't supposed to play with including flames, plastic bags, and strings (see the picture above of her playing with her favorite toy - a balloon, especially the string). She also enjoys being read to, eating pears and applesauce, eating in general, standing, and drooling. She loves going to the grocery store to observe the endless interesting objects. She still is a total nature girl and she loves anything water related including playing in the tub, drinking from a cup, watching water run out of the tap, etc.

Grace's typical day involves three meals, five nursing sessions, and two naps of a little over an hour each. She goes to sleep at 7:30ish, wakes up at 6:30ish to nurse, and turns back in for another hour or two.

It is an incredible joy to be Grace's parent. We love her dearly.