8 Months

Well, there is not a whole lot to report at 8 months. Elly has had a busy month traveling to meet all of her aunts/uncles/cousins (with the exception of 2) on Mommy's side of the family. She's a great traveler and she had a lot of fun getting to play with so many new people!!

She is still hovering around the 14 pound mark, but she's not losing any weight, so that's always a positive. She doesn't have any teeth yet, so we're still stuck with baby food for now, but she's officially made it through all of the major foods that are offered puree style...she loves most of them. Green beans took a while, but she will tolerate them now. She definitely doesn't prefer meat--and who can honestly blame her...that stuff stinks and is just gross! She is still nursing several times a day, but is learning to take a sippy cup pretty well. She is scooting along still and rocking up on all fours with leg movement, but a face plant after the legs go forward, so we've made some progress, just not quite to crawling yet. She's so laid back, I think that she'll take a while with the whole crawling/walking/pulling up/climbing thing. I'm not so sure that she will be a climber--she won't even climb over me when I'm on the floor. (not that Logan would EVER hear of allowing her to climb on anything.) She is saying Mamamama and Dadadada now along with a very distinct calling for Logan, but there is really no way to spell the sound she makes for him. Her tongue is still constantly out, but she has a new face completely scrunching up her nose and squinting her eyes. She loves her baths, she loves her massages afterward, she loves playing in the floor. However, her exersaucer will entertain her longer than anything else. She goes for any and all cords and plugs, remote controls, cell phones, and anything else that you really don't want her to have. I guess the thing that I've been pretty hesitant to say about her is that she is SO gentle. She touches everything with the lightest touch just to feel it, she picks up her cheerios very gently and somehow has yet to crush one. Its so strange--Logan was similar, but he still managed to crush cheerios and squeeze your face really tightly--Elly just seems to hold on tight if she's adamant about having something or you not letting her down. She brings such indescribable joy to our family in so many ways!

I love this stage and this age of discovery. There truly is nothing like watching a baby discover the world for the first time--it is a priceless gift!