8 Months

"Which way outta here?!"

"Maybe right over the side?"

Last week we celebrated having a sweet 8 month old baby girl. I'm glad I can still call her a baby, because it won't be long until she's off into the toddler stage at the rate she's growing and hitting milestones.

This past month, Eleanor:
- pulls up on everything (including the flesh on the backs of my arms or legs, which leaves nice bruises from where she digs in), and often looks like she's just going to stand up and walk from wherever she is sitting. No lie. This girl crouches without holding onto anything. She is also easing herself back down, instead of falling back to the floor.
-has become a tentative cruiser. She takes a few steps down the length of the couch, usually to reach the remotes or the forbidden paper-page books.
-was rarely in the room that I left her in. It's good we have a small home, or else I'd never find her.
-is really loving solids, and is doing well at grasping with her thumb and forefinger, practicing with Puffs and Cheerios, and she liked tiny pieces of peas and carrots shared from Mommy's mexican rice.
-is fearless and bowls over everything. Luke calls her an All-Terrain Baby.
-has one mission in life: to get it in her mouth, no matter what it is
-rarely talks
-loved to sit and watch what is going on around her and plays quietly by herself sometimes, though she prefers to be in the middle of whatever Avery is doing
-scavenged for any food that Avery drops on the ground. She's helped herself to foods that she isn't ready for yet and has survived, which has helped me loosen up on what I feed her and when.
-is fully into taking big-girl baths, sometimes with Avery. I really have to watch her because she'll dive after the toys and sometimes comes up sputtering.
-still woke up once in the night, usually between 3 and 5 am.
-still doesn't have any teeth
-has continued to be a big mama's girl - I'm the only one who can calm her down consistently, and she prefers to cuddle with me over anyone else
-does well in the nursery at church or Bible study (until she gets hungry). She'll sometimes cry for a couple minutes when I leave, but then she's fine. I hope this continues, because this is such a nice change from Avery who had the worst separation anxiety.
-nursed 4-5 times a day
-had a really bad cold with a cough that lingered for over 2 weeks, but she's all cleared up now
-has withstood much of Avery's bullying. Avery thinks it's fun to wrestle with Eleanor, which is fine until it looks like Eleanor is a little too squished, or until Avery hits and kicks her. True story.
-discovered electrical sockets. I need to find my extra outlet covers.
-had her first nighttime giggling session with her sister. Melt.My.Heart.
-sucks on her bottom lip and just stares up at us with her big puppy dog eyes

I am enjoying her baby stage so much more than Avery's baby stage...not sure if it's because I was so new at this motherhood gig with Avery, or if Eleanor's personality is more fun as a baby. Avery is so much fun as a 3 year old - it's hard to compare them, because they are just so different. Eleanor definitely keeps us on our toes; we never know what we might find her getting into or eating. I can't believe that we're almost to the summer...last time this year I was enormously pregnant and still had an entire trimester to go. Can't wait to enjoy the pool with our sweet baby girl (and a less hefty body of my own). :)