8 Months Old!

August 23, 2013

Little man is getting SO big!

Estimated Stats:

Length: 28 in 

Weight 20 lb. 

Jamesy LOVES:

Crawling, standing in crib, jumping on crib mattress, pulling up to standing on anything in sight, peek-a-boo, belly laughs, belching, raspberries on his neck, stories, lullabies, music, long walks, being in/around nature, listening to people talk, grabbing noses and lips, babbling (Mmmmm, MaMa, Ma, Mum, Bababa, Pop pop, DaDa Yeah Yeah, Huh, to name a few, new sounds everyday!), his parents and grandparents, when people make funny faces or crazy noises, waving, clapping, sweet potatoes, carrots, sweet peas w/ mint, dropped jaw look of amazement, baths and splashing water, all teething toys (Sofie giraffe, cloth knot ring, gel keys, rings, hand and foot), grinding his teeth, glow in dark paci (finds and uses in the middle of night!)

Jamesy DOESN'T LOVE:

Getting diaper change, the idea of getting into car seat, stroller or high chair (I want to STAND! not sit), top two teeth coming in, rice cereal (yes, still!), squash, pears (really all fruits), Daddy's sneezes, getting hair washed in the sink, hats, nursing cover

Firsts during 8th month:

• Top two teeth cut through! James now has FOUR teeth!
• Crawling at a faster pace; sometimes crawling on hands and tippy toes if on hardwood floor (too funny!)
• Standing (with confidence now - he's strong!) and can sit back down
• Returned to sleeping in his crib 
• Waving more appropriately (Hi! Bye-bye!)
• Clapping (Yay! Hooray!) 
• Mimicking sounds he hears you say
• Sleeping through the night! (Mostly!)
• First trip to Metroparks Nature Center and walking trails
• First trip to neighborhood library
  
  

What it's really like trying to take his picture these days:

Seventh Inning Stretch (er, Month?)!

James is 8 months old now!

Well, since I completely missed an official 7 month post on 7/23 (although there have been pictures in between), here goes a 7th & 8th month update...

These past few months have really been exciting! James is checking off his milestones left and right. Although it's been so fun watching him (and, chasing him), he is growing up too fast! He is completely mobile now, full blown crawling. His little personality is showing through more and more each day. James is such a happy and easy going baby (we are lucky!).  He is brave, strong, persistent, curious, sweet and hilarious. We think he is pretty smart too.

Firsts during 7th month:

• Pulling up to standing! After practicing pulling up and standing in his crib in his sleep, his wobbly legs and not-yet-strong-enough arms made us a nervous wreck watching him climb around the crib at night. Hard wood posts are not exactly the safety net you want to fall into. However, before he learned to "sit" back down, James had no fear and did several "trust falls" going from standing in the crib and attempting to jump on the mattress to just letting go and falling backwards. As you can imagine, ouch! Therefore, we temporarily kicked James out of the crib, and he slept in the pack 'n play in his room for the majority of his 7th month. The softer netting has much more give and is much safer to fall into than wood...

"How I Roll"

Let me show you how it's done...

•  Solid foods! James is still warming up to the idea of eating from a spoon. However, he has tried sweet potato, squash, carrots, sweet peas, apples, bananas and pears. His favorites are sweet potato, carrots and, most favored, peas (really? no wonder you are so strong!)!
  
  
  
  
  

• Mom's first trip/night away: A few weeks ago was Ann's Bachelorette party in Chicago! I was so nervous leaving James in another state, and overnight! But, I managed to store up enough milk to last a good 36 hours (hungry boy!) and knew he would be in goods hands with his Dad. The quick trip (Saturday morning - Sunday morning) was a great much needed girls getaway weekend to catch up with goods friends. And, Phil impressed all of us by watching James all day Saturday without enlisting the help of our parents. They had a fun guys' day bonding, and even managed to go to Pat and Meghan's for a cookout!  

• First baseball game 

• Goodbye to Nanny:  Cara, James' girlfriend (and first nanny), went back to college. She has no idea how much she will be missed - made going back to work that much more relieving and enjoyable. Thank you, Cara! We look forward to seeing you when you are home on breaks!  

• Waving & New Faces:  James can wave! But not on command. As you can imagine, it is really cute. And, now that he has his two top teeth coming in, he has been making crazy faces...like this:

Swing!

We have a cute little park right at the end of our street. 

James loved his first 'real' swing! 

First Baseball Game!

The crowd. The music. The cheering! James loved his first baseball experience. A few weeks ago we saw the Indians play the Angels. We won! And, James got to see TWO home runs! We think he was their good luck charm!

Our seats were amazing, right behind first base. Unfortunately for James, they were in direct sunlight. And it was HOT. So, he and I watched the majority of the game under shade up top and walked around to take in all of the sights. Phil and Tolen heckled the players and baked in the sun.

But, he did get to wear his first pair of shades! Check him out:

And then after a few minutes, we took cover:

Doesn't he look thrilled? I promise you, he was.

See?

We took in the sights:

And danced:

Saw home run #1!

And, HR #2!!

James got to meet Tolen, in town from Denver

Great day!

Little Mover!

Gone are the days you could just put James down on a blanket to play, and he would stay put.

James has really stepped up his crawling game! Rolling and rolling from side to side used to be James's preferred method of getting to where he wanted to go. However, last month (ever since 4th of July), he had been "practicing" getting on his hands and knees in his sleep, and practicing those moves while he plays. The weekend after (7/13),  he started rocking back and forth on his hands and knees, and has been perfecting his army crawling skills (crawling on knees and forearms). He went from moving just a few inches at a time, to now full blown little mover mode. Time to baby proof the house... James is on the loose!

**Note: These videos were from when he just began rocking and crawling, when he was 6 months old (he's now 7 months). However, I realized I never posted these, and they are too cute not to share! As you can see, rather than trying to take his picture photoshoot style 6 months (he doesn't stay still for very long!), I recorded him in action below!

Rocking (and saying Ma-ma-ma!)

Army crawl!

Golf!

The Bridgestone Golf Invitational is this weekend at Firestone Country Club! Phil, my Dad, Matt & George headed out for a guys day today to watch their favorite golfers up close and personal. Beautiful day for golf!

James and I stayed home (No babies on the golf course! Sorry J, maybe next year?). We had a fun day exploring nature and playing with Grandmas and Grandpa Bill. We also watched a little of the golf on TV. James was pretty impressed with Tiger's 15 under par performance. Watching and learning. I think he was taking notes on how to beat Phil on the golf course one day! Only time will tell!

Sweet Potato

Guess who tried sweet potato today!

James is still not so sure about eating from a spoon, however, he actually ate a few bites today while I ate my lunch beside him. Unlike his reaction to rice cereal, he didn't totally hate it! I think he is finally warming up to the idea of tasting solid foods. Good job James!!