She has a lot of nicknames – Baby Boo-boo being the most common. I know I’ve got to come up with some sort of nickname for the blog (I don’t call the kids by their real names on the blog, so it doesn’t come up when they are googled – I do use their real names on social.) Accepting ideas! Ha ha
Dear baby girl, you turned 8 months old yesterday, and I really felt a difference this month. You now sit unassisted pretty well. I wouldn’t walk away from you without a pillow barrier because you still topple over sometimes, but you sit well for long periods. You started to throw yourself downwards when I was holding you to try and “get down.” You can move just about every way but forward when you’re on her tummy. You can roll both ways, although you still don’t intentionally roll from stomach to back. The boys didn’t do that until around 9 months, so I’m not concerned. I know most babies go tummy to back first, but mine always went back to tummy first. You’re eating three meals a day and self-feeding better and better. In other words, you are now officially an “older baby.” And I realized I love this stage. The laughs, the giggling, the interest, the learning, all of it, especially while I can still leave you somewhere for a second, and she will still be in the same spot when I come back. You were giggling during a nursing session the other day, and it hit me hard: this is the last time I’ll have this young of a gummy smile and laugh ever again. BRB while I cry some more.
You aren’t using your swing anymore, and when I gave it away, I shed a small tear. I had the same swing for all three babies, so it has a lot of memories. But then, I asked myself what I was really feeling, and the answer was not just nostalgia but a mix of nostalgia and relief to be done with babies. Not to say that I haven’t enjoyed your baby stage, in reality, I’ve enjoyed it the most, knowing it was the last time. It was the last time for the hard and the last time for the fun.
Speaking of gummy smiles. You got your first teeth poking through. You were pretty fussy during the breakthrough. Up several times a night, cranky, wanting to nurse a lot, and not interested in food. Wanting to be held a lot. All normal baby stuff, but I would say it was a much shorter duration than the boys. For the boys, they’d be next-level fussy for a week or so, and I’d be pulling my hair out thinking I couldn’t take one more day, then a tooth popped through. For you, it was really only a couple of fussy days.
Other than teething, you sleep through the night with one dream feed 2-3 hours after we put you down. We did the Taking Cara Babies Program, and for this second attempt, we were much more consistent, and you took to it pretty easily. You also put yourself to sleep for naps and are pretty consistent on two naps a day. Still sleeping in the merlin, but I think you are probably ready for a sleepsack. You are nursing every 3-4 hours now and eating three meals a day. Out of necessity, we’re doing a lot more baby-led weaning than I did with the boys. We’re still doing Bobbie Gentle formula before bed, and breastmilk from the tap or a bottle the rest of the time.
Likes:
- Healthy Waffles
- Baby French Toast
- Avocadoes
- Mangos
- Blueberries
- Bananas
- Oatmeal with peanut butter and banana
- Bambas
- Teething crackers
- Rice
- Broccoli
- Green Beans
- Baby muffins
Dislikes:
- Applesauce
- Hummus
- Eggs
The nice thing about you being the third baby is that there are bazillion toys around to hand you to look at. So, unlike the boys, you get bored less easily because there is always something new around. Unfortunatley, now that you are moving a lot on your tummy, not quite crawling but moving, I’ve had to up my game watching for tiny things on the floor that could potentially be a choking hazard. Thank goodness KJ isn’t into Legos yet. But we’ve got plenty of other stuff that’s concerning enough. Luckily I taught the boys anything smaller than your fist is a choking hazard, and they love the responsibility of looking for things and keeping it away from you. KJ has always loved his big brother role, but recently, KK has really started to enjoy helping take care of you and doing things for you.
You, however, already have a little bit of a sassy pants attitude coming out. You’ve always loved to kick your feet (reminds me of KJ; we used to call him happy feet), but you’ve added hand movements and sounds. If you’re irritated with one of the boys, you’ll swing your hands and make an “eh” sound that seems a lot like a toddler swinging. It feels very intentional. I think to myself, “She can’t be doing that intentionally, can she? This young?” But I don’t know. You may already know how to handle your brothers even at eight months old. They’d do anything to make you laugh or help you stop crying. You can easily get them to pick up a toy or give you something that’s gotten away from you with just a little cry.
Likes (same as last month):
- Grabbing your feet
- Pulling off socks
- Being held
- Being in the carrier
- Your brothers are making funny noises
- Any package that crinkles
- Riding in the car
- Riding in the stroller
- Watching your brothers play
- The Kitty
- The activity center
- Mommy singing
- Tummy time
Dislikes:
- When you can see Mommy, but she isn’t holding you
- When Mommy leaves the room
- New people (they scare you now)
- The swing and bouncer – you want to use these less and less!
You can say Dada and Nala pretty regularly. I thought it was just babble, but you say Dada when you see him and Nala when you see her, so I guess it’s not! We’re having so much fun seeing your personality emerge. I wonder all the time what you’ll look like as you get older, but I simultaneously want to slow down time. We love you, baby girl. Thank you for making our family complete!
THINGS WE’RE LOVING:
- Loveevery Toys
- Baby Einstein Toy
- Crinkle Bags
- Merlin Suit
- Graco Pack N Play
- Dr. Browns Narrow Glass Bottles
- Bobbie Gentle Formula
- Portable sound machine
- Hatch Rest + (gifted to us)
- Doona Carseat –> The one big purchase I made for baby 3!
- Baby Brezza Sterilizer
- Ergo 360
- Legendairy Milk cups – I use these with my Elvie Stirde pump, and it’s definitely way better output.
- Elvie Breast Pump
- Elvie Breast Pump Bag
- Motif Luna Double Electric Pump
- Newton Baby Mattress
- Beaba Baby Food Maker
- Skip Hop Activity Center
Past Updates:
Check out my baby archives with gift guides, favorite items, updates for all the kids, and more!
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