Monday, March 3, 2014

Natalie - Eight Months

Natalie was 8 months old on February 12, 2014. 
Likes:  Eating solids, nursing, Mommy, watching Caitlin, bath time, flirting and talking to Daddy, putting everything in your mouth, talking/jabbering away, exersaucer
Dislikes:  The snot sucker, getting your nose wiped, getting your face/hands cleaned
Biggest Achievement of the Month: Working on finger foods. 
Biggest Challenge of the Month: Sleep.  See more about this below.  
Sleep:    You typically fall asleep for the night anywhere between 7 and 730pm and wake up any time between 6 - 730am.  You started to sleep on your side and belly more often this month.  As soon as I lay you down, you reach for your lovey, and we also turn on the seahorse whenever you go to sleep.  If I'm being honest, sleep has pretty much sucked this month.  It could have been way worse, but you have been waking up a few hours after you go to sleep and then again in the middle of the night/early morning.  You also no longer suck your thumb... no idea why.  Maybe you can't figure out how to do it comfortably now that you have teeth?  Who knows.   
Temperament/Personality: You are seriously the happiest baby when you're not teething or over tired or hungry.  You are always smiling, talking, screeching, etc.  
Eating: Nursing is still going well.  During the day, you are eating about every 3-4 hours which works out to be 5-6 times a day.  With the sleep issues, you have been eating more often at night.  Mommy is tired... Hoping this is just a phase.  Your teachers at school seem to think that you are on the verge of learning something big.  I guess the other option is a growth spurt, but I don't think you look that much bigger.   You are still eating solids well, and you usually have 2 meals a day.  You tend to prefer finger foods over purees, and you definitely like meat, specifically Daddy's grilled chicken.  You are starting to get the hang of the pincer grasp and are able to pick most non-slippery foods up.  You will tolerate vegetables (i.e. we have to bribe you with puff or cheerio in between bites), but it definitely seems like you don't like them.  We have also started adding flax to basically everything you eat because you have some digestion issues, and it doesn't seem to matter what you eat.  I think it's helping a little bit.  We sporadically give you a sippy cup with your meals at home.  You mostly just chew on it, and when you get water in your mouth, you just let it run down your chin.  
The Superficial: Your hair is still dark-ish, but it seems like it's growing more each day.   It looks lighter than when you were born, but nowhere near as light as Caitlin's hair.  Your eyes are dark, but I can't really figure out what color they are.  Daddy says they're brown, but I don't agree.  I think eventually they will turn brown though. You are still wearing  6 month clothes but we're getting ready to move up to 9 month clothes.  You have rolls on your arms and on your thighs, and I just love it. You are wearing size 2 diapers.  I weighed us together and then weighed myself, and you weigh approximately 15.8 oz.  You also have two teeth now - the bottom middle two.  The second tooth popped through around January 15th.  

Developmental Milestones: You started to move more this month, but mostly move backwards at this point.  You can pick up cheerios/puffs, and you are getting much better at the pincer grasp. You're still making the raspberry sound, but you are also making the kissing noise all the time.  It really is so cute.  You can get your feet into your mouth now.  After the first week or so of doing this, we noticed that you had a cut on your toe, and soon after, you basically stopped putting your feet in your mouth.  

This isn't really developmental, but you also got the dreaded stomach bug this month.  Caitlin got it first and then passed it on to both me and Daddy.  We were praying that you somehow missed it, but you ended up getting sent home from school with it.  You also were very attached to me this month and had a few bouts of separation anxiety.  

Out and About: We took a trip up to PA, and you went to a birthday party for one of Caitlin's friends.  The weather has been bad, so we haven't gotten out much at all.   


Big and Little Sister:

Natalie: 
IMG_2659

IMG_2829

Caitlin
IMG_5346

Again with the hair, Natalie definitely has more.  Natalie is still nursing like a champ, but Caitlin was getting bottles exclusively.  At this point, I think Caitlin was still mostly on purees, but Natalie has gotten a lot more of "normal" food and stuff that we are eating.  There are things that Natalie eats, but Caitlin won't try (mostly meat-related).  Caitlin was rolling all around and pulling up on things.  Natalie still doesn't really roll from her belly to her back and doesn't seem at all interested in pulling up on anything.  The sisterly love is still in full effect, but I can see it changing a little bit when Natalie is really moving and getting into Caitlin things.  99% of the time, Caitlin is super sweet to Natalie, always bringing her toys to play with and talking to her and doing things to try to make her smile and laugh. Caitlin also is an amazing big helper for me, almost always willing to grab a bib, burp cloth, diaper, wipes, etc.  She also will jump at the chance to pick out Natalie's outfit in the morning for school.  I think she has adjusted really well into the role of big sister!

Another amazing month.  We are having so much fun watching you grow and learn and seeing how your relationship with Caitlin will develop.  You are the sweetest baby, and I kind of wish I could just freeze time right now.  We love you so much and can't wait to see what the next month brings! 

Love you to pieces, 
Mommy

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