8 Months Old

I can't believe I haven't done a post in a while! Actually, yeah I can. I hate writing long blog posts because I hate reading long posts (and I usually don't start reading them if they are long) but since it's been a while I think this will be pretty long....
Fiona turned 8 months a couple days ago (on the 31st) & I can now say the time is going pretty fast! I always hear people say "enjoy her, the time goes by so fast" & a couple months ago I thought it was actually going by slowly. Now I hear what they're saying! I guess because she's doing things now where as before she was just there. I haven't blogged in a while so i guess this will be for both her 7th and 8th month....
She grabs everything! If something is put down anywhere close to her she'll reach where her entire body will stretch grabs for it & it goes straight into the mouth. I'm such a germaphobe so this drives me nuts & I'm cleaning her toys all the time between throwing them in washing machine or wiping down with Lysol wipes (then plain water after of course).

She has her moments with strangers. If a stranger talks to her she'll sometimes cry. If I'm in the supermarket & she doesn't see me when a stranger comes to talk to her, she starts crying. I'm not crazy about it but it does show that she's learning faces & people. Other than that she's great with family even if she doesn't see them much with is the most important.
She's getting better with tummy time. She'll definitely last longer these days but she still hates it. I can maybe get her to lay on her tummy for maybe 10 minutes before she gets frustrated & that's really good for her. Her arms lift her upper body pretty well so that's a start.

She's still not crawling but maybe she'll just skip over crawling. I have been noticing that when she's sitting she'll lean all the way forward & put her hands on the floor. Or when she's on her belly her legs bend like she's trying to crawl.

She has been standing well with support. At Christmas time we got her a jumper thinking that will help strengthen her legs but it actually screwed things up so we took it apart & put it away. I remember at her well visits in the beginning the pediatrician would check if she would "stand" if you put weight on her legs. It seemed like she would do this until we got her the jumper. Once we got the jumper she'd jump every time we would stand her. When Early Intervention (this is another story which I need to post) came for an evaluation she said a lot of doctors tell parents to not get jumpers because of this very reason. She said the exersaucers are better for this. So the next day I went onto Craigslist & found one for $15.

The thing I liked about it was there were no toys on it so cleaning it was easy (germaphobe thinking) & we can put our own toys. It was really old but in very good condition. Once we got the thing cleaned & set up I noticed she was able to jump somewhat. It wasn't anywhere close to the jumper but there where springs. What's great about paying $15 you don't mind if it breaks so my husband took the springs out. At first she tried jumping but now she'll actually stand when you put her on her legs. We'll give her back the 1st jumper when she starts cruising but for now no jumper. After about 3 weeks she will stand supported & not jump like a nut! She only did this for a second but it's a start!

I got her a new bath tub. I hated her 1st tub since the beginning but now now she's bigger and can sit by herself so I needed a new tub. She loves it! She's loved getting a bath since the beginning so I give them to her very often, sometimes every day. This blow up duck tub is great.

Because we have hardwood floors, a small apartment with basically no large open spaces & 2 dogs it's hard for me to put her down and let her play on her own. Before she'd be either in her Bumbo, swing or I would hold her. When Early Intervention came she told me how important it was for her to explore on her own. This was the main reason she doesn't turn much or any other milestones that would come because she's never really given the chance. Now I got her the puzzle blocks for the floor & let her play in the Pack & Play - that way if she's sitting up & falls over she won't get hurt. This really got her sitting alone very strong to where she rarely tips over and she's reaching in all directions to get her toys.

If she's sitting or laying down in her pack & play, crib, Bumbo or anywhere else and you go to pick her up she'll put her arms up to you so you can grab her. Even if some one's holding her & you put your hands to take her she'll lean towards you with both arms wide open.
She drops stuff on purpose. This drives me CRAZY! You hand it to her then 2 seconds later she'll drop it. If you don't give it to her she'll start whimpering until you do...grrrr.
All part of being a baby I guess and I love her like crazy. No matter how annoying she can be I look at her & I'm so thankful to have this beautiful little girl!

At the moment that's all I can think of. As the day goes by & she does something I'll think "oh yeah I forgot about that. I need to add that to my blog post" and I'll probably forget.