8 months!

Daddy took me to see Santa!

  
    Limited pictures in this blog, sorry! We got rid of our cable and internet in December (we have internet on our smart phones and have laptops we can take somewhere to get wi-fi). If I get a chance, I'll add more photos in a few days.

   Ayla is 8 months old! When I weighed her a few weeks ago, she was about 16 lbs, so I'm sure she's around 17 or so now. We have a pediatrician next month around her 9-month birthday, so check back later for her height, weight and percentiles.

   Chris lowered CC's crib a couple weeks ago since she had been trying to pull herself up to standing on several different objects around the house. Good thing, because she can pull herself up now! I was doing dishes one day and had the door of the dishwasher down. Ayla was "scooching" around the kitchen, entertaining herself. All of a sudden, I look over and she's STANDING with her hands on the dishwasher!! I totally wasn't expecting it, so I reacted pretty quickly. I think my sudden movement scared her and she lost her balance a little. I caught her, but it made her cry a little. I couldn't believe it--standing! She's still scooching around (using her arms to basically drag herself while she uses her legs to kick/push). She gets up on her knees from time to time, rocks a little, then plops back on the floor to drag herself around. I'm not sure if she'll skip crawling all together or if she'll discover it in a few weeks. She also comes towards you and reaches for your hands (especially if you hold them out to her), grabs them and gets herself up to standing. It makes me laugh, because sometimes she just goes from laying down to standing up, in a plank-like fashion. Good ab muscles!

  

   We're still doing mostly breastfeeding/breastmilk in bottles and pureed foods a couple times a day. She really loves trying out different flavors and eats 1-3 times a day (1-4 "ice cubes" at each feeding). We're slowly making our way into introducing "real" foods, but I'm worried about her choking on things. Ugh.

   We got a lot of visits in with family for the holidays. We saw Chris' dad and Joan the week before Christmas. They invited us for dinner at their place and it let me just say... it was really good! Lots of healthy stuff, but even me (the picky eater) enjoyed it. Ayla enjoyed opening her gifts (I have pics and a video, just need to upload it), but mostly enjoyed the wrapping paper (she loves "crinkly" things right now).

   We also had dinner at Chris' Aunt Nancy and Uncle Gary's house. Their daughter and son-in-law (Betsy and Mark) were in town from Idaho with their daughter, Molly (2 weeks younger than Ayla). It was great to see them and meet her. She and Ayla got a little face time before Molly went to bed. Chris' other cousin, Carrie, was there with her kids, Riley and Cobey. Ayla's uncle Carl and Grandma Peggy were there, too. It was a nice relaxing night which was nice (we went over after I worked a 10-hour shift... yay).

    Christmas Eve was spent at my brother and sister-in-law's house. My dad was home for a few days, so he was able to join us for dinner. It was another nice relaxed evening (I had worked a 10-hour shift that day, too). We enjoyed some food and opening gifts. Of course, Ayla like the boxes and wrapping paper more than the toys (she likes clanking the tea cups together now, dad!)




Tea set and bouncing piggy from Grandpa Harry!



Pretty in bows!

  

"Normal" family picture (with the exception of my brother, ha ha)



Dorks!



   I'm not a "Christmas person", but Chris and I like to do holiday stockings on Winter Solstice (the 22nd this year). Ayla liked the couple of toys she received and even the dogs got some chew bones.

   Christmas Day, we drove over to Grandma Peggy's for brunch with her and Carl before Chris went into work at 3pm (and I got called in, so I worked 6-11p). Ayla had a sleep over with Grandma since Chris and I both worked late (and I had to be back at 8am the next morning).



Macchiato is ALWAYS trying to make out with Ayla. And Pogo looks like a werewolf. Nice.


   I've finally (I think) pulled all her 3-month clothes. She can still pretty much fit into most of them, but the length is just a little short. Kind of funny to have a 7-8 month old fitting ito 3-month clothes. So we're in 6 and some 9-month clothes now. Pants are still a little long sometimes (she has short little legs like her mama), as well as some sleeves. I have noticed on her "footie" pjs that her feet fit pretty snuggly. I think we'll have to go up to 9-month pjs just so her piggies don't get scrunched.

   Still no teeth, but that's fine with me! It seems like everyone else we know (even if they're 1-2 months younger) has at least one tooth. The way I see it, she doesn't need teeth right now. She's getting milk and pureed foods, not gnawing on a rib bone (though, if I'm not watching her every second, she makes a beeline for the dog toys/bones... Go, go super immune system! Ha!). I think it's pretty normal to get their first tooth between 4 and 16 months of age, so we still have plenty of time.

   Ayla still hasn't been sick yet, which is great. There was one time a few months ago where she was a little snotty/stuffy/drainy, but it seemed to be mostly at night (I wonder if it might have been allergies more than anything, or just some congestion because of the weater, which happens to me at night sometimes). Either way, happy and healthy baby. Yay!



Not sure if she's helping with laundry or requesting a bath