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| 8 months |
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| 7 months |
Cora at 8 months.....
- She is such a good baby! She is still attached to Mama, but much less so these days. She is fine with others holding her and she doesn't wail every time she sees me walk past her. She always wants to move and go and explore! Just like her brother! She is still very happy and is beginning to "talk" more and more. First word: Dada!! G's first word was Mama so I was so happy she did that for her Daddy. She just started saying it on 9/18, so just before 8 months. She loves to swing her arms around when she is happy/excited. And that's mostly when she is watching her brother. Boy, does she love him!
- She continues to do well at school. I love that our Montessori starts the babies off young with their methods. The teachers always leave comments on her daily that say she makes the other kids happy with all her smiles - melts my heart :)
- We don't go back to the doctor again until she is 9 months old (October), but she is a solid girl! She is getting heavier and heavier to carry. I switched out the infant bucket seat with a new Britax convertible. She is wearing 6 - 12 month and 12 month clothing and has been in a size 3 diaper for a while now. Breastfeeding... I nurse her once or twice a day during the week, and more on the weeekends. As usual, I was freaking out about my decline in supply, knowing that I wouldn't need to supplement with formula if I wasn't working and so insanely busy, stuck in meetings all the time, etc. But then I realized that it is what it is. I just don't have much choice. I would be sacrificing sleep and time with my kids to add in pump sessions where I could and it wasn't worth it to me. I wish the US had year-long maternity leaves like some other countries. In the end, she is happy and healthy and that's what matters most.
- She loves food! She is eating everything now. She has had eggs, waffles, pancakes, oatmeal, toast, blueberries, bananas, watermelon, applesauce, noodles, crackers, chicken, steak, rib meat, salmon, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, avocados, guacamole, broccoli, cauliflower, artichokes, carrots, puffs, cheerios and every pureed fruit and veggie that I've found in the organic pouches.
- She doesn't nap much at all, sometimes only 30 minutes all day, especially at school. I think her average nap on the weekdays is just one hour. She sleeps better at night on those days. She had been waking up between 3 and 5 am and I was nursing her and then putting her back down. This week I decided to try and wean her off of that. Instead I pop her pacifier in and she falls back to sleep. We will see how it goes. So far, so good. I am not a huge fan of "sleep training", I just try to do what feels right. This week she slept through a couple of nights, so sleep is getting better.
- She is still super strong and her teachers are very impressed with her abilities and determination! She is crawling everywhere now and fast. She pulls up with ease and just this past week (9/18) she started pushing her walker around to take steps. Her teachers also told me she has been standing on her own (not holding anything) this week. I am pretty sure she is going to be walking by month nine or ten. She loves her toys; favorites are the slinky, paper (which lasts a couple seconds before she eats it, ha!), taggies owl, her teethers, any of G's toy cars that she can roll around, and standing at her music table. Everything goes into her mouth right now - that's especially fun when Grayson plays with teeny tiny Lego pieces all day long. She has four teeth on the top and three on the bottom, with more on the way! So many teeth already.
- She looooves her brother. Just completely adores him and thinks he is the greatest and most fun person ever. He always makes her smile and laugh, and talks to her non-stop. He is an amazing big brother. He enjoys giving her kisses and is always saying "it's okay" when she cries. It melts my heart. I love watching their relationship grow. They have started playing together too. It's adorable!!!!
- She still loves the water. She kicks her legs non-stop when she takes a bath or when we go in the pool. She takes her baths with brother in the big tub and loves it! She really likes being outside and it seems to put her at peace so quickly. She enjoys the swings, looking at herself in her play mirror, chomping on her teethers, watching the kitties and Apollo, peek-a-boo, patty cake, reading stories, playing with her brother with whatever he is doing, hanging out in the stroller or Tula, and exploring everything around her.
We just love our sweet girl so much. She really balances our family and I get so much joy watching her and her brother grow up together. My mama heart is so full and happy.
