Nicole // 8 Months

That pose in the first picture is a such a model pose! This girl KILLS me. She knows exactly what to do when the big black camera comes out ;)

Nicole is officially mobile! She has a bunch of different "crawling" methods. My favorite is when she gets up on her hands and knees and then flops forward onto her tummy. It's so funny. I have to keep an eye on her now because she's starting to move quicker and quicker. It's so fun to watch her work out how to move.

Crawling opens up a world of possibilities. That, combined with the fact that she's gotten veeeery good at picking up tiny things off the floor with her "pincher grip" resulted in a baby who kept getting rather distracted by the tiniest leaves and twigs while her mama was trying to take pictures of her.

Exhibit A:

 

I also see her in this pose a lot:

I call it: "A Youthful Twist on Angelina Jolie's Leg"
 

One of her bottom teeth finally broke through! And the other one is so close, I can feel it just under the surface of her gums. The poor baby has been so grouchy as she waits for this tooth to cut. Any day now, baby girl!

She sleeps through the night, generally 10-11 hours! There's only been a small handful of nights in the past month where I've needed to go in to rub her back or rock her for a few minutes to settle her down (usually, teething is the culprit). Sometimes she'll wake up at 2 in the morning and start talking to herself for ten minutes or so, then she'll settle down and fall asleep again. Hopefully this is a permanent thing!

 

 

Some other tidbits from 8 months:

+ Home girl will eat just about anything I feed her.

+ She can kind of wave at people now! Or rather, open and close her hands.

+ I've said this before, but she has SUCH. A. LOUD. VOICE.

+ Baths and swimming are always a big hit; she loves splashing in the water.

+ She thinks little kids are hilarious (I need to get her laughter on video sometime!)

+  She loves the great outdoors, especially trees, wind, and grass.

+ When she hears upbeat music, she does this adorable little bouncy dance move. I love it so much and I could watch her dance forever and ever and ever. SO cute.

+ She occasionally tries to pull herself up on things (usually the side of the bathtub. While she's in it and it's all wet and slippery. Go figure.) but can't manage it yet. But she does try. Oooooh no...

+ She makes the sound "Maaaa! Maaaam!" when she's upset and wants me, but that's usually the only time I hear it. I don't think it counts as a first word, though. We'll get there.

+ We're still in debate about her true hair color.

+ She sticks out her tongue aaaaall the time! Lots of drool. Lots of raspberries. Lots of cuteness.

Man, she changes so much in just one month! It makes me a little sad! Along with the bigger milestones, there are some tiny, precious things that I don't ever want to forget.

I want to remember the way she stares into my eyes when I cradle her and talk to her.

I want to remember how she snuggles up against me when I pick her up out of her crib.

I want to remember the gentle pats she gives me on the arm with her tiny hand.

I want to remember how her smile brightens her face like sun breaking through clouds.

I want to remember how she tries to push with her toes while she's crawling and reaches as far as she can.

I want to remember the way her chubby thighs jiggle when her stroller goes over a bump.

I don't ever want to forget.

We love this happy, loud, fiery ball of personality so much! I truly enjoy watching her develop, learn, discover, and grow. Nicole, happy 2/3rds of a year to you! Each day is an adventure!