8 Months

A wee bit behind, but here's the update. Juliet breezed into her 8th month. I cannot believe how quickly she is developing. She's trying to walk and only born 8 months ago for Pete's sake! Babies are amazing!

Juliet now weighs 15 pounds. We are so proud of her weight gain. She is definitely filling out and is most evident in her cheeks. They are so cute and really show up when she's smiling. It makes her eyes curve into half moons. I love it! Justin loves "eating" her cheeks and she thinks it is so funny. She is still eating every three hours during the day like clock work. Sometimes it is difficult for her to keep on task. She gets so distracted! Public feedings are much more difficult due to this. She doesn't like her head covered and she likes to look at what is going on. Thankfully, feeding her doesn't take too long and we can slip off somewhere and fill her tummy. You think she's starving when I sit her in my lap. She is very impatient for me to get read for her to eat!

Juliet is becoming more and more vocal. She is continuing with "ba", "ma" and "da." And now they are a bit louder as she plays with her volume control. The other day she was sitting in the floor by her self babbling and all of a sudden is yelled "DA-DA!" Justin and I were both so proud. "Ba" is her favorite and repeats it over and over (see pic above). Thankfully we love hearing it; it never gets old. She has really discovered her nose and uses it often. She crinkles up her nose, sticks out her bottom jaw and breathes out of it loudly. It is so cute. She does it often, especially when she is excited. Sometimes she'll snort, so cute! (see pic below)

She is playing more on her own with toys. She likes handling toys a little bit more although they are still headed towards the mouth eventually. Ice is a favorite toy. We use it a lot at meal time. It is great for developing her hand skills. Even though ice is hard to handle, she is great and gets it to her mouth every time! Of course, she soaked by the time dinner is over, unless a bib is involved and she still gets wet. She also loves eating ice. We can chomp some up in our mouth and give it to her. She makes such a funny face and holds her finger up to her mouth like she's thinking. As soon as that piece is melted, she is ready for another!

Thankfully Juliet is off of her tummy and crawling on one knee and one foot. She is fast too! Now that she is off her tummy, her clothes are getting so dirty which is wonderful. She is also loving to walk with assistance. It is so funny because she walks loudly and not on her toes. Juliet is so proud of herself. Juliet has let go once to take and step and I caught her mid face plant. She has a signature move that really gets everyone tickled, she will spin in a circle. It is so funny. While sitting on her bottom, she will use her heals to push herself around. She will make a full circle at least once, if not twice. It seems to go with the excited snorting, which makes it even better! This month also brought her first fall...off our bed. It was so sad. She came away unhurt, but now we cannot leave her on the bed. She was sleeping so soundly moments before it happened. We had just taken pictures of her too, we heard the fall and lots of crying. She was more scared than anything else. Her head had a few red marks, but were gone by that evening.

We are trying a new technique for sleeping which is working better. Justin is going in to sooth her at night if she cries. If she smells me, she must eat. So far it is working well and Justin is able to get her back to sleep easily. Most nights she is only waking once. Napping is another issue. She does not like to sleep alone. Many times she'll fall asleep on my chest when I lay down with her. Sometimes I can put her down once she's asleep. Other times it wakes her up and she gets mad.

Juliet still loves to read and is still crazy about touch and feel books. She likes "The Very Busy Spider" and the web the spider spins is raised. I showed her once that she could feel it and now she feels it every time. She also loves the book "Look At Me!" (see pic below). This book has different animal faces you can hold up. She LOVES this book. It provided happy times for this photo shoot. Cradle Roll is a favorite time for her too. She has yet to cry when I leave her in there (knock on wood). The Cradle Roll teachers tell me about how excited she gets over Winkie Bear. Thankfully I teach her on Wednesday nights, so I get to see it first hand. She starts kicking her legs and breathing out her nose when Winkie appears. He is a very simple bear puppet that has probably been around for years. Juliet always wants to hug and "kiss" Winkie.

Juliet is truly a joy. Everybody loves her! It is so funny now when we go into restaurants, if the waitress does not make a comment about Juliet or doesn't interact with her, she's not a good waitress. Ha! I am constantly saying to Justin, "Did you see that?" "Did you hear that?" "Justin, look!" She is such a cutie. Once again, I cannot thank God enough for Him blessing us with sweet Juliet.

DISCLAIMER: this part might cause tears, make your heart ache or make your tummy hurt. (AKA-Mama, don't read)

The other night Justin and I watched a Christian movie, "Faith Like Potatoes," and a little boy dies in the movie. Of course I was crying. I told Justin if anything happened to Juliet, I would die, the Lord might as well take me too. I could not go on. She woke up a bit later and I went to nurse her and I cried, kissed her and prayed. I can truly sing with conviction, "Come Lord Jesus Come." Oh, for the time when there will be NO pain or suffering. Now when Juliet is crying or wanting to be held or wearing me out, I thank God for these times. I want to take none of them for granted.