Lila is 8 months old today! She is so big and is just growing up before our eyes. She remains an absolute joy and the center of our lives! I really can't believe she is 8 months old. The last week of her 7th month has been kind of a crazy one...
Early in the week she had a fever and was just whiny, not eating much and just not herself... we took her to the pediatrician but at that point her temp was only 99 and she seemed a little better. She went back to daycare Wednesday and Thursday but on Thursday night she developed a rash! At the pediatrician on Friday they told us she had roseola which is a pretty harmless virus and is no longer contagious.
She's also teething (bottom teeth are almost through!) and doing a whole bunch of new things developmentally right now which on top of the illness has been affecting her sleep. This week she woke up a couple times overnight but seems to be back to normal now. She is feeling much better and was in a great mood today!
They went ahead and gave her two shots at her appointment on Friday. She seems to be doing really well. Her weight has moved down to 50th percentile probably because she's been sick and a lot more mobile. They said she is a healthy girl and right on track! The pediatrician wants us to start emphasizing solid foods more and trying to get her on the sippy cup. Other than that I think we are all good!
Weight: 18 lb 1 oz, 50th percentile
Length: 27 7/8 in, 75th percentile
Head: 17 in, 50th percentile
Sizes: Same sizes as last month pretty much. 6-9 months in mostly everything, some 12 month pants, jackets and sleepers. She is wearing a size 2 shoe, but some 3s work. Her Robeez shoes are 6-12 months. Size 3 diapers.
Eating: Well the biggest change this month is the move to 100% formula. I'm happy to report that it is working out wonderfully for both baby and mommy! I love my newfound freedom and Lila loves her bottle! She eats 4 times a day and normally has 6-8oz per feeding. She eats around 7:30, 11:30, 3:30 and 7. We are on a great schedule now and she seems to love the predictability.
We are still trying to figure out solids. She definitely likes baby food better now, but seems to want something to chew on. She moves her mouth up and down like she's chewing even if its pureed. I really think she is ready to move to table foods and chunkier baby foods, but I'm just terrified of her gagging and choking. I guess I need to get over it because baby's got to learn to eat!
We are very unpredictable with her solid food meals. Sometimes I offer 2 meals a day and she'll eat anywhere from a few bites to 1/2 the jar. Other days she doesn't get any solids and doesn't seem to care either way.
Her
favorite foods: Mashed potatoes, cheese, Puffs, any baby food with turkey or chicken in it, pears, squash, sweet potatoes
This month I'm going to really try to get her closer to three meals a day. The pediatrician said this is a critical time to introduce her to different tastes and textures. If anyone has any good suggestions for meals, menus or what to feed an 8 month old, I'd love to hear it!
Sleeping: This month was a great one for sleep. She's been sick or teething the few nights, but with that exception, she sleeps over 12 hours a night from 7-7:30 or so. She's doing really well at going to sleep on her own and puts herself back to sleep in the middle of the night. She loves sleeping on her belly, prefers to be in warm footed pjs and loves her crib soother and glow seahorse. She still takes a pacifier at bedtime but usually spits it out at some point. If she wakes up at night she will find it and put it back in and that usually soothes her.
We just got a video monitor and I love it! She is all over the crib and it's so nice to be able to watch her if she fusses at night to make sure she's okay. She usually puts herself back to sleep within a few minutes. Without the monitor we'd probably go up and get her up when we didn't need to.
Her naps are still very good. She normally sleeps from 9-11 and 1-3 during the week. I'm hoping to make that second nap more like 2-4 so she can be awake more in the evening. Some days she will sleep from 1-2:30 and then she is in bed at 6:30! That's just too early for us since Neil doesn't get home til 6. I'd love for her bedtime to be closer to 7:30. During the weekend her schedule is a little different.. she usually sleeps until 8 and her naps are shorter. She still goes to bed around 7 though.
Talking: Lila loves to talk! She babbles all day long. She is so funny. She loves to say Da-da and ma-ma and ba-ba of course. She is experimenting with pitch and usually grunts when she is crawling. It will be so fun when she starts really talking!
Motion: She gets up on her knees and is just now starting to make some real crawling moves. She will usually crawl a bit on her knees and then give up and revert to the army crawl. She can cover serious ground! She can go from sitting to crawling very easily. I don't give her a ton of standing/cruising practice, but I was home with her one day this week and she is actually doing very well. She can stand for a long time holding on to the ottoman or TV stand. She totally shocked me when she moved from the TV stand to her walker toy the other day!! I guess that's cruising? She can walk a few steps with her walker but I'm very careful. I'm so scared she will fall on her face or straight backwards. I know she has to learn on her own but she has no fear and she scares me!
Developmental milestones:
- Waving and clapping a lot!
- Starting to cruise with furniture, walks a little with her walker toy
- Reaches out and up more for us
- I think she is giving us hugs now! I'm trying to teach her how to give kisses
- The other day it seemed like she purposefully said Mama to me.. but can't be sure
- Really responds well to her name, sometimes even reacts and stops when we say "no"
- Can open drawers and cabinets! Eek
- Trying to pull up...
- Paying more attention to books, seems to enjoy reading with me
- Is really enjoying music now! We love listening to Raffi songs on Youtube
Funnies, Firsts and Memories:
She loves sticking her tongue out. She sticks it out to the side when she's playing or examining something. It's hilarious, because Neil does that sometimes.
She loves to use people as a human jumperoo.. She will jump on your hip if you are holding her or on your lap. It's pretty cute.
Speaking of her jumperoo we put it on the tallest setting
Lowered her crib to the middle setting just in case she decides to pull up
Started using a big girl car seat in Neil's car
Had roseola and first real fever this month
One funny thing this month is when she saw baby Emmett who is 3 months younger.. it sounded like she said "Hey Boy"
Went to two pumpkin patches this month, saw all the grandparents and had some playdates
Here's to another great month with my amazing little girl!
