Eight Months and Counting...

Dear Sammy -

Today you are two thirds of one year old. Eight months! Eight is two whole hands worth of fingers, minus the thumbs of course. How on earth did you get so big? We had you at the doctor's office the other day and you are nearly 20 pounds and 30 inches long. You are half as long as your Aunt Allison, who is a bit on the short side, but still! Half a grown person!

This past month has been so much fun. Except for those two days right before your first tooth came in. Those days were abysmal. But the rest? Fun! You can now perform a facsimile of a crawl. You never quite get your belly off of the floor, but man you are speedy. You have a new love of shoes, which is very very bad, considering all of the nasties your dad brings home on his OR shoes. So now we have a new game called 'Hide The Shoes' which, honestly, isn't really much of a game. It's more of a chore. But I digress.

Your food intake has skyrocketed again. You will now eat big yummy things like toast and crackers. There are probably other things I could give you, but I keep forgetting to consult with the books and internet, and you seem pretty content. I tried to give you some chunks of very ripe avocado once. Since you always loved it in puree form, I was surprised at your lack of interest after the first minute or so. It wasn't until I was cleaning your tray that I realized that those damned chunks were nearly impossible for me to pick up, and I've been using my fingers for years. When I popped them into your tiny mouth, you cheered up.

You've started to discover other babies and kids lately. We were visiting twin baby friends and the little boy was sitting in his bumbo. As soon as you saw his feet, I could hardly hold onto you. All you desired at that moment was some tasty baby toes in your mouth, as long as they weren't yours! At Stroller Strides, you watch the other kids so intently, especially the bigger ones. You had so much fun playing with Little Guy, Jake, Cait and Johanna when we were in Philly, it really makes me want to go back even more so you can play with them all the time.


Word-wise, you haven't quite said anything that seems to have intention, but you love yammering all day long. You ba-ba, pa-pa, ma-ma, na-na and so on. You also love to puff your cheeks up with air. Your grandma calls this your 'Pompous Face.' Why? I have no idea. When I hold you, you start vocalizing and then bounce your open mouth against my shoulder, making a sound that I would have called an 'Indian call' when I was little. I've tried to show you how you can do this with a hand as well, but for some reason you prefer the shoulder.

Besides other babies, you love blocks. You could spend half the day banging two blocks together. We can't get you to clap your hands for anything, but you'll clap blocks. Despite the lack of clapping, you will give people five on cue. Which? Cute! You also occasionally wave bye-bye when it seems appropriate, but I'm thinking that it's still a fluke. You haven't started signing yet, so the bet is still on.

These eight months have flown by so quickly. I am surprised in the morning when there is still a bit of the night chill in the air. You were born during the cold months, and they so quickly approach again. It's hard for me to believe that last year at this time I was still growing you inside of me. Even though this first year of your life is nearing it's end, you've been with me for so much longer it's hard to remember life without you. Sometimes I don't even want to.

I love you Bug!


Mama