Friday, November 27, 2015

eight months

^^ I took these pictures with my fancy new iPhone and they ended up horrible quality, so either the lighting was really that bad or I have no technology skills whatsoever. Either way, I wasn't going to attempt it again because getting her to stay still is next to impossible! ^^


Size: Ezra is in size 4 diapers and wearing 6-12 month and 12-18 month clothes. I don't think (and sorta hope!) this answer will be changing anytime soon. 

Eat: So, Ezra doesn't like food. In that regard, she's the exact opposite from her brother at this age, so I'm in new territory here. She'll take a few bites of whatever we're offering her (sweet potato is still her favorite and she'll eat more of that than anything else, but still, not much) and then just lose interest. I'm not worried about her health or weight gain (clearly!) and neither is her doctor, and I love that she is still nursing, it's just surprising to me. So we'll continue trying solids over the next few months but I don't mind if it stays come and go. She's nursing about every three hours during the day and has still never had a bottle. 


Teeth: Ezra has two teeth (bottom two) with at least one right on the surface of poking through - her top front right tooth. It's clearly been bothering her for a couple weeks now - rubbing the space between her top lip and nose, sucking her top lip, running her tongue over it... She's drooling lots like always and constantly has her finger in her mouth. It's red and swollen and you can see the outline of the tooth in her gums about to come through but it just won't budge. She's been a pretty good sport about it but it's still breaking my heart. Lots of ice cubes throughout the day and Tylenol before bed! I just wish they would come through at the same time because I know as soon as we're in the clear with this tooth, she'll start the process all over again! 

SleepThis tooth has got Ezra waking one to two times a night - occasionally three or four times (!!!), but also occasionally sleeping through the night. She's a little unpredictable, but still a better sleeper than Uriah ever was at this age so it's nothing I can't handle ;) (Except when Uriah decides to wake up one to three times a night, too... Bring on the coffee!) She's easy to get back to sleep in the middle of the night and most of the time, after a few snuggles, I can leave her in her crib awake and she'll get back to sleep on her own. That has been a huge blessing because while I might have to wake up multiple times a night, I usually don't have to be awake for long. She goes down for bed around 7, give or take a half hour. If she wakes up when Uriah and Stephen do, around 5, she'll nurse and go back to sleep until around 7:30. If she's able to sleep through the two of them waking up, she'll get up around 6:30. I told you, unpredictable! She goes down for her morning nap about an hour after she wakes up for the day. She'll usually take a little cat nap on the go during our morning outing, either in the car seat, carrier or stroller. She takes an afternoon nap around 12:30 that lasts close to 2 hours. Occasionally she'll get another little snooze in around 4, and it's usually pretty needed because she gets tired and cranky in the evenings, but sometimes she makes it to bedtime without one. I always nurse her to sleep at bedtime and sometimes for her afternoon nap, as well (I don't care that "they" say not to do it!) but for the most part she's a great self soother and has a pretty solid sleep routine so she's easy to get down. 

On the GO: Ezra has picked up some speed in the last month! She's crawling all the time, everywhere, and fast! She'll follow us from room to room (and fuss if by the time she gets there we're ready to leave!) and bolt after Uriah's Legos and blankey (the only things he can't/doesn't have to share). She's always crawling under the table and desk and around the chair legs, pulling herself up on e v e r y t h i n g! I'll catch her trying to stand up in the middle of the floor, too, with nothing to hold on to, just flat on her feet with her legs straight up on the tips of her fingers trying to stand. Just recently she started walking her way along the couch and walking while holding our fingers. And, more often than not, I find her standing up in her crib - guess we need to be lowing that soon! Time, slow down! 

Talking: Ok, so she's not really talking, but she's babbling like crazy! She's said "dada", both as part of her babbles and intentionally in regards to Stephen, which I'm sure didn't make his heart burst at all ;) She says something that resembles "Uriah" but I don't even know how to spell that out - "eye ah"...? Anyway! It's probably not in reference to Uriah but something she babbles because she hears us say that all the time. Still, it's so cute! She's said "momma" a few times before, but not recently, so I'm just over here waiting patiently, repeating it every chance I get. 

Accomplishments: ...Or whatever this section should be called... Ezra can wave when you ask her to say "hi" - it's such a cute little gesture! And when you say "how big is Ezra?!", she'll lift her arms up over her head. Nana has taught all the grand babies to do this so it makes me extra happy to see Ezra showing off how she's "sooo big!" (She holds her hands together when she lifts up her chubby arms, perfectly circling her little round face and it's just SO cute!)

Likes: Snuggles, kisses, smiles, eye contact, tickles - attention! She's such a ham and a flirt when it comes to interacting with people, always smiling and giddy! She loves listening to Uriah sing and watching him dance and run around. She loves the sound of her daddy's voice and it's so sweet to watch her crane her neck or bolt into the other room looking for him. She's just starting to like books - having them read to her and flipping through the pages herself. She mostly loves toys that aren't toys, like sweatshirt strings, her car seat, the plastic reusable bags, tags on clothes and my diaper bag. She loves being outside - she's always content in the stroller or carrier and loves crawling through the sand at the beach or sitting in the grass. (Surprisingly, she doesn't put leaves/sand/sticks in her mouth!) She laughs every time we play chase with Uriah. She likes interactive songs like "Wheels on the Bus" or "Patty Cake". She likes sucking on ice cubes and sitting in her hair chair (you can (and I have!) leave her in there for an hour while playing on the living room floor and she's perfectly happy) She's starting to get attached to her blanket (because I've basically forced it on her), grabbing it when she's lifted out of the crib, closing her eyes when she snuggles it to her face and stops crying when she's handed it, and she loves playing with her bunny stuffed animal she sleeps with in her crib. She loves bath time and I often use it as a ploy to make it to bedtime because it will make her happy and keep her content even in her fussiest of evenings. 

Dislikes: She doesn't like toys being taken away from her (she's got an opinion about things, now!), laying down to get dressed or her diaper change (though one little tickle and she's done fussing!), being put down to play by herself when she's tired (she's got such a good pouty face - it breaks your heart!) 

Things I want to remember: How she spits and blows her lips A L L the time. The way her skin feels like silk. How you can always get her to laugh by pretending to eat her toes. The depths of her thigh rolls (!!!). Her contagious smile that makes her eyes disappear. Her soft, fuzzy blonde hair. The fact that I can't go into public without someone complimenting her (and Uriah's) beautiful blue eyes or her sweet and content demeanor. 

Eight months. Every day with you, sweet girl, is a gift and I am treasuring each one! Thank you for being our constant ray of sunshine and giggles - your sweetness is contagious! We love you, Ezra Lee!