Eight Months

Eight Months

Yet again, we cannot believe Riley is another month older.  Each passing day is just so bittersweet to me. Sweet because each day Riley is trying something new, doing something differently, becoming more interactive and aware, and ultimately becoming herself.  It is like a little present every day - we never know what new sound she'll make, what task she will accomplish... what thing will interest her. But it is also bitter because I feel the time passing and am challenged to fully savor each little bit of her.  I feel a little ridiculous experiencing this when she is such a young age, but she is growing so fast at this point in her life so it is difficult not to think of.  Charley and I finally looked through all of the video we've taken of her so far (which is not enough... we never seem to capture what we want to on video).  I was shocked at how much I'd already forgotten...  I had forgotten how tiny and fragile she used to be, how subtle her expressions were, how high-pitched her cry was, and how tired we used to look (we obviously don't miss some things!).

Riley has become very vocal recently.  Her first babble was "bababa" and has moved on to "dadada" "papapa" "mamama" along with a "ffffffffffffffff" sound.  That is probably my favorite.  She LOVES the sound of her own voice, and it is incredibly entertaining to listen to.

And those temper tantrums.  Oy.  She has definitely figured out how to change her cry to be more effective.  When she doesn't get what she wants (especially when something is taken away from her), it is almost as if the most painful thing in the world has just happened to her.  Eyes close, tears stream, mouth gapes... she even stops breathing because she cries so hard!  

Riley is just huge.  Huge.  She is almost 30 inches along and 21.5 pounds.  I may never have to lift weights again...

We are still working on solid foods.  Riley doesn't seem to love mashed up baby foods (I guess I can't blame her), but will eat pretty much anything that we eat.  This is obviously tricky because she isn't old enough and doesn't have enough teeth to eat our steaks, burgers and chicken... but she tries!  A few recent favorites of hers are cucumbers, baguette (especially the crust), salmon, and cupcakes.  The cupcakes were an accidental discovery - her desperate arm reached a little further than we had intended.  And one food that she really, really dislikes?  Lemon flavored slush... 

For some reason Riley is mesmerized by tooth brushing.  If she hears the swishing of the brush, she will stop in her tracks and just stare.  Of course this turns into a tantrum because she can't have the toothbrush in her mouth (trust me, this has happened a few times...), and the only thing that distracts her is the tube of toothpaste.  At this point in time, we have two tubes of toothpaste in her toy bucket...

Riley has become much more mobile.  She can get from one end of the room to the other fairly efficiently, but she does this by army crawling.  She hasn't figured out how to move her knees yet.  It is pretty hilarious, and it is also pretty impressive how quickly she moves with just her arms.  We haven't had to baby proof completely, but we are playing with fire.  Her obsession with cords and electronics is a little nerve-wracking.  

Her favorite thing at the moment is standing.  She doesn't stand flat on her feet though - apparently it is more fun on her tippy toes. She also doesn't know how to get down from standing yet, but she is loving her world from this new perspective.  

This Friday Charley, Riley and I are off to Seattle to attend two of my best friends' weddings and join my family in our annual vacation in Eastern Washington.  Although we (especially Charley), have some long flights ahead of us, we can't wait watch our friends get married and get some R&R with my family.

This past month my adorable grandfather Lowell Olson passed away.  Although he will be dearly missed and I am mourning the fact that Riley won't have the chance to meet him, I look forward to the days when I can tell her stories about her sweet great grandfather with the contagious smile.  We miss you, Grandpa!