8 Month Birthday!

Little Bit, you are 8 months old! You have taken such big steps in this past month. One big thing you have learned to do is to crawl! You were not a fan at first, and spent the first few days after trying to stand. While you still try this on a daily basis, you seem to have accepted crawling for the time being. You are so, so, SO fast now. It is nearly impossible to keep up with you. You love to follow Mommy and Daddy around everywhere. When we are in two separate places, you crawl to the middle of the space between us (typically the living room doorway or hallway) and sit where you can sit and talk to us both. It is incredibly sweet and it makes us smile to see how much you love us both. You also enjoy being able to crawl to your toys on the red bookshelf now and pull them out like the big boy you are. Just a couple of days after learning how to crawl, you began pulling up on the furniture to stand up. If Mommy sits on the red couch, you will crawl over and pull yourself up to get to me. You especially love pulling up on the coffee table. There is so much to reach there that you just can't seem to be able to help yourself. You also know that Mommy and Daddy eat dinner there most nights and find it is a great spot to get a bite of our food from time to time. You have begun walking the length of the table in an effort to explore and share your proud smiles with both of us.  While you have been enjoying your big boy food for the last 5 months now, you have taken some pretty big steps in the food world this past month. You not only feed yourself your puffs, but also your crunchies, bitty bites, and bits of food we break up for you and set on your tray. You have also started to reach for the spoon, and have put several bites into your mouth when I put it on the spoon for you. You enjoyed not only the chocolate chips, but your very first chocolate chip cookie at Juju and Pop's this past Monday. You especially liked that Pops broke it up for you to enjoy, and for the first time you offered him the giggles and smiles he has been working so hard to get. You crawl to the bathroom with Mommy every morning. You don't like that you can't come in, and Mommy is still having to work with you on teaching you to stop at the doorway. The new Mickey Mouse sticker I've placed on the doorway seems to be doing its job though because you love it so much that you forget to crawl past it. Every day you sit in the doorway and let Mommy brush your teeth. You LOVE to have your teeth brushed and will jump and wave your arms when you see me grab your toothbrush. You try to push the toothbrush into your mouth to eat the toothpaste, so Mommy has to be careful and work quickly. We love your excitement.  You love, love, LOVE Mickey Mouse. Anything with Mickey Mouse makes you happy. On our last trip to Michaels, while you attempted to put everything in the basket into your mouth, you actually took out the Mickey coloring books we grabbed for you and did not attempt to chew on them. Instead, you studied them for 20 minutes...and then tried to put them in your mouth. A few days ago you left your Mickey shirt laying on Mommy and Daddy's floor. I asked you where Mickey was and you instantly turned and crawled back to grab your shirt. You love the Mickey cd Mommy and Daddy bought for you and love to play with your Mickey Mouse at home and in the car. No matter where you are or what you are doing, when you hear Mickey Mouse you stop to watch the tv. It is so cute! You still love going outside. When the weather was sunny, Mommy started taking you in the front yard to play during the day. You love being outside and are always so happy to play. You drink your water, play with your toys, listen to Mommy read your books to you, and watch us blow bubbles. You also try to crawl into the grass and will walk in it if Mommy helps you.  While you still are not a fan of naps, you have gotten much better about sleeping in your bed. You now sleep in your own bed all night. You only wake up to eat and then you go right back to bed. This past weekend you only woke up once or twice to eat. Needless to say, we are all sleeping better in this house.  You have learned to give kisses this past month. It is so incredibly sweet and just makes Mommy's heart melt each time you give me hugs and kisses now. You are very picky about who you will give kisses too. Outside of Mommy and Daddy, the only person you will give a kiss to is JuJu. It makes her so happy that I think she might just tear up sometimes. You are such an angel baby! One thing you dislike more than anything else is being told "no". That does not stop you from finding quite a few ways to have it said to you. You even try to ignore it from time to time, but nevertheless it is apparent to not only Mommy and Daddy but everyone else that sees you, that you are well aware of what it means when we say "no". You have even started to say it, and I must add that you use it correctly. When Mommy and Daddy do something you don't like (like put you down for a nap or tell you not to come in the bathroom), you respond with "nuh, nuh, nuh, nuh", This is how you say no. Sweet Boy, it is hard to believe how far you have come in just a few short months. You are growing so very fast and Mommy and Daddy are doing all we can to keep up. You remind us daily how truly brilliant you are. You are so alert and so aware of your surroundings. It is amazing to watch you. You also keep us going non-stop as we chase you and watch you explore. We are learning more and more about your personality, and it is the most amazing thing Mommy and Daddy have ever seen. It is incredible to know that just a few months ago you could only lay down and watch us. 8 months ago, we worried when you would realize who Mommy and Daddy were. You can not know how surprised and how truly happy we were when you smiled at us and made it clear to everyone that you knew immediately who we were when you were born. Now, you make us feel so special by choosing to follow us wherever we go. You talk to us and play with us and (yes, at times) show us you are not happy with us. Little Bit, there is no way that we will ever be able to show you just how much we love you and just how incredible we believe you are. Even so, know that we have every intention of trying to show you every day how much you are loved and wanted. We love you, Reagan. Happy 8 Months, Angel Baby!