8 months old

Our not-so-little baby is now 8 months old and a little over 20 lbs! Her second tooth came in at the beginning of the month. She loves to stand and is lifting her belly up into a crawling position, but no movement forward yet that I’ve seen. Yesterday, the teacher at daycare said she crawled, but I need to see it with my own eyes. She’s very coordinated and focused when she plays. She loves to bang things against each other and wave them in the air. But almost always her play involves picking something up on her right and dropping it on her left until all the toys are in a big pile on her left side and she’s like “What do I do now?” This coordination is helpful during her naps when she can find her paci and put it back in her mouth all by herself. She can spin around in her crib now and will sometimes wake up with her feet where her head was.

She’s blowing raspberries and smacking her lips now too. She’ll lift her arms to be picked up and lean in for a kiss (when she’s in the mood.) She luckily dodged getting the hand/foot/mouth disease that swept through her daycare class recently. It’s hard enough dealing with the allergies – the nosefrida is her constant companion.

She has this shy thing around new people – she’ll stick her thumb in her mouth and bury her head in my shoulder. She also does that when she’s excited – like when I let her “pet” the kitties (i.e. grab tufts of fur and rub her face in their fur.) The other day I walked in to pick her up at daycare and a little boy was reaching his hand out to her and she was swatting it away like “Go away, boy, I’m busy playing.” This girl has her priorities and boys ain’t one of them.

summer days with harper

The heat in Texas is setting in, so we’re taking advantage of the better part of summer before it gets too hot to move. Here’s what we’ve been up to.

Harper has been practicing her standing and loves to play at her activity table.

She LOVES to swing (with her mouth open wide the whole time)!

We also broke out her baby pool – she loved the cool water! Next, we’ll take her to the big pool to swim!

Oh, and remember this tiny little baby in a basket?

Well, she’s apparently outgrown her basket and doesn’t like it one bit!

So, on to a new basket! Much better!

After months of runny noses, congestion and hoping it was just a cold – I’m resigned to the fact that Harper has the dreaded Texas allergies. So we never leave the house without tissue or boogie wipes. Despite that, she’s a pretty happy baby!

old fashioned baby

Harper is wearing my maternal grandmother’s baby dress, pearl necklace and gold baby bracelet. Old fashioned never goes out of style. Love it.

7 months old

Wow, time is flying by. My little tiny baby is now in the big baby phase! She even got her first tooth the day before turning 7 months (on Gram’s birthday!) She has rolled over once, from tummy to back (no doubt because she really didn’t want to be on her tummy.) She’s standing now with assistance and loves jumping in her jumperoo. More than anything, she just loves to touch and grab everything within reach. And she loves to dance – particularly to Paul Simon’s Graceland album.

She is a champion sleeper, taking three solid naps a day and sleeping about 11 or 12 hours a night. She has had a cold this past week that has kept her up a bit at night, but she’s pretty good about getting herself back to sleep. We’ve added more solids – so far she’s had: bananas, apples, pears, strawberries, blueberries, mango, yogurt, carrots, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, peas, broccoli, cauliflower, avocado and corn. Her favorites are apples, pears, banana, sweet potato and butternut squash and her least favorite was beets. I think we’ll try meat soon – although pureed turkey does not sound appetizing to me!

As you can see, she still has the epic cheeks – they seem to just keep getting bigger. And the hiccups! The one characteristic that predates her birth. She still gets them anytime she laughs.

outings and visits

We’ve been trying to get outdoors to enjoy the beautiful weather before the heat sets in – but that’s easier said than done when we have chores piling up on the weekends. It’s nice to just hang out in our backyard and recently we hit the downtown art fair and food trucks – Harper’s first outing in her big girl stroller.

And we recently had Gram and Tod visiting for Gram’s birthday. We took a walk on the Lady Bird Lake trail and went out to eat a few times. Harper does really well in her portable high chair and likes to touch all the things!

We watched Drew play in his weekend soccer game. It’s unbelievable the amount of stuff you have to take with you when you leave the house with a baby!

We really enjoyed having Gram here – she fed Harper and bathed her and played with her and, most importantly, snuggled and loved on her. While she was here, Harper cut her first tooth and rolled over!

harper’s first easter

The Easter Bunny (and some relatives) gave Harper a few goodies!

And the bunny ears! Cuteness overload!

6 months old

Harper is half a year old already! Where has the time gone? She’s a little over 17 lbs and has shown a keen interest in eating. As in, this girl won’t turn away a bite! She opens her mouth as enthusiastically as a little baby bird!

She’s great at sitting up on her own for a few minutes at a time, with the occasional “Timber! There she goes!” She likes tummy time a lot more now that she’s figured out how to push herself up with her arms. She’s also started actually jumping in her jumperoo as opposed to lounging like it’s a La-Z-Boy. I think she’s started the slow process of teething – no teeth yet, but plenty of chewing on her thumb and slobbering. She’s still a laid back and easygoing baby – hardly cries or fusses and sleeps like a champ. She likes to babble to herself as she falls asleep, particularly in the car, and even babbles with her eyes closed. So cute!