8 Months!

Excuse me while I take this moment to bawl my eyes out at the fact that my baby is 3/4 of a year old. 

:::::::::::::::::moment of hysterics:::::::::::::::::

We now resume your regularly scheduled blogging. 

 

THIS MONTH YOUR BABY MAY:

• "rake" small objects toward her and pick them up as her coordination skills and dexterity continue to develop Avery has been doing this for a while, but she is getting really good at it.
• clap and bang objects together as her muscle coordination improves She has discovered this within the last week or so. She thinks it's just hysterical to make as much noise as possible.
• use her arms to invite someone to pick her up If anyone gets within 5 feet she will reach up. She's not picky either. If you have arms she wants up.
• reach for the spoon when you feed her at mealtimes We have always let her attempt to use the spoon and she is getting a little better. She is best at things that are pretty "sticky" like cereal not runny like yogurt.
• turn away when no longer hungry This was one of the important cues we looked for to determine when she was ready to start solids, so she has been doing this since about 6 months.
• babble random consonants: "di, ba, ma" She definitely babbles and is getting very close to saying 'dada' -- although if you ask Justin she already says it multiple times a day.
• understand "no" (although your baby may understand the meanings of other words by now, the word "no" is key because she’ll also understand the actions she must take when hearing it) If she understands no she sure doesn't follow directions well. We redirect her attention each time we say no so that she learns what is expected when she hears the word, but so far she doesn't do it herself.
• understand a rough idea of "in" and "out" (the first instance of recognizing a spatial relationship) I have no idea how I am supposed to know if this is true.

• add tongue movement to change the sound of a word She is definitely exploring her tongue. She likes to see what it does and spends many minutes with it just hanging out of her mouth. Like this: