Ella- 8 months old

*She does not cry after every bottle anymore. HALLELUJAH! Her bottle size varies 4-5 oz.
*She isn’t spitting up as much.
*She has the most expressive eyes (we hear this a lot). It is even more noticeable when she has her pacifier in her mouth.
*When we put her in the car seat she will cry, unless Jaycoby is there to talk to her. He distracts her and she is too busy smiling at her awesome big brother to notice that she should be letting us know how much she hates getting buckled in. When we go to get her out of her car seat she flaps her arms like crazy and kicks her legs.
*She is grabbing our faces, necklaces and glasses.
*She almost constant chews on her hands. She doesn't have a hand preference, but she usually chews on her thumb and index finger (mostly both at the same time). She is beginning to get a callus.
*She is laughing easier and even squealing on occasion. Her noisiest times are when we are driving in the car or when she is playing in her Jumperoo. She will “talk” the entire time we are in the car and she loves to squeal at Jaycoby when she is playing in the “bouncy bounce”.
*This isn't new, but I have never documented it before....She has the same birthmark as mommy. There is a round, red mark on the back of her head/top of her neck area. It is covered by her hair, so it isn't that noticeable. She also has a red mark on her face, between her eyebrows, just like mommy.
*She loves, loves, loves her older brother. And he loves her right back. Watching their interactions is BY FAR the highlight of my day. Ella’s eyes light up when she watches Jaycoby talking, playing Wii or dancing. And Jaycoby is always anxious for “his baby” to wake up and play with him.
*She is wearing size 2 diapers, size 6-9 months clothes and newborn/0-3 mo shoes.
*She already has her first freckle. It is on her upper left thigh.
*Her newest nickname from daddy is “Little Bip”.
*She is still sleeping well. Her bedtime is around 8 p.m. and she will sleep until 6:30-7:45. No complaints there! And she naps whenever she can. The poor baby has gone almost a full day on two 20-minute naps, but would take three naps if allowed. That's the life of a second child, I guess. She rarely gets the opportunity to nap in her crib as long as she needs to. It's usually naps "on the go" or a nap in her crib that is ended before she gets the chance to wake on her own.
*She has not been too interested in baby food, but she hasn’t been given a lot of opportunity to try it. At this point, it is just easier to do bottles. When I offer her baby food, she moves it around with her tongue and gives me this look like “what on earth did you put in my mouth?”. She is just starting to become more aware of the fact that we are eating food and she is not. But I don’t plan on giving her food until she is literally ripping it out of my hands or begging for it.
*She is our little water baby. We have taken her swimming several times now and she does great. When I put her on her tummy, she will kick her chubby legs like crazy. She never fusses in the water, out of the water, being put under the water….any of it. She is just chill the whole time and will even take a nap on me while we watch Jaycoby do his thing. Then she will wake up and be right back at it. She is starting to discover splashing too, which is oober cute.
*She is getting closer to sitting up, but she isn’t quite there yet. Since birth, she has been the baby that will just whip her head backward, almost as if she is purposely trying to fall out of your arms (apparently I did this when I was a baby also). We are used to it, but we always make sure to warn people before they hold her. This bad habit does not mix well with her trying to sit on her own. She is getting so close, and has gotten a lot more steady (thanks to some extra chubby thighs), but I am forced to sit there with her in case of a random head whip.


Jaycoby took this picture- Happy 8 months, Ella!


"My mom is the BOMB!"


Her bangs have gotten long enough that I need to pull them back with a clip.


Sitting up and playing.


This is how mommy hides her thumbs and Ella holds her hands the same way sometimes.