I missed the seven month update, probably in no small part because that's when Colin became mobile. He started crawling right at seven months, followed a few days afterward by pulling up to stand. Now, at eight months, he is a lightning-fast crawler, able to pull himself up on just about anything and then lower himself carefully back down again, and beginning to cruise along the furniture.
He is thrilled. He greets his own physical achievements with a delighted crowing laugh, and meets our eyes with his best "ZOMG ISN'T THIS AWESOME!!!" expression.
He seeks out, with unerring accuracy, anything he isn't supposed to have. Then he puts it in his mouth. Paper is a particular favorite here, but I also removed a large rough pebble from his mouth once. I think he found it in the fireplace?
This is going to sound crazy, but I think he's trying to say Alex's name. He calls out "A-lah" with suspicious frequency.
He has
just started to show an interest in a few of his books - the ones with baby photos or animal sounds. I don't know if this is a personality difference from Alex - she was fascinated by books from a very very early age - or if it has more to do with being the second child. He doesn't get read to nearly as often as she did at his age. Mostly if I'm reading aloud I'm reading to Alex.
Still, he doesn't seem to feel neglected:
He has taken to solid food very well. He likes Cheerios, rice, mashed potatoes, bits of soft fruit. He doesn't really go for pureed fruit, but he likes his yellow and orange vegetables and his veggie-meat blends. He doesn't really have a thumb-and-finger pincer grip yet, so he eats Cheerios by swiping at them with his whole hand, making a fist, and then unwrapping his fingers one at a time until a Cheerio appears. Then he pushes it up the hand with his thumb and into his mouth.
Still no teeth, except for the one tiny little white speck on his gum that's been there for months.
He still nurses very often. Nursing these days involves an awful lot of pinching, prodding, nail-digging, and miscellaneous grabbing, unless he's swaddled, so it's not so fun for me. I am trying to train him to hold on to my shirt or hand, with some success. I also hope to teach him the critical importance of unlatching
first and
then whipping his head around to see what's behind him.
Naps are settling into a schedule: usually three times a day, midmorning, midafternoon, and dinnertime, usually at least an hour each. He still wakes to eat a few times a night. We've had some difficult nights - last night he woke up several times sobbing, not consoled by nursing - but I think that was the only time. Usually a bad night is when he feeds and feeds and feeds and feeds with his eyes closed the whole time. I am not outrageously sleep-deprived, although I am starting to think that it's time to set up the crib. Although I do like sleeping with him and cuddling him at night.
He's such a sweet, affectionate boy. He holds his arms out to his favorite people (Mama, Papa, and his nanny Nia) and tries to climb into their arms. He snuggles in. My absolute favorite is when he absolutely wants to be standing (because, you know, STANDING!!) but is also sleepy: he stands up on my lap and bends over to rest his head on my shoulder.
He really is my darling. So cute, so lovable, so cuddly, so sweet, so happy.
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