Jack: 8 months

Sleep

Whew!  I am so glad we are doing better in this department.  And I think that is due to the fact that Jack was definitely teething!  We found the magic combination of teething pills and the orajel q-tip looking things that put a little numbing stuff on the spot where you need it - thank goodness!  We also started putting Jack down a little earlier, and I think that has really helped too.  We usually get Jack down between 7:45 and 8 and he sleeps a full 12 hours!  He goes down for his first nap at around 10:15 and typically will sleep about 2 - 2.5 hours.  His second nap is at around 3:15 and he will sleep about 1.5 hours.  I'm so glad we have a good routine going (and that he is sleeping well)!

Eating

Just after Jack turned 7 months, I stopped the breastfeeding.  It was a gradual process, but I stopped producing enough for a feeding, so we made the switch to all formula (the normal, blue Similac kind).  I do still have just a few frozen bags of milk that I keep forgetting to use.  I will do that this month so we don't have them taking up space in the freezer anymore!  Jack has 5 bottles a day (7:45, 10:15, 1:30, 4:45, + 7:45 - on average, of course) and then he has 2 scoops of cereal and 1 jar of baby food twice a day (8:45 am + 6:45 pm).  Sometimes I will add in that lunchtime meal, but it is hard to fit in and he is doing ok without it...we will work on that this month though!  He is loving to eat - as long as there aren't any teeth needing to come in :) And he has gotten better about pears!  I did make some baby food and he is enjoying new flavors - he had avocados last night and really liked them!  I also made blueberries, cantaloupe, zucchini, and bananas!  We have been feeding him little teeny bites of mushy things (mainly when we are out) and it is so funny to see his face when he gets a little taste.  Here he is after a little taste of refried beans at Chuy's!

Weight

Nothing official here!  According to our scale at home, he is 21.4 pounds!

Length

No official measurement here, and I didn't have the patience to try to measure :) Will have a new measurement next month...he has definitely grown though!

Size Clothes

Jack is wearing 9 month things right now...and I've noticed some of the jammies and outfits are starting to get a little short! So we may be leaning more towards the 6-12 month size before too long!

Size Diapers

Size 3 is working perfectly right now!

Hair color

He has enough hair to where he can actually get "bed head" now! And it seems a little darker than Katie's!  He will look so different when he actually has a head full of hair!

Eye color

Those baby blues are amazing!  And he has the longest eyelashes!

Looking Like

Definitely like Brad and Katie these days...I have pictures of all of us at 6 months to compare - it is crazy!  

Nicknames

We have done better about calling him "Jack" as opposed to "Baby Jack" lately!  Also, The Dude, Jackaroni, and Jacky Wacky!

Favorite toy

He is still loving the exersaucer these days!  And Sophie the Giraffe has been a big hit lately...I keep that in the diaper bag and let him play with it when we are out - he loves to squeak it and chew on it!  He got a little baby photo album and I finally put pictures in it - he LOVES to play with that when he is sitting in his highchair!

Firsts

Whew!  This has been a busy month full of new experiences!  Jack experienced his first snow!

And the next day, it snowed again - he got to go sledding for the first time!

And he sat in the cart at a store like a big boy (at Target, of course)!  He loved being able to look around and play with toys - and he did such a great job!  I love that it leaves more room in the cart for the things we need!

And he sat in a high chair out at a restaurant for the first time!  He loved being able to see the TVs!

He has his first tooth - and second!  On February 1, his first tooth cut through...and then on February 11, its neighbor came on in too!

And he had his first Valentine's Day this month!  

And he sat up in this special bath chair for the first time!  I get a little nervous with sitting in the tub because of tipping over while sitting and it being slippery, but this chair is great!  And he LOVED splashing around!

Milestones

Good gracious is this boy mobile! He is rolling everywhere and has taken his first "crawls" forward.  He still hasn't quite figured out the coordination in his arms and legs for the crawling motion, but he is "up and at 'em" for sure!  He does downward dog and planking all the time!  And he easily gets up on all fours and rocks and moves around.  He will be crawling and into everything by 9 months no doubt!  He definitely knows his name too!  I am sure that is partly because we are doing better with calling him Jack.  He is working on being able to wave - when we wave at him, he sticks both arms out and waves with both hands.  Maybe he is creating his own unique wave...? It is so cute though and he thinks it is hilarious!

Talking/Words/Sounds

He is more and more vocal by the day!  He says "mamama" and "dadada" and "bababa" - I will start paying attention for more sounds!  He also has become more expressive with his grunting - he makes more grunt and growling noises than any baby I've ever met!  When he drops a toy or gets frustrated or angry, he growls at us...silly guy!

Anything else?

If it is even possible, Jack has become sweeter!  He just snuggles into my shoulder and chest and my heart melts.  We are asked all the time if he is always as happy and smiley as he seems, and the answer is always, "98% of the time, yes!" The only time he has been difficult is the few days around when his teeth were coming in.  And I have to say I'd be difficult if I had teeth breaking through too!  All it takes is a glance in his direction or saying hi to him and he gets the biggest smile on his face.  Katie's whole class (and her teacher and the parents) all think Jack is the best baby ever, and they love playing with him!