So Harry turned 8 months about 10 days ago AND he is now crawling! He started a couple of weeks ago - and yes, I do feel guilty about not posting something sooner. Trying to keep up on all the ways to record progress can be tough at times - photos, blog, email etc - mixed in with the need to maintain personal
hygiene etc. Anyway....here we are. So he is crawling. He started just before my mum left at the end of January. Now he is moving across a room in the blink of an eye. So baby proofing is now in our midst. I am not sure what philosophy we are going to adopt. Probably, like everything else, something in the middle - we won't go all out but we will do something. We will see. :-) Harry is also making his way through the solid foods - not without some hiccups along the way. (Who knew that a baby's bowl movements could be the source of such interest, concern, anxiety, and study.) At this point he has done the cereals - rice, oatmeal and barley. We started him on bananas (which he liked) as his first fruit/veggie. We then moved on to:
- Peas (Wasn't sure about at first but then liked)
- Sweet Potatoes (LOVED
instantaneously - can't get it in fast enough)
- Carrots (Likes, not crazy about though)
- Avocado (Hates with a burning passion that causes much arm waving and angry grunting. Would be a horrible sight in an adult, in an 8 month old, it is probably the cutest thing you have ever witnessed. One has to
suppress the urge to try giving it to him again just to see the reaction. :-) )
- Apples (Likes a lot)
- Pears (Likes a lot)
- Plums (Would eat but not with much enthusiasm. Upon trying them myself, which I have done with all of his food since I think it is important that I know what the things he eats taste like, I can't really blame him)
- Prunes (Likes but only when mixed in with other things. Given his recent "issues" it is a good thing that prunes remain on the like list since he needs to be on a maintenance diet of prune juice these days.)
- Winter Squash (Likes - but what is winter squash any way?)
- Raspberries (Really likes)
We are now at the end of the options we can try using
jarred food. So Mummy will have to swing into baby food making action. I think we are going to try him on potatoes next and see how it goes. Hopefully no arm swinging and grunting is in our future. But then again.....
In terms of other developments.....he is saying
Da-Dee, which of course, makes Dan's heart swell with pride. He politely watches us when we prompt him to say "Ma-Ma" and then either says Ba-Ba or
Da-
Da. Oh well. Mummy will just have to wait. He has also got the pincer grasp down pat now - the process of pinching the index finger and thumb together - a "wonderful" skill when applied to the soft flesh of his mother's underarm. :-) He is just on the verge of cutting a top tooth! We can't wait for it to finally break through since he has been trying his parent's patience the last couple of days. He puts everything in sight in his mouth and just is generally not a very happy camper. But we understand his discomfort so we give him a break. :-)
We went to his first swimming lesson this past weekend. He had SO much fun. As did his parents. Unlike our experience at
Gymboree where the parents left something to be desired and it felt rushed and competitive, swimming was just a joy. Harry kicked and laughed and smiled his way through it. Taking the big pool in stride and having a high old time. We were told we couldn't take pictures until the last class but the experience was so positive that I think we will tempt the wrath of the instructor and take pictures next week. We have to document and share this great experience.
His sleeping is a bit of a mixed bag. Most nights he sleeps 9 hours straight. Sometimes he wakes up. But most of the time he just sleeps through. Napping is still not great. There are days where he takes two long naps. And then there are days where getting him to sleep a half hour is a struggle. Not sure what the pattern is - believe me we have tried everything to figure it out but the answer remains illusive. Oh well. He has to keep his parents on their toes.
The thing that constantly amazes me is how much he changes from day to day - often growing in the night and suddenly taking on a new skill. I can't believe that his first year is going by so fast. It is distressing on the one hand because I don't want it to be done. But on the other, each day brings new challenges and joys and I can't wait to experience those with him. Being a mother is a journey that I never imagined could be so incredible, my love for Harry so deep and I know that those feelings will only grow with each passing day. So bring it on! :-)
