Kelsey at 8 months

At this point, I may as well be reporting on Kelsey at 9 months, since I am two weeks late. Forgive me.


My sweet baby girl turned 8 months old on Christmas Eve. She promptly showed off by presenting me with the most perfect Christmas gift on Christmas day: she babbled "mama mama mama" all day long. She didn't want to risk losing her daddy from around her pinky finger, so she followed up by babbling "dada dada dada" even more on Dec. 26.


As I'm sure I've said before, this is my most favorite baby age. Kelsey lights up when I walk in the room, she holds my gaze for several minutes, she's smiley and happy most of the time, she doesn't argue with me or talk endlessly yet, she can't crawl so she stays out of trouble, and she's just too darn cute.


Other fun facts about our little 8-month-old:

• She's eating more finger foods these days, and seems to prefer them to baby food. Her favorites: Cheerios, Gerber's fruit & veggie puffs, and Ritz whole-wheat crackers. (By the way, Rtiz are great for babies learning to self-feed, because they dissolve very easily and are easy to hold. I didn't know this five years ago.)


• Kelsey has caught on that juice in a sippy cup is yummy. She only gets a few sips after a meal, but she gets excited when she sees that cup!


• And now for the bottle report ... she's back on the bottle! Hooray! She stopped taking it when my sister Jenn was visiting in December. Then last week, she finally took another bottle for Ken. Whew. She's still picky about it, but at least we're making progress. Again.


• She isn't fazed by her brothers' crazy antics, yet she know voices her displeasure when they take a toy out of her hands.


• Bathtime still ranks as one of her favorite activities. Her little arms start waving and her legs start kicking as soon as the faucet goes on.


• Could she be destined for life in front of a camera? (Oh, I really hope not!) She spent plenty of her time with Grammy and Aunt Amy smiling after the camera flashed. The cameras were flashing often, so after a few hours of this, she caught on and began smiling as soon as she saw a camera. Cheese!


• Kelsey still naps twice a day, though I sense a change is on the horizon. She is spending more time talking in her bed before her afternoon nap, which is usually around 1.


• Her bedtime is getting a little later, somewhere between 6:45-7:15. She seems to get a second wind after eating a much larger dinner with the family.