Family Fun: 8 Months

Well, it's a little premature since Gavin won't be 8 months till next weekend, but I got a new camera and have plenty of pics to post. Right now at almost 8 months Gavin is still a handful. He is sleeping better, usually waking only once a night and occasionally crying it out back to sleep. He is still on special formula and reflux medicine, we have tried to stop the meds, but quickly realized he's not ready. In just the last two days he has taken a liking to his swing and has taken some great naps there.

He LOVES to be held, especially by mommy, and sometimes won't settle for anyone else. He hates to be alone and would rather have Ella laying on him and rubbing his head, than be alone. He does a pretty good job of sitting up unassisted, but usually falls over when reaching for a toy.

He is very skeptical of strangers and if not in mommy's arms when a stranger says "hi", then there is usually screaming.

He is very ticklish, his neck being the prime location. He also loves to be sung to....his favorites are "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Wheels On The Bus".

Gavin's favorite thing to do above all else is to chew on anything and everything.

Flat things...

rubber things...

hard things...

and even soft things.

Overall, he is a good baby. I wish he was a little more relaxed, but he has had a rough time so far and ever since 4 months old the teeth have not stopped. He has 8 teeth so far and 2 more on the way, so I need to give him a break. He is also pretty close to crawling. He has never done the typical "army crawl", he just rolls around. But he has been getting up on all fours and rocking back and forth. We'll see what the next month brings, I'm interested in seeing how much he's grown at his 9 month check up in June.

The girls are still as crazy as ever. They have been trying to spend as much time as possible outside. We were recently out at G-ma and G-pa F's house and enjoyed some time outdoors.

Jumping on the trampoline...

Riding on scooters...

Trying to ride on scooters....(the scooter is as big as her)

Digging in rocks/gravel...

Dumping gravel...

Running around...

And just expending as much energy as possible.

Ava is still taking dance class and she spends at least a fourth of every class performing her own routine to the two way mirror where the parents are watching...they all get quite a kick out of her. She is excited yet nervous for kindergarten, she says she is ready to show the teachers her "mathematics skills". She is a good big sister and tries to be as patient as she can when Ella is being the typical 2 year old.

Speaking of Ella she is a crazy little girl. She is very opinionated and very moody. Depending on her mood and the moment she will either want to do everything herself or want you to do everything. She can find something hysterical and then in a split second be screaming and bawling over the same thing...usually some wrestling activity. She too is still in dance class and unlike Ava, her eyes rarely leave the teacher. She tries her hardest to follow along with every move. Ella is also incredibly stubborn...she will sit in the car an extra 15 minutes to do her own seat belt instead of accepting help. And while Ava has finally got a descent smile on command, Ella is a work in progress. She does the same eye squint that Ava did, and when asked to smile with her eyes more open...