Mazz Madness!: Mallory- Month 8

Milestones:

• She said her first word "Da-Da"

• Started laughing when we play peek-a-boo

• Grabs and plays with toys especially the ones her brother is playing with :)

• She has started getting a little shy with strangers

• Has tried lots of different flavors of baby food

• First trip to the park- loves the swing!

• Still wearing size 2 diapers

• We took our first trip to the park

• Mallory cracks up when you play peek a boo with her

• Can shake her head when she wants to say NO

• Mallory has started watching and acknowledging Miles- melt my heart!!!

• Puts EVERYTHING in her mouth!

• Mallory can pick her paci up off the ground and put in her mouth

Eating:

Mallory is still eating around 3-4 oz every 3 hours, with an occasional 5 ozs in the middle of the night. We are still giving both of them higher calorie formula per the pediatricians recommendation. It tends to clog her system up a little bit so with at least one bottle we put an ounce of prune juice. She still drinks her bottle with record speed- that's my girl! She has also graduated on to not needing to be patted on the back afterwards because she can burp all on her own- my baby girl is growing up and turning into her dad :) She still is not a huge fan of baby food. She has learned out to turn her head from side to side to let us know when she is not interested and is not going to open her mouth. She will eat peas, sweet potatoes and green beans- but still only about 5 bites in one sitting. This girl has some serious self control- which she did not get from her mommy! She still is our little drama queen and gets in at least one whole body shiver (as if she had just eaten a lemon) with each feeding. It cracks me up every time! She LOVES sitting in her highchair sucking on her sippy while her brother chows down. She is such a proper little girl because she will hold on to her sippy cup the whole time while brother tosses his after 15 seconds. She still doesn't have any teeth but I cherish every day with her innocent toothless grin!

Sleeping:

We still have a needy little girl on our hands during the night that needs her pacifier put back into her mouth a handful of times each night. She is our little princess and we will do whatever she asks (we might need to change our parenting motto soon!) This past month they did have a night where they went 9.5 hours without eating and another 10.5 hours without eating, but that is NOT the norm! I have to say though I miss them during the night if they sleep too long. She is still the crazy little sleeper in the crib and moves ALL over the crib and you never know what direction or pose you will find her in. She still LOVES her naps- yeah!! You can always count on her to sleep for at least 15 minutes in between every feeding. Every day I take turns taking a nap with each of them and she is the BEST napping partner. She sleeps so much longer when she is in my arms and I truly could lay there with her all day. Everyone says they look like angels when they sleep- but my little Mal looks like an angel all the time!

Playtime:

I think playtime is just as fun for me as it is them! It is absolutely amazing watching them learn! We got rid of our dining room table and converted our living room into a playroom. It is great- we spend at least 90% of our day in there! It is so fun sitting the two of them up and playing with their toys with them. Mal's favorite toy is whatever Miles is playing with and she is not shy about taking it from him. As long as she can fit it in her mouth she is excited about it! If I had to pick a favorite for her right now it is the stackable rings. She loves pulling them off and then sticking the middle pole in her mouth. She LOVES to have books read to her, yeah she is going to take after her mama! Her feet finally touch the ground on the exersaucer and the bouncer and she really enjoys them now that she can feel the ground under her tootsies. Mallory makes these sweet sweet sounds when she opens her mouth. It is her version of singing and how it melts my heart! She also loves her bath time. You give her a wet wash cloth and she will suck it dry before the end of the bath. She has also figured out how to bring suck on her toes- adorable! Mallory does not however enjoy getting out of the bath or getting dried off. But goodness gracious does she look cute wrapped in her pink towel! She is getting a little shy when strangers approach her especially if they are men. But once she warms up she is back to her SMILEY self! That girl knows how to charm everyone with her smile :) Her favorite song is "How Funky is Your Chicken!" It gets her to grin from ear to ear with an occasional chuckle. She tolerates being on her stomach more. She doesn't roll back on to her back immediately and she doesn't cry when she is on her stomach- success! She also lights up when she sees Mila or MJ, it is stinking adorable! I treasure every moment that I get to spend with her!