Eight Months Old!

No doctor's appointment this month so I don't have any measurements but I can tell you one thing - she's a big girl.  Not chubby or chunky....just long and lean.  She definitely weighs more than 20 pounds and is maybe around 28 inches long - when you look at her, she's about the size of a one-year-old.  But...developmentally, there are some things she is ahead on but there are other things that she hasn't quite mastered.

- Natalie is starting to pull up from sitting to standing and she's successful about 50% of the time.  Last Saturday morning I came into her room around 8:00 to get her and she was standing up, holding onto the railing with the biggest grin on her face which quickly turned to a "get me out of this poopy diaper" face.

- She still is doing the army crawl and hasn't progressed into a full hands and knees crawl but hey, if it works why try something else?!  I think she has her sights set on a much bigger task - walking.

- Natalie is wearing some 9 month stuff but mostly 12 month clothing and we just moved up a size in shoe - she is now a size 3 which means no more soft soled baby shoes.  We were at Walmart on Saturday and got her some cute pink and white velcro BIG girl tennis shoes.  She was a little confused when we first put them on her because they were so heavy but hopefully they'll provide her with a lot more support and stability as she is pulling up, standing and starting to walk.

- Her diet is getting more exciting.  She has oatmeal for breakfast, a fruit or veggie at lunch and then a different fruit or veggie at dinner.  She doesn't have her pincer grasp yet but we'll put out shredded cheese or little bits of bread on her tray and she'll reach out with her hands and grab some in her little chubby fists and then try to cram it all into her mouth.  Most of it ends up in her high chair or on the floor.  This makes Angie a happy puppy dog.

She has had a VERY busy month!  Here are some pictures of what she's been up to lately.

She fell asleep after a long day at the state fair.

She met (and was scared by) Big Tex.

She had her first black eye caused by Angie knocking her over and then stepping on her face.

She wore a pretty white gown for her baptism.

She was baptized and received two godparents, Uncle Michael and my childhood friend Kate.

Blew Halloween bubbles with Daddy and Angie.

Crawled around the kitchen and discovered that the best toys are not the ones that are bought from the store.

Went to the park and swung in a swing for the first time.

Played with Momma's shoes in her closet.

Tried to pull up on the bathtub and then fell over and bonked her head on the tile.  Ouch!

Celebrated Halloween by being the cutest ladybug on the block.

Sat intently with Angie (her ladybug twin) and watched the neighbor boy across the street bounce his ball.