lately....

I have been amazed at the rate at which our little sponge is catching on to life. I am somewhat strange when it comes to my little ones getting bigger. I tend to avoid reality. Like, when my weekly e-mail arrives from babycenter.com about her development, I leave it untouched in my inbox. Somehow, I convince myself that if I don't open the e-mail with the title "Your baby at 7 months 4 weeks," then she will never actually get to 8 months. Crazy...I know. At the same time, being surrounded by families who struggle to have children or whose children struggle developmentally I fully realize what a blessing each developmental milestone is. There are no words strong enough to express how thankful I am for her health and growth. I just wish we could stretch out this stage a bit, as she is SO fun!!! Lately, she has been working on her first tooth... Nothing to show for it yet, but it's coming. Another strange thing about me...I don't like the arrival of the first tooth. I have cried for each of their first teeth because it takes so much of their baby-ness away when that gummy grin becomes toothy. And yet, it's so cute! She's gotten very into books! It runs in the family, and I think she is so used to seeing her brother and sister reading that she just thinks it's what you do. And she even talks to the animals... She has not only discovered her toes, but LOVES to eat them. I had forgotten how darn cute that is, and it has been added to my "Favorite Things of Spring" list. She is so desperately trying to keep up with her brother and sister, which means she needs to get to where they are. Up until this week she has rolled her way to wherever they are located, which is no longer sufficient for her. She is trying to crawl. She attempts to get up on her knees all the time... and then quickly lands in a face-plant, but it's coming! Don't even get me started on that! But mostly, she laughs and smiles and continues to amaze us with her ever-pleasant disposition. It is a rarity to hear her cry. And despite my best avoidant efforts, she is officially 8 months old! Lately, we've been soaking up everything family...which is perfection!