Eight and a half months

Sounds

Cries — When very tired, frustrated, hungry, or when her hair’s being washed

Getting ready to cry — The wide-open mouth, scrunched up face, so angry or upset that she can’t get a cry out just yet; doesn’t happen that often

Giggles — When tickled, swung around, or otherwise pleasantly surprised

Singing — High-pitched light babble

Snuffling — She will huff and puff quickly through her nose

Sonar — Short bursts evenly spaced

Sports announcing — Loud babble and yells

Various other babble — Mostly b’s, d’s, g’s, ah’s, and e’s

Whines — Usually in her high chair waiting for more food

Movements

Annoyance — Sometimes she’ll bang her arms up and down and kick a bit when she’s frustrated, like when I won’t let her eat grass or climb on the kitty or when we wipe her face after a meal

Clapping — Mostly almost clapping, where her hands just go back and forth but don’t touch, but twice she’s actually made a few claps

Crawling — Not all that fast or graceful yet, but competent, even for getting over obstacles like a pillow or a leg

Cuddling — With a person or a blanket or soft toy, she’ll scrunch herself up and hug whatever it is and tuck her face into it

Pick me up — When we get ready to pick her up, she raises her arms.

Pincer practice — She still mostly grabs with her whole hand but sometimes touches things with just one finger or an open hand, and occasionally grabs with first finger and thumb

Standing — Occasionally she can pull herself up on the coffee table, but if placed standing she can stay up for a long time, cruise to the left, let go with one hand or foot, and either sit by falling or occasionally by reaching down

Take and toss — She’ll crawl around grabbing toys and tossing them behind her

Waving — One or both hands up high

Meals and sleep

At breakfast she has a bottle, 6-7 oz.

Around 11 she has a nap, anywhere from forty minutes to an hour and a half.

At lunch she has a vegetable, a fruit, and whatever that week’s new food is. Some of the recent ones have been scrambled eggs, yogurt, mozzarella cheese, rye crackers, and whole wheat pasta. Then another bottle.

After her afternoon nap, usually from 3:00 to 4:45 or so, she has another bottle.

At dinner she has oatmeal or barley cereal, Cheerios, and a little of anything from our dinner that she can eat.

At bedtime, the fourth and final bottle.

Activities

Most of her waking time she spends in the living room with that week’s basket of toys. (I’ve divided them into three baskets, in hopes of all of us getting less bored.) She can entertain herself quite well.

Sometimes we play with her with a toy — helping her pull a string or push a button, playing peekaboo with a stuffed animal, and so on.

Sometimes we do “Itsy-Bitsy Spider,” “Patty-cake,” or “This Little Piggy.” She watches, laughs, and sometimes gets her hands involved.

Sometimes we read a book and let her play with it afterwards (if it’s a board book).

Sometimes I sing or play an instrument for her while she either plays in the living room or stands in the entertainer.

Sometimes we take her for a walk, usually in her stroller.

Sometimes she crawls around the floor, playing with the rug my mom crocheted, or the springy boingy doorstops, or the dining room chairs, and so on.

Sometimes Mark swings her around or does arm curls with her and that sort of thing.

Sometimes she plays with blocks in her room.

Sometimes she rocks in her rocking chair or on the rocking horse. She doesn’t rock them herself very well, although sometimes she tries. She holds on well to the arms of the chair or the handles on the horse.