8 Months Old!!!

Happy 8 months to our little guys! This is the first time I've missed their actual monthly date on the 21st as we were traveling home from Hilton Head on Sunday. A bout with illness for all three babies has me way behind, but I'm getting it up just a few days late, so not too bad!

Happy 8 months to our little sickies

Harbourtown Lighthouse with Dad. I love the way Will is looking up at him in this pic! 

The babies are changing so quickly these days- here is a quick update on each:

Will:

The amount of hair that Will has on his head now makes him look less and less like a baby and more and more like a little boy every day! He is still our little sweetheart and great at giving big, sloppy kisses. He's happy most of the time, but he has a pretty good grumpy face that he'll shoot us if we're not doing something he likes. Will is still the most reserved of the trio, and absolutely has the hardest time adjusting to new environments. We were out to dinner the night before we left Hilton Head and he woke up from his nap in the restaurant. Not knowing where he was did NOT sit well with him, and lots of overly dramatic tears and frowns came from him. He can sit up on his own for a couple minutes at a time, but he doesn't seem as interested in sitting up on the floor as his brothers are. Sitting up in his rock-n-play is a different story, though. He LOVES to sit up in it, which means his rock-n-play days are very numbered. It's so funny to see his little head peek up and over the side of the rocker. In a relatively new development, he has started army-crawling across the floor. He loves to play with toys that make noises (as they all do) and he's figured out how to shake certain toys to make them noisy. Will is a great eater and happily eats anything we offer him. He loves to drink from my water bottle- he can suck the water up through the straw but hasn't quite figured out how to swallow it, so he makes a big mess anytime he tries to drink. He loves when Daddy tickles his belly- that sets off lots of the big belly laughs that we can't get enough of. He isn't saying any real words yet, but he thoroughly enjoys yelling at the top of his lungs, as well as blowing raspberries and drooling all over the place. Will's currently wearing 6-9 month clothing, and thanks to an impromptu doctor's visit today we know he's weighing in at 16.7 pounds.

Honestly, he couldn't be any sweeter!

He looks like a brand new baby in this pic- love post bath snuggles!

He loves loves loves to drink out of Mama's water bottle

Sitting up in his rock-n-play

Griffin:

I have a feeling Griffin is going to be our joker- his comedic timing has Will and I laughing all the time. He's fairly good at sitting up on his own and can balance for several minutes before he topples over. He has quite a bit of hair, too, but not nearly as thick as Will's. And it sticks straight up in the air like little down feathers. He is just starting to get some stranger danger attitude to him. I had the double stroller in the bathroom at Target one afternoon and someone came up and peeped into his car seat while I was changing Cooper. Griffin took one look at her and started wailing! He's usually pretty OK around people, but he was not having a random person invading his space! He is a good eater, but will only eat certain foods under protest. It's pretty easy to tell when he's not a fan of something we offer as his whole face reacts. He loves when we read books to him and is probably the most attentive when we read stories and he can see the pictures. He's not saying actual words yet either, but definitely "talks" more and more these days. Griffin loves to hold things close to his cheek while he sucks his thumb. I think he will be the one to have a security blanket. He's also wearing 6-9 month clothes and is our heavyweight at 17.6 pounds. He's getting better at getting up on his hands and knees but he hasn't figured out how to crawl yet, at least not forward. He can move around pretty well on the floor, though. Griffin's newest nickname is Bam Bam, as he loves to slam his arms and legs around. He has just started giving kisses in the past couple weeks. They aren't the wet sloppy ones that Will gives, but he loves to shake his head back and forth while he attacks your cheeks. And just tonight we discovered one of his bottom teeth popping through! His first tooth has arrived!

You'd never know he didn't feel well by that smile!

He's a big fan of the water bottle, too.

Nakey baby!

He'll put pretty much anything up to his face while he sucks his thumb.

Cooper:

Cooper is such a mover these days! He is pretty much crawling all over the floor, and can roll over or helicopter himself in any direction to get to whatever item he desires. He remains the neediest baby of the group, and often fusses until he gets our attention and we pick him up. Then he's all smiles. I have said it before, but Cooper, more than either of his brothers, has single-baby syndrome. He definitely acts like he should be an only child at times. He is still our little flirt and will flash his gummy smile at anyone who pays attention to him. I had him in my wrap last week when we were at Home Goods and he was L-O-V-I-N-G every second of being fawned over by the little old ladies in the store! He is our little peanut who weighs just over 15 pounds and can still fit into a lot of 3-6 month clothing. His newest trick is giving us zerberts on our arms or faces. It makes me laugh so hard when he does it, which just encourages him to continue doing it! And I'm totally OK with that. He is still set on repeating "dada" over and over (and over) again. We try to get him to say Mama, but he has no interest in expanding his vocabulary at the moment. He loves to eat and enjoys pretty much everything we've offered him so far. He's working hard at getting puffs from his hands to his mouth- he's successfully made the transition a couple times so far, but for the most part the puffs end up anywhere but in his mouth.

I can't get over his cuteness. Sitting up like a big boy with a popped collar

Little Explorer

Trying so hard to crawl!

Happy little guy

We are feeding the boys solids at least once a day now, and have started working in a second meal during the day. They are very good eaters and gobble up pretty much anything we've offered them so far. To date they've tried sweet potatoes, carrots, squash, peas, avocados, apples, bananas, and pears. They share the same sweet tooth that their parents have, and really love apples and pears. Bananas and avocado are pretty low on their list of favorites. They still eat them, just not with the same enthusiasm. The boys really love using their mesh feeders and got to try apple slices, peach slices, and grapes in them this week. I'm looking forward to the coming months when we can offer them more solids that aren't pureed.

Visiting with Mom's work friends

Learning sign language

At 8 months we:

• Eat solids at least once a day
• Sit up on our own for longer and longer periods of time
• Are more mobile than ever. Cooper is pretty much crawling, Will and Griffin are army-crawling
• Love when Mama sings to us- favorite tunes are currently "The Wheels on the Bus" and "You are My Sunshine"
• Take 4 bottles a day at 8 oz each
• Sleep on our stomachs at night
• Interact with each other more and more often (already picking on each other!)
• Are experiencing our first sickness- all three boys have a bronchialitis infection caused by the RSV virus. Poor babies!
• Pump 4 times a day now (what a relief to have dropped to only 4 pumps a day! It feels like I have soooo much more free time now) and produce between 90-100 ounces/day- just enough to cover what the boys' daily milk intake is.
• Take 2 naps a day- a short one in the morning, and a longer one in the afternoon. 
• HATE to have clothes put on, especially on our arms. 
• Love bath time
• Have shiny object syndrome and love to grab at Mama's earrings, necklace, and rings.