8 Months

Happy Halloween Alec - your first one! I'm not really sure if you enjoyed it but your dad and I loved dressing you up. You were the cutest dinosaur ever. You did seem to like looking at all the other kids in their costumes though. But by the end I think you were sick of me putting that dinosaur suit on you. We went to so many Halloween events - The YMCA, Wegmans, Joint Ventures and the mall. And I think I ate all your candy!

You really like the pumpkins though, the real ones and the fake ones I have around the house. And we put up window clings on the sliding glass door in your play area and you absolutely love the scarecrow - you think he tastes very good :)

You are babbling like crazy now, so many new sounds coming out of your mouth! You say babababa a lot but you also say mamamama and dadada. I don;t think you really associate these names with your dad and I yet, but I can always hope. Though Lucy said when I left the room the other night you crawled to the door and stood there saying mamamamama. Awwww!

You love to pick up things when you are standing up. Anything, but especially big things. It's so funny to see you standing there and trying to pick up toys as big as you.

You also love to crawl holding stuff - either in one of your hands or in your mouth. You crawl along with a toy in your mouth - usually your foot teether or a straw, babbling away and drool everywhere. You'll crawl with your hands full of toys as well, especially those plastic stacking rings - you love those! Sometimes you sort of throw things in front of you too and you get all excited and try to chase them down, especially the $1 soccer ball I got you.

8 months Alec - such a big boy! I said as much to your dad the other night and many people have made the same comment to me lately. You've changed. You're still a baby but your face is really becoming one of a little boy. You've changed in the last few weeks, you are all boy, almost a toddler now. No more baby stuff for you!

You are really mastering your movements. You can pull up and cruise, and you know when something is too far to cruise too, and you will gently lower yourself tot he ground, crawl and pull yourself back up. You can stand unsupported for about 30 seconds. So amazing. I remember when you didn't even have kneecaps and your legs were all bowed. Now they are these big solid rolly treetrunks!

I bought you this play car that you can ride on or push and you love it. You stand behind it and push it. YOU WALK! Well while using a waking toy, but still. Alec you are only 8 months old. I cried the first time you did it. I feel so proud and so sad at the same time. My baby, growing up so fast. I am amazed at all you can do. You are such a happy and easy going boy. I am so blessed.

Watching you play is amazing. You are so independent and will play happily for hours by yourself. You crawl around, pull toys out of your baskets, play with them, eat them, crawl around some more, pull up, stand at the window, laugh, babble, read your books. You amaze me all the time.

You are really becoming more interested in books now. Before you just wanted to eat them! Now you really pay more attention. Your favorites right now are the ones with flaps to lift up - you can lift the flaps by yourself! You are also getting very interested in t he Sesame Street characters, especially Elmo and Ernie.

You have discovered toilet paper. You love the bathroom and are always trying to play in there even though it is so dangerous! You pull up on the toilet and get all excited when you see the toilet paper roll. You make your "Oh" noise. You swat at the toilet paper and when it starts to unroll you get very excited. Life is so simple and always so amazing to you!

You stick your tongue out more these days. Seems to go in spurts though.

You saw snow for the first time. We got caught out in it and you looked at it like - what is this? And then once we were inside you stood at the window watching it and saying "Oh." I can't wait until we have some that sticks and to take you outside to play.

Alec you are so increasingly vocal! All these new noises, though I am not sure I like the latest. You screech. Usually when you are tired or want something. You'll just be playing happily and then you'll decide you are hungry and want me, so you will stand there and screech, sort of like "errrrh, hhhhhh". I can;t describe it. It also happens when you are angry - like if I am trying to dress you and it is often accompanied by arching of your back. I think you will be a willful, determined child. Stubborn like your dad.

We've been having so much fun lately. Building towers and knocking them down, reading books, you are just more and more interactive these days. We still take our naps together and I love when you wake up and grab my face and smile. It;s such a special time. I've decided to let the house go to pot and just snuggle you at naptime.

You have rediscovered waving. You started last month and then stopped. Now you wave all the time again and at everything! Especially the cat. Love the cat. You have the cutest wave, arm sort of straight out and flapping wrist. Just recently though you started opening and closing your palm. I must get this on video.

Tonight we took you to your first hockey game. You didn't like it at first. When people started yelling and cheering you cried so hard! You were scared I think. But then once you saw it was OK and your mom and dad were there loving you you seemed to be OK with it. At the end you even started playing and laughing with us and the other fans. When you were laughing I noticed a new piece of white in your mouth - tooth number 6 is making its way down! It's on the top and to the left of your front left tooth. It looks like the right one is about to pop through as well. No wonder you have been having some crabby nights lately. I feel so bad because I was getting so frustrated with you waking up every 2 hours last night. But it makes sense if that tooth was pushing through - you were in pain and needed comfort. My poor sweet baby - growing up is hard!

Tonight we had dinner with your dad at school and you played a game with him for the first time! We play lots of games with you, but this is the first time you really played back! He would roll the mini soccer ball to you and you would catch it, pick it up and hand it back to him. You thought this was just the coolest game and were laughing the whole time.

Alec you are just growing up so fast, I don't even know what to write about, what to remember for you, how to tell you what a wonderful amazing little boy you are. You are full of smiles and laughter. You have your own sense of humor and think the strangest things are funny. Like me eating your toes, or your dad eating your rubber duck - making it disapear in his mouth. Cracks you up every time!

I treasure our time together. I love our naptime snuggles. Sometimes I wonder if I spoil you, but snuggling you and smelling your sweet smell just so sweet. And now you are really becoming affectionate, you know me and when you reach out your arms for me or crawl to me to be held, my heart melts. You are starting to go through a bit of mom separation anxiety, but not too bad. You still love most people and will go to them easily.

Lately you have developed a mischevious streak! You get this glint in your eye and turn, smile at me, and take off crawling somewhere. Of course I chase you and you just laugh and laugh! I don;t know if you think it's funny that I am crawling, or you understand it's a game, but it really cracks you up! You love to crawl into the kitchen or bathroom and see if I'll follow.

Your new trick is that you have figured out how to escape from the "pen" - a nice plastic fence with toys on it that your grandparents brought for you. We have it open across the play area to keep you from crawling out. At first you loved it and would just crawl to it and stand there surveying your world. I asked your dad if he thought you understood it was for containment or if maybe you just thought it was something new to pull up on. Literally that afternoon you answered my question. You realize dif you pushed on the wall you could move it, and when it moved it made an opening against the couch that you could crawl through and out into the livng room - you were free! So now you crawl over to the fence, push hard, crawl out and beeline into the kitchen laughing all the way. You are so very proud of yourself!

You love to play games, especially peek-a-boo. We flew to Florida for Thanksgivng and you would stand on my lap and kind of bend your knees and pop up to see the people behind us, you thought this was so cool. You were amazed by the vast sea of people behind you to play with. Making friends wherever you go! This plane trip was rougher than the previous ones, though you were still a very good baby. You weren't fussy at all, just amazingly energetic. You did not want to be in your seat or held for all those hours, you wanted to explore! It was tough, but we survived!

Your first Thanksgiving was very fun, you even tried some of the turkey Grammy made. You weren;t too keen on it though. You were eyeing my mashed potatoes though! You are starting to eat more table foods, and I am trying to be more adventurous in what I give you. You seem to like most things. If you don't you let me know! You make sour lemon faces and spit the food out.

In Florida you also got to play with two of your baby friends. You got to see Hayley again and you two played much better this time - you weren't as scared of her! She was so nice and brought over a ton of toys for you to borrow, and you really liked this tunnel thing, you were crawlign all around in it!

You also got to meet your Australian buddy Ze'ev for the first times. You and your dad hung out with him and his dad Mark while his mom Liron and I went to the spa with Grammy. Quite the treat! And then Ze'ev came over to play, and you guys played pretty well together, despite a small tussle over a crazy guitar!

We didn't get to go swimming this time, it was just too cold, but we did go to the beach. You liked looking at the waves but didn't want to put your feet in just yet.

You turned 9 months on Thanksgivng day - your dad's 32nd birthday!