Ali at 8 months

What??? Ali is turning 8 months! Where did all that time go?? Oh my previous maternity leave, I would hate for you to go away so so soon. Another 5 more months and I have to go back to work. Boy, I don't think I am quite ready for that - marking, making up tests, prepping all the new courses, yelling at students...

Time to do a quick recap and see how much my little tofu princess has grown.

1. Zzzzz.....

Ali is doing really well in terms of sleep. She usually takes 3 naps a day and sleeps from 9 pm to 8/9 am. She doesn't wake up too much at night, which is just great. I told my friend's friend at a birthday party and she started cursing. Well, maybe not at me, but at the fact that she has not slept undisturbed in the night for the last 8 years. Yes, EIGHT years!!! Her two girls love to wake up in the middle of the night wanting mommy. Whenever I hear these kind of comments, I really am thankful that I have such a good baby. I have been told that I will not be able to have a restful night for eternity (until the kids are much older), but so far Ali has treated her parents quite well. She has been a very good, independent sleeper since 3-months!

2. Size

My baby is definitely no longer a Michelin girl, but she is not skinny either. Ali is as heavy as a big sack of rice (18 lb). She is quite long for her age tho, growing out of her 12-18 mos sleepers (maybe her brand is smaller than the others??) Every time I go to a playgroup or a playdate, people always commented on how long she is. I guess that's a good thing. I just hope that she won't be too tall because that would be a little freaky. Whenever I go out with my brothers and their friends (they are all 5 ft 11 in and up), I feel like a hobbit. Seriously, I hope she won't be super tall, average height would be just fine!

3. Books

Ali loves books!!!!! She loves to be read to, flipping the pages, looking at the pictures and of course, licking them! Her favourite books are Play, Go away Big green monster and Llama, Llama red pajama.

4. Food

We tried feeding Ali rice cereal around 5 months. She broke out in hives and because of her eczema, we were asked to stop feeding her solids until 7 months. In the last month, she has tried rice and barley cereal (don't like them too much), carrots, squash, green beans and sweet potatoes. We still have a bit of catch up to do (considering her friends had tried way more stuff than she does), but so far she is eating quite well.

5. Teeth

Yup, those precious pearls are finally surfacing. And my breastfeeding nightmares have also commenced. Ali loves to bite. I have been trying really hard to discourage her from doing that (like saying no firmly) and I am pretty sure she knows she is not supposed to do that. But I guess it must be hard for her to control herself when she is half asleep while she nurses. Man, every time I nurse her, I am so scared that she will chomp down on my boob that I watch her like a hawk to make sure she is sucking and not ready to chomp. It's like playing slap jack.

Baby started drooling like crazy around 3-4 months (I have to change her bib 10 times a day) and after a few painful months, the drooling is much easier to handle (maybe 4 bibs a day?) once the bottom two teeth broke through the gums. She has been pretty cranky the past few days and I can see there are more lower teeth coming out. What happened to the top ones, baby?

6. Baby eczema

By the dermatologist's orders, we have to bathe Ali every night before we put her eczema ointment on. She is doing loads better. Most of the eczema cleared up nicely, except on her body, where it is still extremely dry and bumpy. We were asked to put the Glaxal base cream on hold and use hydrocortisone as a moisturizer. Sad, isn't it? Sometimes, she will have drool rash around her face too. Poor little Ali!

7. Mobility

So far, Ali can sit by herself...sometimes. Actually, that's not true. When we are at home, she is not very good at sitting by herself, but when are at the playgroup, she can sit VERY WELL by herself. I don't know if it's peer pressure or learning from other kids or just too distracted looking at other babies, Ali seems to be content doing tummy time and sit by herself for a long stretch of time when we go out. In other words, she is a super lazy baby and smart in a way (since she knows mommy will be there to help her).

Ali doing leg-ups in the morning: