8 Months Old

Ava is now 8 months old and I'm amazed at how fast the time continues to fly. I keep thinking it will slow down, so I can catch my breath, but it doesn't. Ava is growing and changing all the time that I barely can remember her as a tiny baby unable to roll and move around. She is now starting to get into anything and everything she can get her hands on (see naked destruction photo). Ava is getting ready to crawl, but is able to get around easily by rolling and twisting her body. She still loves her Luca more than anything, so we are working on gentle petting since she just wants to grab and pull any part of him she can. Fortunately, Luca is patient and just walks away when he has had enough.

Ava also loves to eat. She eats almost anything we give her and if she doesn't like it she will let us know by spitting it out. Ava's favorite food is still pears and she eats about 24 oz. of formula a day. This week she has switched from four 60z. bottles a day to three 8oz. bottles with 3 meals and some snacks. Ava still doesn't want to feed herself even though she has figured out the pincher skill. She rather pick up cereal puffs and feed them to Luca or play with them. However, if I'm too slow to feed her, she will grab the spoon and shove the bite in her mouth. She is a funny girl and I knows what she wants or doesn't want.

Ava is also pretty vocal. She is starting to grunt and screech to get our attention and tell us what she wants. She makes a variety of sounds and we often have short conversations. Unfortunately I've taught Ava to be loud and crazy. At home it is not that bad, but when we are at church she will often talk and screech with delight in a very loud voice. This past Sunday Rich took her out of sacrament because she wouldn't stop blowing (very loud) raspberries.

Ava's laugh is also loud and can be crazy. Sometimes it is hard to tell the difference between her laugh and her on the verge of crying. She loves it when we nibble her toes and will make a high-pitched screech when we do it. Sometimes in public I wonder if people know she is laughing and happy and not screaming because she is unhappy. I guess that's what I get for being loud and crazy at home.

Naked Destruction

(She has the cutest bootie!)

I took over 150 pictures during Ava's 8 month photo shoot. There were so many photos that I liked, but these are a few of my very favorites.