Author: Brand_New_World_Betsy

IMG_5344.JPG, originally uploaded by griffey.

After 8 days of the cold that wouldn’t go away, yellow snot, cough, and all, we called the doctor. She prescribed amoxicillin, which we realized wasn’t working after 5 days. The doctor switched her to augmentin, which seems to be doing the trick. Today was the first time in 14 days I didn’t have to wipe her nose. Whew. This first cold / sinus infection has been a doozy. Thanks, daycare!

This picture was taken during one of our many “shower treatments.” I would put the shower on hot and shut the door. It helped her breathe and sneeze / cough some of the junk up. At one point she found the toilet paper, and I just let her enjoy it. Bad mom.

Now she’s teething (top two). So far, it hasn’t been as bad as the hell of the bottom two. But she isn’t her jolly self, either. One is almost out (an edge poked through today) and the other is not far behind.

IMG_5230.JPG, originally uploaded by griffey.

So, I’ve decided that Eliza just doesn’t “get” that her knees have any sort of function. She creeps forward on her belly pretty fast, but won’t actually crawl on all fours. In fact, she doesn’t even do the characteristic “rocking” of the pre-crawler. She never gets up on her knees period. Also, she can’t yet put herself in the sitting position from her belly. If only she could put her little knees under her and lift her butt in the air, new things would start happening.

Most of her little “friends” and her cousin are crawling now, but we’re thinking she might just skip it all together.

IMG_5188.JPG, originally uploaded by griffey.

Eliza has her first cold. She has the runniest little nose I’ve ever seen. And sneezing, and watery eyes, and general fatigue. She still smiles at me through the snot, which is sweet. But you know she isn’t herself when she prefers quiet, sitting-down play time. We’ve been reading lots of books together. Thank goodness it’s her favorite activity, besides standing.

IMG_5173.JPG, originally uploaded by griffey.

Eliza has learned how to clap. Now she can’t stop doing it. She claps for everything, and all the applause is great for mommy’s ego! 🙂

In other news, she stood alone for about 2-3 seconds yesterday. She started off holding on to her “toddle truck” and then decided to let go. She stood there, without holding onto anything, and just looked at us. It’s amazing how brave she is getting.

IMG_5112.JPG, originally uploaded by griffey.

Eliza just learned how to move herself forward yesterday. It’s not crawling in the traditional sense but more like an “army crawl” or what some people call “creeping.” Basically, she keeps her belly on the floor, puts her butt in the air, pushes with one of her legs, and reaches forward with one of her hands. We’ve been trying to entice her to move forward for months. What was the first thing she finally went for after all those attempts? Mommy’s lap. Then I tested it with other tempting things placed just out of her reach: my cell phone, her baby monitor, a ball, some favorite toys. Yep! She can move forward alright! It isn’t elegant or fast, but at least she’s getting somewhere. Video to come soon.

IMG_5069.JPG, originally uploaded by griffey.

Eliza turns 8 months today! Such a big girl, in all senses of the word. Wanting desperately to walk, not very interested in crawling. Learning how to navigate the scary world of daycare, being without mom, and lots of new emotions. Developing likes and dislikes and letting you know them. Napping like a champ for the first time in her life. Eating everything, including some grown-up food. It seems like she’s not even a baby anymore.

Favorite foods: spinach (although it hurts her tummy), mango, prunes (still!), sweet potatoes

Favorite toys: lift-a-flap books, balls, links, a small stuffed giraffe that she chews on, peek-a-blocks that rattle when you shake them, plates/bowls/cups, bubbles

Favorite hobbies: standing, standing, and more standing. Trying to cruise, especially around her crib. Playing with Indy (the dog). Trying out new sounds. She currently likes “dadadada” best. Playing with her new friends at daycare.

IMG_5005.JPG, originally uploaded by griffey.

First things first: is that the biggest Buddha belly you’ve ever seen or what? I rub it for good luck.

On to daycare: It has been pretty hellish for both of us, I have to be honest. Last week I left her for 2 hours on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. She cried the whole time on M and W, and only cried one hour on Friday. Improvement! Today, the teacher said she cried for maybe 15 minutes after I left, then she was pretty much okay. A bit fussy here and there, but not the constant screaming of last week. Yay! She’s smart. I knew she would figure it out, but it’s hard knowing that she is upset and I can’t do anything about it. Hopefully things will continue to get better. Stay tuned!

IMG_4959.JPG, originally uploaded by griffey.

Eliza’s favorite activity is standing. She can’t yet pull herself to a standing position in the crib, but if you put her that way, she can stay for a long time. She is happy to be at your level, surveying everything in her room.

Big event for the week: Eliza’s first time at daycare without me. She stayed for two hours Monday. They said she cried off and on the whole time, but that she did have moments where she would be consolable an/dor distracted. I guess that’s a good sign. She eventually collapsed and slept, but only for 15 minutes. She’s not used to all the noise and distractions at nap time. Her stranger anxiety is also pretty bad, and I can imagine it’s a bit scary to have people you don’t know trying to take care of you. We’ll try again tomorrow and let everyone know how it goes.

IMG_4772.JPG, originally uploaded by griffey.

Eliza made her second trek to Kentucky over the weekend.

She has exhibited a serious case of stranger anxiety over the last month or so, crying when someone she doesn’t know gets too close, looks at her funny, or even makes a strange noise. We feared the worst as we packed the car full of her gear for the trip. While she was certainly hesitant at first, she didn’t have any anxiety-ridden outbursts. In fact, for whatever reason, she absolutely loves my brother (see pic). He is the one person besides mom and dad who can hold her and carry her around. It was the first time in months that I felt like I could go out of her sight without major consequences. It felt great. I’m hoping the anxiety phase is waning. We’ll see.