lots going on...

As I type this, I am watching Jack and Lucy play and laugh together...what fun it must be to have a constant playmate as they do! They have done so much over the past 2 weeks, that I just had to quickly blog about it as to not ever forget! Jack started eating finger food like a champ! As I have mentioned before, Jack is quite the hard little fellow to feed. Once he was able to be in charge and feed himself...all worries are gone! ha! He LOVES puffs, graham cracker, yogurt melts, and will occasionally feed himself stewed carrots. We are trying to stick to things that he LIKES and will melt easily. He has a VERY sensitive gag reflex and really only wants things crunchy and bland. So, in order to make eating a "fun" thing for him, we are giving him the things that he likes!
Lucy crawled for the first time on July 20th and Jack crawled for the 1st time on July 23rd! He couldn't let her get away from him that easily! haha! Below is a picture of Lucy right before she took off for the 1st time! I also caught it on video! I don't like to add videos to the blog, because this blog is going to be turned into a book and obviously videos will not work for the book! :)

We also caught Jack's 1st crawl, and luckily, he saved it for Daddy to be home and able to see this incredible "first"! We both looked at each other with tears in our eyes when we saw him so gracefully crawl across the floor for the first time! I am not sure if I have mentioned this on the blog yet or not, probably not because it has been a HUGE source of worry for our family....but, Jack was born with his right leg literally up beside his left ear. He didn't move that leg for weeks and also would not straighten that leg out. It was SO scary and we went through multiple tests, ultrasounds and physical therapy to help him move his leg properly. I did PT with him at home for months on my own. The leg has been perfectly fine it seems for months now and we had him double checked at Shriner's at the beginning of this month and heard only good news! His joints are fine and the little muscles that used to be so tight are now extending even more than they need to! We are so grateful to God for His healing. To watch this sweet little boy crawl across the floor and walk around holding our fingers is more than just the typical excitement that a parent feels upon watching their child meet these huge milestones. Praise be to God...and he is crawling ALL OVER the place! :)

Also, among all of this exciting news, Lucy is now starting to actually drink out of and LIKE her sippy cup! woohoo! AND Jack willingly took several bites off of a spoon that I was offering him! If you have ever seen him eat...you know that this is HUGE! hahah!
...and for your viewing pleasure...this is what a SERIOUS case of "bedhead" looks like.... hahaha

Babies Don't Keep...

...and because of this fact,

I just stare and stare...

 ...and stare, in utter amazement...

What a wonderful gift you are, Jack and Lucy!

8 months old!

Lucy:
- You are 19 lbs and 26 inches long. That puts in the 75 percentile in weight and in the 30th percentile in height! You are short and stocky...just like your momma was (is)haha!
- You are still taking 7-8 oz of breast milk four times a day.
- You still sleep from 8 p.m.- 8 a.m. with 2 2-hour naps during the day and 1 short cat-nap at the end of the day...you L.O.V.E. to sleep! :)
- You are eating a ton more baby food now and are liking just about everything we put in your mouth!
- You have eaten sweet potatoes, carrots, turkey and chicken dinners, squash, peas, macaroni, pears, bananas, avocados(you did NOT like them) mum-mums, puffs, crunchers, yogurt and cheese.
- You are rolling all over the place.
- You started walking all over the place in your walker.
- We went ahead and lowered your bed because you and your brother were starting to sit up in the crib and it scared me and your daddy...so we lowered it just in case you decide it is a good idea to stand up in there. ha
- You are still quite obsessed with Ava! You even try to say her name...You say "aaaa-W-aaa" with the same inflection in your voice that I use when I call her...haha! amazing!
- words you are saying: ma-ma, brrr (bird), aaa-w-aaa (ava), ba (bottle)
- sounds you are making: your gurgle alot, ga-ga-ga-ga, you do this cute high pitch "ahhh-ya" all of the time!
- You LOVE to jump now...you used to just sit in the jumper and sway, but now you do this little ballerina plie jump...it is just too cute!
- You are very social and interactive..you just love people and love watching them!
- You are starting to show a bit of a sassy side and do a pretty irritated little grunt when things aren't going your way. (I am trying to stop this before it starts...ha...good luck, right?!?)
- This month, you made you 2nd trip to MS and your 1st trip to AL. We went to Birmingham for a friend's wedding.
- Nonna and I baby proofed everything this month. You are both scooting and opening things now...
- This month you realized that you could blink your own eyes (not just involuntary blinking)...and you started to look at people and scrunch your face up and blink at them...it scared me half to death at first because I was (of course) over-reacting and thinking that you were having eye seizures or something, but then realized that you were laughing every time after you did it...ha...you got over it quickly though and have now moved on to new tricks! :)
- just for memory sake...here you are doing your little "wink" at momma with the camera...so cute!

- 1sts this month: swimming, cheese, avocado, road trip for a wedding, got up on knees rocking, finally clipped a bow in your hair, boat ride, Abner's sauce, 1st full night away from momma! (momma went to Memphis for a much needed girl's night)

- Lucy-girl...thank you for being you! We love you so much little princess!

JACK:

- You are 18 lbs and 8 oz and 28.5 inches long. That puts in the 44th percentile in weight and in the 88th percentile in height! You are LONG and lean!
- You are still taking 7-8 oz of breast milk four times a day.
- You still sleep from 8 p.m.- 8 a.m. with 2 2-hour naps during the day and 1 short cat-nap at the end of the day.
- You are a very finicky eater. You have a bit of a food aversion...but with God's help, we will work through this!
- You have eaten sweet potatoes, carrots, turkey and chicken dinners, squash, peas, macaroni, pears, bananas, avocados(you liked eating it yourself) mum-mums, puffs, crunchers, yogurt and cheese.
- You are rolling all over the place.
- You started walking/running all over the place in your walker.
- We went ahead and lowered your bed because you and your sister were starting to sit up in the crib and it scared me and your daddy...so we lowered it just in case you decide it is a good idea to stand up in there. ha
- You are still quite obsessed with Ava! You just giggle and giggle every time you see her!
- words you are saying: ma-ma, ba
- sounds you are making: your gurgle alot, ga-ga-ga-ga, bow-bow-bow-bow, and you do this HIGH pitch squeal that makes your sister cry momma's ears hurt!ha
- You are kind of getting over jumping..you would rather be running in your walker.
- You are such a "guy" and try to figure everything out..you will sit and study a toy for like 30 minutes to try to figure out how it works.
- You are so tough...you will fall over and just sort of grunt, but it takes a LOT to make you cry!
- This month, you made you 2nd trip to MS and your 1st trip to AL. We went to Birmingham for a friend's wedding.
- Nonna and I baby proofed everything this month. You are both scooting and opening things now...
- This month, you started REALLY trying to crawl....you are pushing up on your hands and your feet...your feet have the motion, but your hands aren't quite making the motion for you yet...you will figure it out all too soon, I am sure!



- 1sts this month: swimming, cheese, avocado, road trip for a wedding, boat ride, Abner's sauce, 1st full night away from momma! (momma went to Memphis for a much needed girl's night)

- Jacker-man...thank you for being YOU! We love you so much, little man!