Callie - 8 Months

Dear Callie O'Malley,

Look at these pictures!  You are sooo happy!  Every time we go out, people are always complimenting you on how cute you are.  I have to agree!  I think you're pretty darn cute myself!

You seem to be going through separation anxiety at times.  Sometimes just making eye contact with a stranger at a store sets you off and you immediately start crying.  Other times you'll just keep looking back and forth between me and them to make sure everything is ok.  Luckily, you're a pretty big fan of Daddy, so you're ok when I leave you with him.

Busy is a good word to describe you.  I know you're going to just get busier and busier though.  You're able to do an army crawl pretty much anywhere you want to go.  Just tonight, Daddy saw you pull yourself up into a standing position. You didn't last long, but I'm sure you'll figure it out soon.  You are actually pretty good at entertaining yourself.  If we scatter your toys in the family room, you'll crawl around and play with them for a while before getting fussy.

Your favorite food is yogurt.  You are very picky about having the same thing too frequently and you're not a fan of veggies.  You love your yogurt though!  It's your dessert every night and it usually helps you sleep through the night too.

You seem to be picking up on baby sign language.  Daddy has been working on teaching it to you and we've noticed multiple times that you'll pat your diaper or clench your fists, as if signing diaper and milk.  I don't remember your sisters doing it this young, but you do seem to be doing it pretty well!

Daddy and I love watching you play.  You're pretty lucky.  After your sisters go to bed, you get to stay up and soak in a lot of one on one time with us.  You're super cute and we really enjoy spending that time with you.  You get really excited about it too, so it's a win-win for all of us.

You're beautiful, Callie!  I love your sweet giggles and your happy personality.  I can't believe you're almost 9 months old!

I love you!

Love,
Mommy

Callie Moments

Feb 18, 2016

You got an ear infection.  Neither of your sisters ever had one and when you were super super fussy yesterday, I thought for sure the Dr was just going to say you had a cold/cough, since that is what happened every other time we went in with your sisters.  You had a bad ear infection in your left ear though, so at least we were able to get a prescription to help you! 

Feb 10, 2016

You sat up on your own today, from crawling!  You’ve been trying to do it for a while now.  Mia saw you do it this morning and then Daddy saw you tonight.  Mia and Daddy were both sooo proud!  They just kept cheering you on.  They love you lots and lots!

Feb 8, 2016

Eric and I went skiing and left you and your sisters with a friend of ours for the majority of the day.  When we got back, you were so smiley and loved being held by me.  Once we were within reach of Daddy, you kept hitting your hands against his arms because you were so excited to see him!  It was pretty cute!

You started clapping!  You will do it randomly when you’re sitting with your toys and when you get excited or see us clapping.  You have also started waving.  If we wave at you from across the room, you will do a small wave with one of your hands.  Your sisters love it when you wave back at them. :)

Feb 1, 2016

You’re basically crawling now!  You usually just crawl by pushing yourself against one knee.  You can get to whatever toys you want and you’re able to go across the room.  I put you down in the family room and was working on something in the kitchen and you crawled all the way across the family room to the steps into the kitchen and whined to get my attention.  When I came over, you tried to lift your arms up for me to hold you, even though you were laying there on your tummy. 

Dec 17, 2015

You can roll over now!  Usually you do it when you’re trying to grab a toy that’s just out of reach. The first time you did it, you were just over 6 months and we had put you down on your back on your play mat. We looked back over and you were on your tummy!

Your favorite new skill is clicking your tongue. You’ll do it a few times and after you get our attention, you smile so proud! :)

Nov 29, 2015

Now that the weather has been getting colder, I've started wearing my hair down more. Tonight, you started waving your hand around and caught some of my hair in it. You just kept running your fingers through it and waving your hands in it. It was fun watching your curiosity. Luckily, you were very soft and gentle. Once you start pulling it, I'll have to wear it pulled back again! :)

Nov 24, 2015

You are a little comedian! When we were at Grandma Lulu's for Thanksgiving, Daddy started tickling you at your waist while you were standing on his lap and you literally crumpled into a ball. After he repeated it a few times, everyone started watching you and we were all laughing. You started doing it on your own without even being tickled and loved the laughter and attention you were getting.

Nov 13, 2015

You cried for the first time yesterday when we left you with a babysitter.  She has watched you quite a few times before and you have always smiled at her, but I guess separation anxiety was setting in last night or something.  Luckily though, it was your bedtime and she was able to put you to sleep.  You woke up when we got home and gave Daddy and I huge smiles!  You were sooo happy!  It was sweet!  Hopefully you can be happy for the babysitters too though.

You also have started holding onto toys now. It’s fun watching you play (mostly chew and slobber) with them.  You’re going to roll over any day too!  You roll onto your side now, but so far, that’s as far as you go.

Lexi confuses you. Whenever you see her coming, you just stare. When she’s close enough, you reach out to pet her. You’re probably still trying to understand what she is. She likes you. She knows, from her experience with your sisters, that you are too little to torture her at this point. :)

When I nurse you now, you always reach up and grab my nose or chin. It's pretty funny. I remember reading somewhere that when babies touch their Mom's faces, it's a sign of love. You definitely love me a lot because you do it all the time!