Highway to the Baby Zone: 8 Months Old!!

My sweet little newborn is now 8 months old....how has this happened?! I have now known my little angel face-to-face the same amount of time that I knew he was growing in my belly. It's hard to believe that it's been nearly a year and a half since he has been a part of my life. It really does go by way too quickly. Happy 8 Months, Ronan!

It's been a rough week for Ronan, Mommy and Daddy. Poor baby was sick with a nasty virus last week before his 8 month birthday. I finally had to take him to the doctor on Friday because he was just miserable. He had been battling a fever but when the nurse took his temp, it was 104.7!! His highest temperature to date! It's been scary for us, but the doctor assured us he's just working through a virus that he probably caught at daycare, thanks to the room full of kiddos all sharing toys, putting them in their mouth, etc. etc. He's also very obviously hit a "wonder week". I have this app for my phone that gives a brief overview of a series of leaps that all babies go through, all at a precise time. Between weeks 33 1/2 and 37 1/2, babies follow a world of "categories". They start investigating everything (check!) in their path and studying every detail. Each phase is accompanied with a difficult period, categorized with the 3 C's....Crying, Cranky, and Clingy. Let me tell you, he was all three of those things last week.

Our awesome sleeper, the one who has been sleeping through the night nearly flawlessly since 7 weeks old, regressed big time last week....a huge indicator of this leap. He was practically back to the newborn state...and Mom and Dad paid the price along with our sweet boy! Starting last Wednesday night, he decided to stay up all night....either talking (Dadadadada Bababababa) or whining, or screaming (indicating nightmares) or crying to eat. He's extremely clingy and both of us have spent time just holding him in the spare bed to get him to sleep. And the second we put him down? His eyes instantly open and he starts screaming. All of this is subconscious, of course, but it's been rough on all 3 of us. We feel terrible for him that in addition to this "leap", he's also battling a virus, AND he's teething. His third tooth broke through Saturday (lower right lateral incisor), on his 8 month birthday! Add that to the list of milestones. :)

Luckily, our little sweets is all better sickness wise and he appears to be past the peak of this wonder week crap (can you tell how much I've enjoyed it?). We have our sweet baby back (for now) and I'm so happy that he's happy again. That new tooth really did a number on him, which I wasn't expecting because the first two were a piece of cake. We didn't even know they were coming!

Although he's had some rough times lately, he's had some really wonderful times too. When he's happy, he's really happy. He gives us kisses (slobbery wet ones), hugs, and just interacts more in general. You can tell the wheels are really turning and he is starting to "get" some things now. Since he now realizes we don't actually disappear when we're not in his sight, a game of peek-a-boo is a lot of fun for him right now. He's also learning how to get around!! Scooting, I should say. But man, he is going to have some good upper body strength soon. And there is no turning your back on this little guy anymore. He may not be quite crawling, but he moves - fast. Operation "Make a Baby Jail" has commenced. We need a spot to put him when we need to get things done. Right now, the only secure place is his high chair, and he's only okay in there if he is hungry and has something to munch on in front of him. Otherwise, he wants OUT. He's got exploring to do!

Ronan likes:

Scooting
Bouncing
Swinging at the park
Fish hooking Mama's mouth (the kid loves to play with faces!)
Stealing glasses of Mama's face (still)
Pulling up to a standing position by holding onto Daddy's hands
Toys (especially books, his ball and his talking puppy dog)
Puffs and Mum-Mum's - he loves to feed these to himself since he's mastered it
Organic Ham lunch meat
AVOCADO (I often wonder if he will ever like anything else more)
Pasta
Laughing
Kicking
Making Googoo, Bababa, Dadada sounds

Ronan dislikes:

Having his clothes changed
When Mommy or Daddy walk away or leave the room
Having shampoo rinsed from his hair

There really isn't much this sweet kid doesn't like, he's just so happy! I hope he always stays that way. I want nothing but the best for my little sweetheart!

First time on a swing; pure joy!