Gymboree fun

Alex joined us at Gymboree one day and took some cute pics of Ruby and me playing.

Ruby is now 8 months old!

Ruby is now 8 months old. At her doctors appointment today (where she got a swine flu shot - not a very nice birthday present!) she weighed in at 18.2 pounds and is just over 27 inches tall. Still quite bald, but we're starting to notice some fuzz on her head! Her eyes are still blue, so maybe they will stay that way. She is getting more and more verbal everyday and she's developing a rather feisty personality which sometimes includes arching her back when she doesn't want to go in her stroller or car seat. She enjoys eating cereal puffs and rice wafer teething biscuits but still doesn't enjoy puree foods (I've been trying to get her to eat them for 3 months now and she refuses most days). The doctor seems to think we can just move on to table foods. She seems to be getting a bit more mobile, reaching for things, standing/leaning on stuff and making the motions of taking steps when I hold her hands (still no rolling and crawling but I think it won't be too much longer!). Sleepwise it varies day to day (she wakes some during the night) and while she does take naps around 10 and 2 (and sometimes at 5), they tend to be either on my chest or in her car seat when we are out and about (we've gotten into some bad habits!) She has developed an interest in banging on things, unpacking things from containers, exploring zippers on jackets and tags on stuffed animals. We've made some good friends in our playgroups and it is neat to watch her interact with (and often talk/screech at) the other babies.

Here she is at Gymboree class today enjoying the bubbles.

Dinner with Wayne and Julie

Alex was out of town for a few days this week. As soon as our neighbors heard this, they invited Ruby and me over for dinner. It was such a relief to have someone hold and play with Ruby for a bit! While we were there, Ruby enjoyed watching and talking to their cats. Here she is with Pepper.

Thanks for having us Wayne and Julie. It is always so nice to visit with you guys!

Ruby at mealtime

Ruby has started to show a tad more interest in puree foods now. Here she is after eating some peas.










Earlier this week, I met my friend Lori (and her daughter Maddie) out for Thai food. Here are Ruby and Maddie sitting in their high chairs.






And here is Ruby enjoying some banana through her mesh feeding bag. These things are fantastic!

New tactics for keeping Ruby content during our mealtimes!

I've started giving Ruby these little cereal puffs for babies on her high chair while we eat! She has a blast pushing them around and trying out her pincher grasp movements.



Although about 98% of them end up on the floor or down her shirt (the other 2% dissolve in her mouth as she gums them), they are totally worth it! Here is a silly picture of her with a cereal puff stuck to her face...



My other recent discovery is this mesh feeder bag...you open it up, put a hunk of fruit or veggie in, and then snap the lid closed. The holes in the mesh only allow tiny bits of the food out at a time as the baby sucks on the mesh bag. Ruby ate a good part of a banana tonight and it kept her happy (and eating food!) for a good 10 minutes or so. I'm going to try it out with some other veggies or fruit another time.

The joys of banging metal spoons on bowls

My mom kept asking me, 'have you let her beat on pots and pans yet?' I didn't realise it would be such fun for Ruby - until today! This provided a solid 10 to 15 minutes of entertainment!!! (which is pretty good these days!)

New amusement - Taking the hats out of the basket

Ruby has discovered how much fun it is to take stuff out of containers. The other day I gave her the basket where I keep her hats and she had so much fun taking each one out, swinging it in the air, (maybe chewing on it for a bit) and then tossing it on the ground. I reloaded the basket a few times and the fun just continued.