8 months!

Can you believe it?! Our sweet girl is 8 months old today :) When she first graced our life with her presence I remember meditating on the verse Psalm 127:3 "Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from Him." Oh! How this verse has become SO VERY real to us as we come to love her more every day. She is our sunshine....making us happy when skies are gray.....making our tough life situations a little more bearable....bringing joy and laughter to sad days. As I was cuddled up with her last night I was thanking God for allowing us to be her parents - I really don't think He could have created a more perfect baby for us!! So, this post is written with much gratitude to our great God and our Savior Jesus Christ.....for Lily and all that she is becoming!

At 8 months you:

• scrunch your toes up and roll your ankles around (looks like some sort of aerobic activity to me :) )
• shake your head "no" and like for us to mimic you
• raise your arms in the air and scream (you've been accused of going to the Holiness Pentacostal Church)
• like to WHISPER "da da....ma ma....na na"
• squeal when we ride with the windows down in the car
• hold your arms up and turn your wrists like you're riding a motorcycle
• press your lips together and it looks like you're talking but no words are coming out (I think you like the way your new teeth feel on your lips)
• yep, you have 4 teeth - 2 on top and 2 on bottom - and you are biting on things in the back of your mouth now....so, I think maybe there are more to come pretty soon
• love to eat - anything! I am so thankful that you are a good eater. I'm still making your baby food and you like: green beans, sweet peas, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, pears, peaches, mango, avacado, prunes, cereal. You especially like to feed yourself. You just started eating cheerios (you love to hear them crunch in your mouth), tried yogurt for the first time this week, baby cheetos. The only thing that you've turned down is when I baked fruit for you: apricots, plums, peaches....they turned out too tart.
• sitting perfectly by yourself
• still rolling to get where you want to go (and that's usually to the TV stand to pull down the DVD's and books)
• love to babble when you first wake up from a nap
• standing and walking while we hold your fingers
• make this beautiful sound....and we can't figure out how you do it.....it's more in your throat than with your tongue.....sounds sort of like a little bird (I think Nana taught you this)
• love to sit outside on Maw Maw's porch and listen to the birds and she gets your feet wet with the waterhose

And I've said it before....we don't think you could get any sweeter. But, I'm sure you will prove us wrong AGAIN. We love you, Lily. You are our sunshine!!!

love to kick the ball - I'm convinced you are going to be a soccer player

love to sit with us and join in on our activities - even snapping beans with Maw Maw....or should I say "eating" the beans while she snaps them :)

teaching Blake how to play the pots and pans

love playing with your friend, Blake