7 months old

Lunging at items is a new movement that Emily has obtained in these past couple of weeks, which is bad for mommy's back.  She is getting heavier everyday, meaning she's healthy, but it'ss not so good for me because my belly is growing bigger and it's getting harder for me to hold her for long periods of time.  My back kills me at the end of the day.  Although back pain is in my future, I couldn't be happier that Emily is reaching all of her milestones.

She has recently become stronger in her legs and wants to bounce all the time in her jumperoo and if not in her jumperoo, then in your arms.  She cracks me up when she is bouncing.  She actually bounces so hard she lifts herself out of her seat, which frightens her a bit, but then she gets over it and the thrill excites her even more.

Eating habits have become increasingly better, her tastebuds are expanding and she is trying new foods everyday, even table food.  She opens her mouth when she sees food near her so you know she wants to try it, then she'll let you know if she's liked it when she gives a little grunt and a smile.  I started giving her water in a sippy cup last month and within a couple of weeks she has now grasped the idea of holding the handles and how to work the mouthpiece so the water comes out.  She still has trouble tipping her cup and bottle up to get the liquid out, so we still have to help her with that movement.  As far as wanting water, I don't think she really thirsts for it, but she likes to drink when we have a drink.  Emily usually spits out the water so a plastic backed bib is a must at the dinner table.

Rolling side to side is something she has been doing for quite a while, but she still gets her arm caught underneath her so I haven't seen her do a complete roll yet.  Crawling is in the near future, I hope.  Emily doesn't like to be on her belly for very long, but I think it's because she becomes frustrated that she can't get anywhere.  Her back legs work really well and push up under her, but her arms aren't coordinating with her legs so she isn't getting movement.  You can see that she's trying because her face scrunches up, her hands start to grab onto the floor and her legs are trying to push her body forward.  After a couple of minutes of no progress, she cries out and you kow she's done.

Emily may even start walking before she crawls, she loves being on her feet, but when daddy and I try to walk with her, she wants to jump.  Her back is stronger and she can now sit by herself for longer than a minute at a time as she was doing last month.  She knows when she is losing balance and places her hands on the side of her to gain it back, but we still watch her closely because when she gets really excited she tends to throw herself backwards.

Sound and facial recognition is better this month but with it comes along stranger anxiety.  If she's in a good mood, she will go with someone she doesn't know, but she stares at them for a very long time.  When in a bad mood, she gives a warning sound and then starts to cry if not given back to mommy.  Emily recognizes Dora the Explorer and she recognizes the theme song to the Golden Girls (mommy's favorite tv show).  She always smiles when these two programs come on.

Teething is still going on but there are no teeth to show for it.  We are still waiting for that glorious moment and then probably won't like it when she clamps down on our fingers.

Wanna play with me?