8 months!

Atticus is 2/3 of a year old today. He's more and more lovely each week, if that's possible. Goodness, I love him. I have several tidbits to report.

First, a few anecdotes:

1. Today, he made the "milk" sign as he said "mama." (The "ma" sound is by far his favorite sound lately, and though he doesn't address me in quite the same way as an older child might, it does seem pretty clear that he's made the connection between that sound and me. He tends to say it whenever he wants my attention.)
2. Yesterday, I mimicked Atticus after he coughed, and he busted out laughing. (He also laughes at his own sneezes.)
3. The day before that, he screamed and shed many tears over my not allowing him to jam the nail clippers into the roof of his mouth. (There have been several such temper tantrums lately. If Atticus doesn't get what he wants--whether that be an object or assistance standing, etc.--he cries, and sometimes pitches a fit. It looks like toddlerhood--I associate temper tantrums with toddlerhood--has already begun)

Sleep: Good news on the sleep front! We had a setback last week with the teething business, so we had to start over again Saturday evening. Saturday was traumatic. None of us slept well. Lots and lots of crying. However, Sunday night Atticus cried for just 20 minutes when he awoke at 9ish, before falling back to sleep on his own. Then he slept through the night, not waking up until 5:30! That hasn't happened since he was 2-3 months old. Monday night he awoke for a feeding at 2:30, but otherwise slept the night in his crib (he woke briefly two other times, but only fussed for about a minute each time). Last night he awoke for just one feeding as well.

Solid Food: I've been introducing new foods rather slowly--one every week or two. Tonight he had pureed peas for the first time. Every time I introduce something new, I half expect him to make a face and reject it, but that hasn't been happening. He seems to love everything. He ate those peas up faster than I could spoon them out of the bowl. Finger foods have been a little tricky so far. I think I've been choosing foods that are too sticky (e.g., bananas). Mostly he just makes a mess. I'm planning to steam diced carrots and apples tomorrow night to see if those are easier for him to handle.

Teeth: Atticus loves brushing his teeth. He started using one of those little banana brushes a few weeks ago. As soon as I place him into the bath, he looks at me expectantly, waiting for his toothbrush. Then I sing the toothbrushing song I made up while he scrubs away. He think the song is nifty too. I mumbled the song the other day while I was brushing my own teeth, and he giggled.