So big!

Well, Taylor is inching up on 8 months already, and it seems like he is changing every day. He is doing all sorts of new things, and some old stuff which I just never got around to blogging about. So here is an 8 month update.

*He has two teeth on the bottom! The first one popped up around 6 months and didn't seem to bother him at all. The second was quick to follow and did cause a few rough nights. He still enjoys chewing on any and everything and drools a lot, causing a little bit of a rash on his chin. He also chews on his thumb and pointer finger constantly, and they have gotten so terribly raw. I try to offer the pacifier instead, and put ointment on them at night so he doesn't just suck it off, but they are still pretty bad.

Cute boy with the ouchy fingers

Two teeth

*He is rolling around very well, and has recently discovered how to get up on his knees. (I had a few days off, so we worked on it a lot, and he got it!) He either gets on all fours and rocks back and forth, or he then straightens out and moves backward. He gets frustrated when he can't get himself to move forward toward his toys, and that's when he whines or lets out mad growl. Sometimes he is just happy to be moving in any direction, though. And the other day he felt like he had mastered the getting on all fours enough to move on to trying to climb up a step. I believe we have a future daredevil on our hands.

Working on getting to his knees

Happy on his tummy!

*He is sitting all by himself now. Occasionally he will try to reach too far for something and topple over (I try to keep him out of range of anything hard or with a sharp corner), but for the most part he is very sturdy. It is his favorite, other than standing of course, because he can grab onto toys, hold and suck them. Not as easy on the tummy. He loves to bang toys together and hear the different sounds they make. He rocks sometimes like he is trying to scoot forward on his tush, so we'll see if he eventually masters that. And he really enjoys sitting in high chairs at restaurants and the shopping cart at the store, and he has a little seat in the bath so he can't slip around. He tends to draw a lot of attention with those big blue eyes, and once someone stops to talk to him, he give a big flirtatious smile. Watch out girls!

Blowing bubbles in the front yard

Sitting & chewing: his two favorite things

Our Captain Adorable

Bath time!

Silly faces

*He is eating solid foods. So far on the menu he gets rice cereal, oatmeal, sweet potatoes, carrots, peas, avocado, squash, bananas, pears, applesauce, plums, and mango. Up and coming things to try are green beans and asparagus. So far no allergic reactions. And he loves everything. You could give him bananas, then peas, and he wouldn't even bat an eye. He loves food so much, he is already on a breakfast, lunch, and dinner schedule. I'm trying to give him milk first so he doesn't fill up on just the solids, and trying to limit the food a little bit since he would eat himself uncomfortable if we let him. What can I say. He is like him mom: we love good food. It is pretty cute when he says "mmm" after every bite. So far I've made everything, cooking and pureeing some, or just fork mashing others. It helps to make it in large batches and freeze it in ice cube trays, which is a perfect serving size (Well, 3-4 ice cubes for Taylor. The kid can eat!) I aim to buy organic, but I'm not 100% with it. A few times during a meal I will put some on the spoon and let him practice getting it in his mouth. He usually gets most of it, even turning the spoon over so he can get every last drop. He is also learning to master the cup. He has one with two handles on the side, so it is easier to hold. He just started actually drinking the water. At first he didn't like the taste, or lack there of. Most of the time he just wants to chew on it. :)

Mmm, peas

"All done!"

*He has started to make some new letter sounds. He has always been good with the "H" and "G" sounds, but he has started making "B" and "V" sounds. Once I could have sworn he said "boo" because we are always playing peek-a-boo. The "V" sounds usually turn into something more like a raspberry, with spit flying everywhere. He will do it on our cheeks sometimes which is cute. I'm working on the "mama", but he just laughs when I say it.

*He loves the swing at the park. More so now that I don't have to bundle him so much that he can't put his arms down. (Three words: A Christmas Story). He loves to watch the other kids at the playground too, more so than interact with me. And his recent discovery is the slide. Jason stuck him at the top, and Taylor just started scooting himself to the edge and went down almost unassisted. Now he gets all excited when we head to our neighborhood playground because he knows he gets to go down the slide.

35 degree day at the park

"Watch me!"

Daddy waiting to catch

Regrouping after the slide down

Cool kid on the block

Playing on the playground

I think those are all the big things. I'm sure it won't be long before he has a whole new series of tricks to share. They just change so fast!

Good-bye Old Friend

Today was a very sad day: we sold our boat. As many of you know, it had suffered a cracked engine last winter due to the severe cold. Coming from San Diego, we didn't know you are supposed to winterize your boat. Of course, the insurance company wasn't sympathetic and practically laughed in our face when we made the claim. We were hoping to eventually get it fixed, but after a year we just weren't sure we wanted to take the chance of getting the engine rebuilt and spending tons of money to have it still have problems. Because it had spent a lot of time in the salt water, there was also rust damage on the wires, and the battery and connections were shot. So after having it posted on craislist for literally 10 mintues before Jason's phone was ringing off the hook with people who wanted to buy it, we contacted a guy who said he would give cash and had an engine to put in it. He picked it up today, and as he drove away with our boat attached to his truck, I began to cry. I mean, this boat practically defined mine and Jason's relationship the first two years together.

My first time out with him was four days after our first date. We went out on San Diego Harbor with friends Matt and Vanessa. From that point on, we spent many warm weekend days waking boarding or just relaxing in the sun, nights watching concerts from the harbor or enjoying a picnic dinner, and invinting friends along to share the fun. Jason loved to take people out for the first time, and help people learn to wake board or let the little kids drive the boat. Jason took it fishing a couple times with the guys, which was such a great memory for them. We went to great lengths to keep it nice and clean, dragging it back to east San Diego where Jason worked so we could power wash it, flush the engine, and scrub down the inside. We were so excited to some day have our kids out on the boat, teaching them the rules of the water and how to waterski/wakeboard. And when we moved up here, we bought a place close to a huge lake that we thought we'd be spending many summer days on. Now those days seem a long way off. Hopefully some day we will be able to get another one, but we'll see. For now we are still mourning the loss of our boat that provided so many wonderful expereinces. Thanks to all who joined us for a day on the lake or bay and helped make such great memories. Here are a few picts from over the years.