updates for posterity's sake

Because I have yet to update the baby book since week 1, I'm hoping I can call upon the blog for a little assistance when I finally get around to it. That is if I remember to update THAT:

Let's talk mobility: she is. Once she started crawling, it didn't take her more than a couple days to master the nuances of her new locomotive- adjusting speed, ability to maneuver into tight spaces, ease of transitioning from carpet to tile. This last one was particularly cute. She would spend a significant amount of time trying to figure out how to cross into the kitchen not because it proved tricky to cross a thin metal strip level with the carpet but simply because the thin metal strip EXISTED.

It wasn't even a couple days later before she started pulling herself up onto the furniture and now moving along it. I'm not sure if it's because she started the cruising phase a bit early (she'll be 8 months in 4 days) and has yet to develop a concept of the damage that can be done to oneself as a result of gravity, but recently she's become downright bold. She'll stand up on the nearest couch, bed, chair and then dare herself to let go for longer amounts of time. And a number of times she's just taken off. Sisay says she took four steps when I was out of the room before landing on her hands and knees. And not because she really could. Because she thought she could. But still, we're impressed. When you hold her hands, she literally flings her body forward in a full out run. And if you grab her by the back of her shirt, she weaves and staggers in what we refer to as her drunken sailor routine. on speed.

And, oh the dancing. It has reached new heights of hip-swiveling, knee bouncing, hand twirling delight. The best way to describe it is a combination of belly dancing, hip hop, and Persian dancing.

She also started full on babbling, something she hadn't really displayed until recently. So far she says dadadada, bababababa, lalala, yayayaya, rararara and some other sounds that cannot be recorded by the English language. Sisay is convinced that the 'lalalalala' is 'Laurel' and is getting a good laugh out of it. I am less than impressed.

She still pants like a dog when she's exciting and sniffs rapidly in and out when she's annoyed (people have asked me if she has a breathing problem). Her personality is just exploding now and we are having so much fun (mostly). There is a lot of screaming and carrying on every time her diaper is changed or she isn't picked up in time or she is picked up before she snacks on the computer wires or her face is wiped. But we can PLAY now! I can chase her around the house. I can hide and she will come find me. I can surprise her around corners and hear her squeal in delight.

I think she's definitely a keeper.