McCord is 8 Months Old...

...and life has never been so amazing!

Here are a few photos I took last week as McCord and I cut some forsythia to bring inside.  If I had to sum up this past month in one word it would be "awe," for McCord has been in awe of every single detail - surrounding him.  And Bo and I've been in awe of him! 

How wonderful it is to be 8 months old!  McCord has discovered that he can move his jaw up and down like he's talking without making any noise.  Sometimes we'll catch him silently "jabbing" and then he looks at us as if to say, "Did you see that?!!!!  I can move my mouth!" His favorite sound, however, is still the pterodactyl squeal (although he has started babbling mama mama mama, lately... all a coinsidence, of course, but saying Mama, none-the-less).

Here are some of Mc's favorite things right now...

• Favorite pastime: sitting on a quilt and playing with his toys (and/or chewing on his books - not looking at pictures or turning pages, mind you, but this grandson of a children's librarian enjoys chewing on his books!).  Right now, he loves to pull toys out of containers like bags, his toy box - he even likes to pull his Butt Paste out of the diaper changing caddy.  Ah, what a thrill!
• Food: Dried apricots have been a hit lately for this teething little guy.  He's not too interested in food in general yet, so we are working on making food a positive experience with lots of cheering and praise for eating oatmeal.  Life is really fun in the Redmond household right now.  

• Music: This little fellow loves to listen to music. And he especially loves to watch you enjoy music. If a good Motown song comes on the Pandora station, and Bo or I start dancing, he starts rocking back and forth and nodding his head too. And if you start dancing toward him, singing lyrics and incorporating him into your dance routine - watch out! - a huge smile abounds usually followed by more head nodding. He's been known to do the same enthusiastic upper-body rock/head nod at Kindermusik.

 
 

• Pets: Rocky, Hank, and Jackson are Mc's buddies! Every time he sees one of them, he lets out a little excited squeal as if he's thinking, "Oh, it's you again! Thank goodness you're here! I've been thinking about running my hands through your fur all day long!"

...and finally, here are my two favorite boys next to McCord's Maple.  You can't tell it from this photo, but McCord's Maple has grown about a foot and a half since we planted it last July.  What a joy it is to see it thriving and growing just like our little boy!

We look forward to seeing what the next month brings.  I think some crawling is in our future!