Dear Joshua,

Today you turn 8 months old. Are you really already that old? Little boy, you are growing up so fast these days. You are learning so many new tricks lately, and Daddy and I are constantly amazed by you.

At 8 months old, you are now:
Army crawling, rolling across the room, rotating your body in different directions to get different toys, sitting up very easily, going from lying down to sitting up all by yourself, and you are now pulling yourself up on your knees. In fact, Daddy and I just had to adjust your bed last weekend because you learned how to do that last trick. We just know that you're going to figure out how to go one step further and stand up in your crib anytime now--you're just that good, and so determined. You definitely know what you want and won't stop until you get it. :)
You love your play room, and you definitely like the fact that you can see Mommy while I work in the kitchen. You also LOVE LOVE LOVE our dog Sadie. (And she sure loves you back.) You smile and laugh anytime she comes into the room, and you really enjoy "sharing" your food with her...you let her lick all your food off your hands while you're in your high chair. You also like helping Mommy walk Sadie every day. You hold her leash while you sit in your stroller and she walks next to you--you think it's so hilarious and you laugh from your toes during walks. You must think it's fun to have your four-legged friend with you there too! Speaking of walks, we've upgraded you to your umbrella stroller (when we go for leisurely walks--Mommy and Daddy's legs are too long to walk fast with that one). You love that stroller because you can look at everything around you now--just like a big boy. Josh, you have also become more interested in books...you like to "help" Mommy and Daddy ready them by putting them in your mouth. Your favorites right now are "Goodnight Moon," "It's Time for Bed," and "Violet's House."

Within the last month, you've also mastered naps in your crib. YAAY! I can't tell you how excited I am about that one, little boy! It took a while to get there and it definitely wasn't easy, but you are so much more well-rested and happy now that you're getting in two (sometimes three) really good naps during the day. You're also going to bed at night like a champ---at 6/6:30 in fact! You even sleep until sometime between 6 and 7 am. That's pretty impressive!!!

You're eating a TON now too! You've now discovered that you like bananas, pears, apples, peaches, blueberries, butternut squash, yellow squash, zucchini, green beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, asparagus, rice cereal, barley, and prunes!!! That's pretty impressive. The only thing you don't seem to like so far is regular mashed potatoes--I don't blame you. They're no fun when there's nothing added to them but water. :) Someday we'll make you some REAL mashed potatoes. I promise you'll LOVE them!

Joshua, you are so observant now! You examine everything and seem to learn with all 5 senses. Lately, you've been trying to figure out exactly how your hands work. You'll open and close your fingers in front of your face and just watch your hand....like you want to know exactly how that part of your body works. You also like to pick things up and hold them with your feet. I know this is pretty typical, but you LOVE to put things in your mouth. You also love anything that looks like a string...on mommy's clothes, on your toys, and (unfortunately) things like electrical cords. For some reason, those are especially attractive to you. You sure keep Mommy and Daddy on their toes, that's for sure!



Little boy, we can't even believe how much you've grown this month! You never cease to amaze us. Daddy keeps telling me how much he likes watching you discover new things for the first time. I have to agree with him on that one. There's so much that we haven't even taught you, but you seem to have figured it out on your own. You truly are "fearfully and WONDERFULLY made," little boy. God definitely did (and continues to do) a great job on you, Joshua! You are an amazing little person, and we are so incredibly blessed to be your parents. We cannot wait to see what new tricks you come up with this next month.

We love you Joshua!
Love, Momma