Miles is Eight Months Old

It's been quite a month for Miles. He survived two blizzards, a double-ear infection and lots and lots of bumps on his head. Miles is our little explorer. He has to check out everything but it's not enough for him to just see something, he must touch or taste it and there's no exception to this rule.

During the first blizzard, Mike was "watching" Miles while I was working from home. Mike popped his head into the dining room (my make-shift office at the time) to tell me something and in a matter of seconds Miles had made his way through the family room into the kitchen and had two fists full of dog food. Mike grabbed Miles, emptied his hands and then heard "munch munch." Miles had popped a piece into his mouth. Thankfully he hadn't tried swallowing it. I'm not sure how long this tasting phase will last but he sure has it down pat. I don't think there's anything in our family room that he hasn't licked or tried biting. Everything goes in his mouth. Everything. Which is why this months pictures are missing the sign. We figured it would just end up in Miles's mouth so we didn't even try but all of these pictures were taken today.

Miles is fully mobile now. He figured out how to crawl on all four but will occasionally do the "worm" when he's tired. Miles loves when you chase after him, especially when he's in route to the new dog bowl location...it only took him two days to find it after we moved it. But Mike and I think it's only a matter of time before Miles takes off walking. Now that he's mastered crawling, he has realized that it's not the fastest way for him to get around. He is now pulling himself up onto everything and tries to walk around the coffee table. A few days ago, Miles decided to try steadying himself without holding onto anything and it's become part of his daily routine. He's successful for 10 seconds or so and then plops on his butt. Both Mike and I walked before we turned one and something tells me that Miles will too.

Mama and Dada are now a regular part of Miles's vocabulary. Mike and I know that he doesn't fully understand what he is saying but we like to think that he does. We also think Miles tried to say Homer this past weekend...we know, we know...there's no way but it really did sound and look like he was trying.

Mike and I have known for a while that Miles loves the water; however, he has become a little fish. It doesn't matter if the water is running or not, if he is near the bathroom door or sees it, he's full throttle to the tub. If he could stay splash around all day, we're pretty sure that he would. Swim lessons should be fun once we start them, which should be within the next month. (Check the blog tomorrow for this paragraph's picture!)

Miles now has his two bottom teeth too but he's not one to flaunt it. You have to pay close attention or you'll miss an opportunity to see them. Sorry. You're not going to see them in a picture today. He gave us only toothless smiles.