Sarah...

• Is just shy of 8 months old.
• Eats as if the goal is to get food on every inch of space within a three-foot radius.
• Sleeps late and stays up late.
• Smiles sparingly but beautifully.
• Talks as if she were three. Well, as if she were a three-year-old who couldn't actually say any real words.
• Giggles unceasingly (unless she's talking or hungry/sleepy).
• Sings along (with a very serious expression, as if to say, I'm concentrating on staying on key).
• Would rather pat or eat books than read them.
• Adores. Adores. Adores her Big Brother.
• Has two (front) bottom teeth.

• Is very gifted at the "trumpet-player's blow" (surely there's an actual term for that??). Dizzy Gillespie cheeks and all.
• Has gorgeous blue eyes.
• Does better on long car trips if Mommy is sitting beside her.
• Eats solids really well - including any finger foods within reach - except when feeling bad.
• Can clap her hands but prefers to clap her thighs (or the table or Mommy's face or any other nearby surface).

• Swivels around on her tummy to reach that toy her brother doesn't want her to get.
• Finds jewelry to be fascinating (and tasty), and has been known to use both hands in a surprisingly powerful effort to move Mommy's head for a better look at her earrings.
• Chews on her bottom lip.
• Likes to be held by her Mommy.
• Prefers toys that make fun noises. Chewable surfaces are a big bonus.
• Sleeps on her tummy or on her left side.
• Kicks her legs back and forth in fast motion whenever excited or mad or hungry.
• Will steal paper right out of your hands if you aren't paying close attention. And then eat it.
• Began sleeping through the night around 2 months - and sleeping about 12 hours by 3 months - but started getting extra hungry at 5.5 months and has been waking up at least once most nights ever since...
• Loves baths. Especially with her godzilla brother.
• Has the world's chubbiest thighs. (The rest of her is just now catching up.)
• Misses nothing, and is especially fond of people-watching.
• Just got her own room, where her brother will (hopefully) not be able to rouse her early from naps.
• Has had one cold, leading to a double ear infection, but is otherwise very healthy.
• Sits up super straight. Seriously. Strangers compliment her on this.
• Looks cute in everything except yellow.
• Has darker hair than her brother.
• Rarely complains about the fact that she gets dragged along a lot more than her brother did at this age.
• Appreciates a clean diaper.
• Is very tactile and tends to enjoy picture books best if she can touch the pictures.
• Takes two good naps a day (when we let her) and catches "power naps" during car rides.
• Rubs her eyes when she's sleepy.
• Has fallen off a bed twice and backwards from sitting more times than I can count. So far, no concussions.