Ozzy is 8 months old today!

ozzy is 8 months old today. heres what he's doing now:
*he refuses to lay still for diaper changes, so it's a test of how fast i can change him. sometimes i'll let him go diaperless to air out and let him play in the kitchen so any accidents are easy to clean up since we have carpets in the main living areas. but i have to be on constant watch because he is EVERYWHERE, opening cabinets and drawers, pulling himself up on chairs and walls, and picking up every tiny little thing off the floor to put in his mouth.
*he's amped up his crawling and cruising speed.
*every now and then i'll catch him standing on his own w/out holding onto anything for 2 seconds. then his middle gets all wobbly and he grabs something to steady himself.
*starting to exhibit some separation anxiety. gets very cranky when i am not physically near him, but still within visual range.
*has started to 'wave' at people. he puts his hand up in the air and flexes his fingers. he likes to look at his hand when he does this. it must look good because he usually follows it with a taste of the fingers.
*in addition to making the vowel sounds, the babab, wawa, yaya, he is now also saying dada
*while not consistent, he is starting to take 1.5 hour naps around 11 am.
*is more facile with the pincer grasp...alternates hands.
*has the best laugh ever...i LOOOOOVE it any time he starts giggling about something. last night it was the popper on the game "Trouble" that was setting off gales of laughter. it's the best sound in the world.

because he's constantly on the move, i've changed the furniture arrangement in our family room to create a place for ozzy to play...a pen (or Pen) of sorts. this effectively keeps him in (and kaya out...not sure if that is a good thing. keeps the dog hair off ozzy's space, but doesnt allow the two much time to interact. kaya was in there this morning though and ozzy crawled all over her and she just layed there, and never even flinched even tho i imagine it wasnt a comfortable thing having those little hands pushing everywhere.) not sure how long i'll have things arranged thusly. maybe until he is able to walk and i'm less afraid he'll fall back and knock his head when he loses his balance.

next month he'll have his nine month old drs appt. i hope he'll have come up on the weight scale a bit. i have been giving him some rice cereal mixed with formula (per docs orders) 2-3 times a day to up his caloric intake. and he still latches on 8 times a day and eats an additional 2-3 tablespoons of fruits or veggies and snacks of baby puffs or cheerios. he's not really chewing stuff yet though...just sort of lightly gums it and rolls it around his mouth before swallowing. i try to model chewing for him...most kids dont start really chewing up real food until 9 months, but mimi did earlier, so i am showing him how to do it, just in case he wants to start doing it this month.