Crawling, Clapping, & Cruising!

This week has been the biggest leap in developmental milestones for our little bear that I've seen thus far.  Millie has been pulling up and cruising around pretty good for a couple of weeks now.  She's very wobbly, but still...she's doing it!  Now, she likes to stand on her own without holding on to anything.  She can just stand right up from a seated position; it's crazy.  All that balancing is pretty exhausting for her; I'm sure she'll have abs of steel in no time... 

Yesterday was gym day, and Nana got to go with us.  She also got to witness Millie crawling for the very first time!  Mills did a little crawling at home yesterday morning, but once we hit the big red mat at the gym, it was on!  Here's some video of her crawling at gym: http://youtu.be/VFiafa23YIU 
And here's some video of her standing up at the gym (with jazz hands): http://youtu.be/WQr-Ins_sGU

This is Millie's first pair of real shoes - Stride Rite early walkers...aren't they darling?  She couldn't quit looking at them, and she didn't seem to mind cruising around in them.

It's so strange what kids latch on to...this purple ring is one of her favorite things at the moment.  Uh, dullsville.  However, it has helped entice her to start clapping (well, sort of).  This video is super cute; it is Millie's version of hand-clapping: http://youtu.be/cCJThHJqFgM

This morning at 3:30AM I heard Mills on the monitor, and when I clicked on the video, I literally gasped out loud.  She was standing up in her crib!  This is the first time she's pulled up to standing in her crib.  It scared me pretty good, but she was fine.  Thank goodness we lowered the crib mattress a few weeks ago!  When I went in to pick her up, she didn't even smile at me...I think she was kind of disoriented and not sure how she got there.  This week has taken a toll on our poor girl; she has been whiny and fussy and oh so clingy.  Her sleep has been crazy out of whack, and from what I've read in books and on the net, it is probably due to all of these new milestones.  She is extremely exhausted and not her usual self, but I'm sure it won't take her tiny body long to get used to all of the new moves, and she'll be back to her normal self soon.  I want my happy, unflappable Millie back!  Still though, I can't help but be proud of all the progress she's making.  It's amazing how much a week or even a few days makes at this age.  Hard to believe she will be 9 months old next week!