Model Marriage
The Seventh Month
- Now that your baby has figured out how to sit up, his next effort will be in trying
to get to all the new things he sees. You may think he’s lying happily on a play
mat, only to turn around and find he’s wriggled all the way off of it. He’s just too
curious to sit still, so he gets to where he wants to go by rocking and scooting on
his bottom or slithering on his belly. Baby also masters his act of picking up an
object between his thumb and forefinger. - Your baby is now very active, and might have trouble settling down for a nap if
he knows there is company in the house or something else interesting going on.
He may respond to your expressions of emotion––getting serious if you hurt
yourself, clinging if you appear nervous, imitating your expressions and sounds
during play. But his own personality will begin to unfold too: focused, with a
long attention span; or easily frustrated when a toy doesn’t work his way; or quiet
and uncertain when faced with new people or places. - As he develops an understanding of cause and effect, baby will delight in toys that
respond when he hits them (for instance, a xylophone or electric game that “talks
back” when a button is pressed). He also begins to get the idea that certain things
he does annoy you, and that when you say “no,” that is what you mean.
The Eighth Month
- This is the month many babies begin to crawl. If you haven’t already installed
cabinet locks and security gates, do it now before an injury occurs. You never
know when baby will first make his way to the staircase or discover the wonders
of a bathroom cabinet. Note that there are some infants who never crawl at
all––they scoot around a bit then proceed directly to cruising and walking. If your
baby is one of them, that is fine. - Once baby is mobile, he may have a lot less patience for sitting around on your
lap. Don’t be surprised if he tries to squirm away when you pick him up––it’s
nothing personal, he is just busy. He may now dislike his cot, mechanical swing,
or anything else that keeps him confined and he will let you know it by resisting
furiously when you try to put him in one of these devices. - Now that baby is crawling off and doing more and more things independently, he
comes to an important conclusion: He is a separate person. This is exciting for
him but also scary. Even the most sociable babies may become cautious around
other people, including familiar faces like Grandma and Grandpa. Make him feel
better by not forcing him on people he resists, and give him plenty of time to warm
up to new situations.
The Ninth Month
- Around this month, the crawling baby learns to pull himself up to a standing
position by holding onto the coffee table or anything that will support his
weight––and even things that won’t, so you need to watch out. Baby may also
irritate you by banging objects together and picking up leftover scraps of food or
carpet lint with his now mastered grasp, which can handle objects as tiny as a pea.