Welcome To Month Nine With Your Baby!
Month 9 With Your Baby!
Your baby is no longer the little bundle of joy that was dependent on you all day. She is curious, active and ready to explore at the drop of a hat!
Month 9 Of What To Expect From Your Baby
Baby is making her presence felt in every way at this stage be it with her ‘conversations’ or her constant need to look, feel and grab things or her keen interest in going places. She has her likes and dislikes and she is not shy about letting you know!
This is the age of ‘active motion’. She may not be standing or moving along without support with great ease yet but she can crawl pull herself up and maybe even cruise around the furniture. Some babies skip crawling and go straight to walking or crawl a bit later, so try not to be anxious if your little one is not crawling yet. Do see a paediatrician if your concerned about your babies development in this area if they are not making an attempt to move in some way at this stage.
Try this: You might like to encourage baby to crawl by putting her on a soft surface (carpet or a rug) and placing lots of interesting toys/objects within sight.
She may just be happy sitting there and reaching for her toys though. If crawling has developed quickly on your little love, she may be making her way up stairs in this way too, or trying to, so it’s a great time to install some baby gates for extra safety.
Her curious mind loves to figure things out now so she may be exploring her toys to see how they fit together or ‘what happens’ when she ‘does this’. This is a great time for cups or eggs that fit into each other or shapes that go into holes or even musical or noise making toys that work at the press of buttons.
She is trying to talk to you in her own special language but listen carefully and you may be able to hear some familiar sounds, because she is trying to mimic your speech now. She’ll respond really well to praise so encourage her by showing how happy you are when she comes up with new sounds.
Month 9 Of What To Expect From Yourself
While it’s tempting to dress her up in the cutest little shoes and outfits, at this stage it’s best to avoid putting shoes on baby’s feet unless it is absolutely essential, and in this case they should be soft sole shoes. Inside the house, moving around barefoot helps her develop strength in her leg muscles and tendons. If you just want to keep her warm, use socks instead.
Exposing babies to music is especially good for brain development and it also helps them learn to speak faster. So sing to her frequently and also talk to her about the things around her. You may notice that she watches your face and your lips when you talk to her, in a bid to see how you are managing to create the sounds. Point out things and say their names clearly so that she starts to associate the sound with the item.
Start taking baby out to places where other children her age play and introduce her to the concept of play time with her own age group. Things like your local park, play centre or walks with your mother’s group friends are all a great way to socialise your bub while also having a bit of adult time yourself. While she’s too young to be mingling yet, it still helps develop her social skills. Plus, it’s great time for you to chat to other moms and enjoy a coffee while baby explores.
“My moms group catch ups were my saviour. It was always so nice to get out of the house, either at a park or even catching up at someone else’s house. It gave the bubs extra stimulation and us some much needed adult conversation.” Vicky
