11 Months

MOTOR:  By now you will see your baby either trying to stand up or some babies will even start to cruise while holding things. Now remember your babies temperament may impact their degree of adventure. Some babies may start to scale counters and stairs. Where as others may be more cautious. Providing them with opportunities to pull themselves up is important.

ENTERTAINMENT: you should continue having a minimalist area set up for them where they are free to explore and if possible make it a "YES space." Closing the doors to a room or setting up a baby gate allows them to orient to their environment and begin exploration. Having a two leveled shelf where you have light objects on the second shelf where you have a couple silk scarves in a basket is a great motivator to try to pull themselves up. You can even pull out climb out toys such as the ones from @wiwiwurkatoys. Remember when you show fear... your baby will pick up on it. Bowls with large loose parts and stacker rings are a favorite starting at this age.

COMMUNICATION: language starts to mature at this age as you may notice that your baby will participate in the dialogue. For example, saying "you may drop your pacifier in the crib" may be followed by them dropping it. When you ask a question like "where is the dog?"  they will start to turn and point. This is when they will start to pick up on using the word “no”. (see my post on the word no). You may also discover at this age some babies will start to have temper tantrums. This is very developmentally appropriate and you really just want to sit with them.

EATING: if your baby hasn't already begun to do so...they should be fully feeding themselves with their fingers and starting to explore using the spoon. You can start to offer a snack midmorning such as cucumbers and hummus, avocado on a piece of @cocobakes bread, etc. Babies are still typically drinking anywhere from 16-24 oz (depending on breast milk and or formula). Now that their personality is really starting to develop you may find yourself with a more cautious eater and your baby will start to have preferences. Everyone has preferences even adults and they go through phases. Stay consistent and don’t be a short order chef. Unless your physician is concerned about your child’s weight or you notice a significant decrease in appetite within a two week span then just allow them to decide if and how much they want to eat. Keep in mind that you may have to expose a child to a new food up to 15 times before they will even eat it. (see my blog on how to get kids to eat healthy) They will want to take ownership of holding their open ended cup. Continue to put a little water in there so that they can succeed at drinking it.

SLEEP : Your baby should still be on two naps a day lasting anywhere from 1.5-3 hours combined sleep. Typically babies at this age like to be put down for their first nap three hours before they wake up.

Sample schedule:

7am – Wakeup

10am – First nap

2:30pm  – Second nap

7pm – Bedtime

*they should be getting 11-12 hours of sleep at night.