⭐️ 9-month milestones ⭐️

MOTOR : Most babies are crawling by now and able to put themselves into a seated position. They may also be getting up on their knees and some may be trying to pull themselves to stand. If your little one is trying to crawl up and down the stairs, this is when you want to direct and teach them how to properly do it: have them going down the stairs backwards while supervising of course. Baby gates are one of the only baby proofing items that I do. My older two are very aware that they need to keep the baby gates closed. Some babies can also hold a toy while crawling! Their pincer grasp is also more refined and you will see this when they are eating and picking up toys!

ENTERTAINMENT: Providing opportunities to climb and stand up are important. Having a two-level bookcase that is bolted to the wall that has a couple of soft toys on the second level motivates them to try to grab them. If you are wanting to invest in a high quality toy I love the climbing arches by @wiwiurka_toys I also love stainless steel condiment cups. This is also the start of figuring out how things fit together, so the @grimmswoodentoys stackers are great 👍

COMMUNICATIONS: Your baby is starting to understand more. Some kids might be saying mama, dada or hi and can do some things on command like clap. You can continue doing sign language too.

SLEEP: Same schedule as 8 month

FOOD: If you were doing puréed foods, your child should now be traditionally weaned meaning they should already be on small pieces of food and feeding themselves.

Do you want a separate post on how you should play with your kids at different ages?