It’s time to start baby-proofing the house!
Once your baby turns seven months they will find loads of new objects to pick up (and throw and break!) They are becoming increasingly active and need lots of space to discover and move around in, which means more work ahead for you too! Baby-proofing the house will take on a sudden new urgency. For your baby at the moment, it’s all about crawling and learning to understand the word “No!”.
Feeding your baby
By now you will have started your baby on complementary feeding. After starting with subtle flavours to introduce foods slowly, your baby is probably ready now to try some stronger flavours! New tastes will get them interested in food rather than just helping them learn to eat. They’re also ready for more textures to help develop their chewing skills.
It’s very important at this time that your baby is never left alone with solid food. To encourage good eating habits, it is also a good idea to develop a routine for mealtimes, perhaps with your baby sitting in their own high chair. Read more about this stage of feeding here.
It’s also important to watch for your baby’s non-verbal signs of communication – like telling you they want to feed themselves by picking up food with their hands. Now is a great time to introduce them to soft finger foods that they can chew, which helps develop their speech muscles. The added benefit is that although they can get a bit messy, they’ll probably eat more this way!
Get ready to play!
By now, your baby will probably be into everything, but don't worry if they don't seem interested in crawling. They may just prefer to shuffle around on their bottom, even going backwards at times! They’ll have their own unique style.
You can easily turn your home into an exciting playground by creating obstacles with cushions and throw pillows for your baby to crawl or shuffle over and around. This will help encourage their explorative nature and strengthen their muscles at the same time as having fun with you!
Now that your baby can bear a lot of weight on their feet, they’ll get a great kick out of bouncing up and down on your lap too. It's all thanks to the part of your baby's brain that controls their movement or 'motor skills'. They’ve already developed control over their neck, shoulders, chest and lower back, so now it's the turn of the lower body, hands and feet.
Their upper body is strong enough now for them to sit up on their own without support, so it’s a great time to prop them up in their own high chair, joining the rest of the family at mealtimes.
Co-ordination and awareness
If your baby suddenly starts repeatedly dropping and throwing objects across the room, don’t worry. They have finally learned to release things from their hands at will and are enjoying practicing their newly acquired skill!
Around this time of development your baby may start to experience a bit of ‘separation anxiety’ too, becoming scared and clingy when you try to leave the room – even if you’re just popping out for a moment.
Sticking to a regular daily routine can help ease your baby's fears. Whether it is giving them a milk feed on waking, or planning snack times and naps, making things predictable helps give them a sense of security and helps with their happiness.
Playing hiding games with your baby can help with separation anxiety. Try hiding one of your baby's favourite toys and asking them to find it. Also, babies never tire of peek-a-boo, even long after you're bored with it!
Babbling and words
Your baby’s own unique personality is really beginning to shine now! They will start to recognise their own name and turn around when you say it and although they’re not yet talking; their random babbling will begin to sound more like words as they repeat the sounds they’ve mastered.
Now when your baby says ‘mama' or 'dada' they are referring to two very special people in their life, although they will still probably get you muddled up. They won't be shy about offering their opinion, whether by babbling, laughing, squealing or screaming. They have also started to understand the meaning of the word 'No' - although they won’t always obey it!
Learning
Your baby is becoming much more involved when you read to them now; trying to turn pages, listening closely to your voice and following the colourful pictures, however it will still be a while before they can connect the pictures to the words you’re reading. Animal books are great at this stage, giving your baby lots of interesting new sounds to learn!
The simple everyday environments of indoors and outdoors are exciting for your baby at the moment. Crawling under the table, opening and closing doors and looking out the window while naming the things you see will all help encourage their inquisitive, explorative nature.