7 Months old – A person with a strong personality merges

The cooing continues

At seven months, you and your baby are probably enjoying lots of interaction. Smiling and babbling are favorite activities. Your baby may have favorite sounds, and be starting to make combinations of sounds in an experimental way. These are great activities to turn into games, and this is an important learning opportunity. Copying the sounds the baby makes is a fun activity that helps the baby learn and copy. And the mama and dada sounds continue – much to the excitement of the parents! Baby is also starting to look towards the source of the sound, and will turn the head if you speak from behind. Peek-a-boo is a favorite game at this age, and helps baby learn that things that disappear do return. It’s a fun way to make baby more secure.

Let’s get physical

This independent person probably likes to chew on a cracker without any help, and might be able to sit quite securely, for a while anyway, before the wobbles start and baby topples over with a startled expression. The changes are happening very quickly at this age and you need to keep an eye on this little person every moment of the day. Since baby is starting to interact strongly with the environment, you need to start putting dangerous objects and precious breakables out of reach. The first signs of crawling, standing and pulling up on furniture into a standing position can be exciting but nerve wracking. Standing while you support the baby is becoming a favorite activity as baby strengthens the legs in readiness for the big day – the first step! (Still quite a way off for most babies, but an eagerly anticipated event in most homes)

Lots of playing

Baby is learning fast from all the hours of playing. If you try to take a toy away, there will be an objection. Up till recently, if baby dropped an object, it was as though the object had ceased to exist. Around about this time, baby will start to look for the dropped object, and this is a big step forward as it signals the awareness that things exist even if they are not visible! Enjoy the excitement of so many new discoveries and behaviours – the brain of this baby is growing every minute and the changes are amazing.

What to worry about!

Babies vary widely in the rate at which they reach different milestones. This can cause lots of reason for fear and worry for parents. The best advice is to try and remind yourself that every individual progresses at the pace that is right for them. You are providing a safe and stimulating environment for the baby to grow in, and that is the best that you can do. However, you are also the best judge of your baby’s progress. You may pick up on small issues that no-one else will. So keep a list of the things that are worrying you, so that when you take baby to the doctor or clinic, you can have these issues checked out. It’s normal to ask for reassurance, so don’t be shy!