This post is made possible with support from the Association of University Centers on Disabilities through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “Learn the Signs. Act Early.” program. All opinions are my own.
I can’t believe our littlest star is already seven months. As the days turn into months, he grows; cognitively, physically, emotionally/socially, and verbally. It’s amazing to see how he is reaching developmental milestones.
Six months is probably one of my favourite stages of infancy since there is so much social and emotional development happening. Our Sol seems to be laughing and smiling all day, except when Luna takes a toy away from him, he expresses his disappointment with a loud cry. Oh, and when I take to long to feed him, he gives out a little grunt and flails his arms around. I imagine he’s thinking “Hurry up, I’m hungry!” Hahaha, and as soon as he gets the food in his mouth, he is all smiles. And when he has had enough of his food, he turns his head away or doesn’t open his mouth.
Milestones may often come with cues from your baby. For example, even before we started feeding Sol solids, he would sit with us at the table for breakfast, lunch and dinner. And we would realize that he would focus his attention on the food. He would be in an intense blinking contest with the plate of food. Then he’d watch us eat, and eventually he started trying to grab the food. After he did this a couple of times, we decided to finally listen to his cues and start giving him solids. And he was so HAPPY!
Developmental milestones are things most children can do by a certain age. How your child plays, learns, speaks, acts, and moves offers important clues about your child’s development. Milestones matter, besides talking about them with your doctor, there are many helpful free resources that are readily available.
The CDC’s Learn the Signs. Act Early. (LTSAE) initiative will help you to know if your child is hitting milestones at the right time. On the LTSAE page you will find tools to track your child’s development including checklists, videos and activity ideas.
Knowing what important developmental milestones your baby should reach at a certain age will ensure you maximize their full potential; as well as know what to do if you have any concerns.
Make sure to order a FREE “Parent Kit” (includes a Milestone Moments booklet with checklists for ages 2 months to 5 years and a growth chart; English or Spanish) here.
