Hi everyone,

I was just wondering where everyone else's babies are developmentally? I was reading a book that a friend gave me last night, and in it said that by 9 months, babies should be doing some things that my 8.5 mo ds doesn't seem to be close to doing! Although I know things happen SO fast at this point, 2 weeks could make a real difference, maybe he's closer than I thought... But anyways, here are some of the things the book said babies should be doing:

- Stacking objects (or at least trying to--like rings, or blocks)
- Copying you, when you put toys in a bucket or toy box
- Being close to drinking from a lid-less cup on their own
- Using gestures such as waving bye-bye, pointing at things, etc.
- Understanding some of your words such as "give it to me", and holding the object outright for you to take (but maybe not being able to let it go with their fingers)
- Using the pincer grasp (with fore finger and thumb)
- Tracing patterns on the carpet, place mats, or in picture books with their fingers (at this point, ds doesn't really take the time to notice patterns--everything just goes STRAIGHT into the mouth-and there's no pattern on our carpet... :))

So these things kind of worried me because like I say... My ds isn't really doing of these (he is getting close to using the pincer grasp though, I think)! He's right on target as far as the stuff his doctor says he should be doing at this point though... Just not doing any of the things listed. How about your babies?

Whiskers :angel:

hi whiskers, my son is 9 and a half months old, he does some of the things on that list but not all,,,
stacking objects,, ha no chance, everything in his hand goes in his mouth
copying you,,, hes just recently started this, like copying noises we make and actions sometimes.
being close to drinking from a cup,,, again no,, he's only just started to hold his bottle himself (he's so lazy!)
using gestures,, although mom in law swears he waved bye bye the other day, im yet to see it.
understanding words, im sure he understands some words but if i ask him to give it to me he just sticks it even more firmly in his mouth lol
pincer grasp, ds has this down to a fine art now
tracing patterns,, no he hasnt done this as yet

ds also doesnt crawl yet although he tries but he finds it quicker to roll to where he wants to get :D
but he does stand for ages just holding to your finger and will take a few steps whilst holding on.
sometimes i read the milestones and what they should be doing at what age and think he has never done anything like that but ill read the next month on and he will do loads of that. sometimes i worry about ds's vocabulary as all he says is dadda, he could say mamma and nanna at around 7 months but dadda is all he says now (and he finds it extremely funny to shout dadda back at me when i try and get him to say mamma)

anyway all babies are different and they develop at their own pace, (and mine seems to be going at a lazy pace lol!)

Oh boy - yeah, this is why I stopped reading about stuff my daughter should be doing because I was always worried we were behind. :)

My daughter is 9 months old and:
- stacking objects? Uh uh, everything is a drum! If she can't bang it, she doesn't want it. I try to teach her to stack, but she just wants to bang it and eat it.
- The only time she copies me is when she's trying to get into the trash from her walker and I say "no no!" and she turns and says "na na", laughs and goes right back for it.
- sippy cup we've got, but only recently
- she can clap, that's the only gesture, and again only recently.
- she can use the pincher grasp, but only got that thanks to Gerber Puffs!
- definitely not tracing patterns, but she does great chasing the dog.

As for a few other things, my little one will sit up if you put her in the position, but still can't pull herself up into a sit. As far as crawling, she does the inchworm still - she will rock on her hands and knees but still no crawling. There are a lot of books, etc, that would say she is behind, but because I see so many changes so quickly I'm definitely not worried anymore.

This whole first time mom thing is tough - but I'm learning to relax....a little. :D

if there's one thing i learned from all the books i read about baby and child development, it's that the "experts" that write them know JACK about baby and child development! let your child develop at his own pace and don't worry about what the "experts" say! from what i have read in your posts, your baby sounds like he's doing just fine! :)

Every baby is different! My youngest is now 10 and a half months. He has been crawling since 6 months and walking since 9 months! He points at objects and can wave bye bye and even says buh ba when he waves. We have the toy giraffe that you put balls in his mouth and within 2 minutes he picked it right up. He can also clap his hands. He don't stack toys and does not trace objects with his fingers either.

Thanks for the replies! I know my ds is extremely smart, and will do things at his own leisure so I'm not concerned that he "can't", I'm just wondering if these developmental milestones they mention in the book are average or not!
However, ds is now almost 9 mo (he will be on the 7th), and has said his first word! I know he probably has no idea what it means, and doesn't say it correctly, but when we say "bye bye", he says "ba ba"!! It is the cutest thing ever... He's started to do a lot of new things just within the past couple weeks--he now dances when he hears music he likes (if he's in the mood, of course), he can clap his hands, and he's begun to learn what his toy phones are for--we'll hold them up to our ear, and speak, and then to his and tell him what to "say", and the other day I look over at him playing on the floor to see him holding his toy remote control up to his ear, and leaning his head into it!! They look quite similar--I thought this was just about the cutest thing... Until he spoke, of course! :D

Whiskers :angel:

my baby is 5 months old ( made 28th of Jan) and from what I've read in ""those"" our babies are ""suppose"" to be professionalist! I have 3 older kids and when I read these book it makes me depressed. So I only read them now for sickness..lol. She doesn't roll over all the way, she 'd rather try and walk, she doesn't reach and grab for everything she'd rather eat her hands..lol. Every baby is at their own pace there should be a book for that. lol