Half of a year has gone by and your baby has grown and learned so much! At this point, she may be sitting up on her own and some babies will try to crawl! Encourage him by setting toys out of his reach. In no time, he will be crawling all over. Some babies also roll across the room! Your baby can turn and twist in all directions. She can transfer objects from hand to hand and will look for dropped objects.
Many babies will start teething at this time. You may notice that she is uncomfortable, drooling and bites down alot. Teething rings often help and the coldness can be soothing to her sore gums. If she doesn't like a cold teether, offer her a warm one instead.
Stranger anxiety usually increases by the time your baby is six months old. She knows the difference between people she recognizes and strangers. When you introduce your baby to new people, hold her and tell her about who the person is. Your baby will be able to sense how you feel about the new person. Don't force your child to sit with the person- let him set the pace. This is especially important with caregivers that take care of the baby while you are away.
Your baby still likes to be read to and likes to hear songs and music. Expose him to various sounds, sights, smells and textures often. Alot of your baby's learning comes from hearing. Because he likes other babies, take him to see other babies as often as possible. Watch how they interact. Your baby is learning about relationships!
Being a warm and loving parent will teach your baby to trust and respect you. If you find that your baby is doing something that he should not be doing, redirect him to an appropriate activity. At this age, your baby still does not know how to obey or disobey. However, he is learning to listen and can begin to understand what he should not mess with. After you have redirected him, remember to praise him for a job well done. Your baby will learn best and can not get into trouble if her world is interesting. Keep fun activities readily available and interact with her. Showing your baby how to do things the right way will also help her learn. If she pulls your hair, show her how to be gentle.
Most babies will have started some type of solid foods at this point. If you give your baby something that he does not like, keep giving it to him. It can take several attempts to get him to like something. The food habits that are learned now will stay with your baby for life. By giving her a variety of foods, you are expanding her taste and encouraging healthy eating habits. Allow your baby to sit in her highchair and eat with the rest of the family at mealtime. Babies will ususally eat until they are full-do not force her to eat if she does not seem interested. Some parents give their babies juice or water in a cup at this time. Because juice is high in sugar, limit her juice intake to 4 ounces a day. Remember, now that your baby is eating foods it is especially important to keep her teeth and gums clean. Wipe them down with a washcloth or use a baby toothbrush. Do not use any type of toothpaste that has fluoride in it.
Developmental Milestones 6 Months Old
Physical
Can pull an object towards himself
Tries to transfer objects from one hand to another
Rolls over in both directions
Vision and sound senses are almost fully developed
Sits on her own
Rocks and pivots while on her stomach
Digs fingers and toes into floor to push to get something out of reach
Can pick up a small object
Looks for dropped items
Intellectual
Understands cause and effect-likes to put toys in a container and dump out
Prefers left hand one day and his right hand the next
Your baby will begin to initiate attention from others
Understands that his behavior engages you-both good and bad behavior
Likes playing turn taking games
Likes to hear different sounds-animal sounds are great to start on
Can say vowel-consanant combinations
Emotional
Makes instant friends with strangers
Craves familiar faces and voices
Can let you know what he needs, thinks or wants in ways other than crying
Expresses unhappiness when an object is taken away
Age Appropriate Toys
Toys that encourage sitting up
Balls
Books
Lighted toys
Musical toys
Cause and effect objects
Toys to bang on
Stacking blocks
Containers and objects to put in and take out
Sensory toys
Toys to grasp and pass
Bath toys
Comments: Comments 1-25 of about 15956 for month 6 1234567891011Next
mizzsnazzy - 22 minutes ago
Everytime I go to any store, I only see the puffs and everything else but the biter bisquits! :(
mommytofive - 32 minutes ago
*******PROUD MOMMY ALERT!!!*******
Trenton FINALLY rolled from back to belly .... twice!!! I am soooo proud!! : ) Can't wait to get it on tape!!!
mommytofive - 34 minutes ago
lisamarie... Trenton LOVES the biter biscuits!!! I love them too cause' he just naws away at them and you are 100 % right.. they make a HUGE mess... but if it keeps him happy at dinner time.. so be it!!
mizzsnazzy - 48 minutes ago
My comments keep constantly getting deleted. Or I might be blind lol
I was asking if anyone has seen the Gerber 2nd food desserts because I looked on their website and they have a lot but I never see the dessert ones anywhere! And has anyone given the banana orange medley?
KateOhm - 49 minutes ago
mayasmom, Hudson eats brown rice before bed and does great with it. I'd try it again.
mummykris - 53 minutes ago
I leave for 24 hours and have 8 pages to read! Cute videos and pics!
So I had the worst sleep last night. I was at my brothers, who has a dog, 2 cats, a 3 year old and a 4 year old. We had the craziest thundrstorms and the dog freaks out. I could hear her going up and down the stairs (100 lbs), and then scratching at all the doors from midnight to 2am. Finally, my SIL gets up and barricades the dog in the living room, and she sleeps with her. But with all the noise, Isaac started fussing at 2, and I had to pick him up, because I didn't want the other kids to wake up. Luckily he went back down. Then at 4, we had some more REALLY loud thunder, so he woke up, but wouldn't go back down. If I could have let him cry for a minute or two, I know he would have been fine. But instead I ended up feeding him and letting him sleep in the bed with me. It was actually very nice, and slept in until 8. Needless to say 3.5 hours of sleep is just not enough anymore, I have been a mess all day.
Too many comments to respond to, so I will just have to respond on your pages, and pick up from here!
Frigomom - 1.4 hours ago
Mayasmom - Gavin loves his rice cereal. At first we mixed it with formula but eventually i just did it with some water and he just gobbles it up. I now mix it with fruit. But hey, he eats anything and everything right now.
mizzsnazzy - 1.6 hours ago
Nathan wasn't too good on rice cereal at first, so I did switch to oatmeal, but then once he started eating other solids, I let him have rice cereal again. I give him rice cereal in the morning, and oatmeal before bedtime, and he seems to be pooping just fine now.
Nathan finally drinks from a sippy cup now! Thank god for the Nuby :)
mayasmom - 1.7 hours ago
Did any of your babies do well with brown rice cereal? We tried Ian on it about 10 days ago, and the same week he was really crabby, but some other things were going on at that time (getting a cold, transition to crib) and I'm not sure what was what. I stopped the cereal because of his cold and wanting him to drink as much milk as possible, but I'm ready to try again. However, our day care teacher tells us that NO baby she has worked with ever did well on rice cereal, that I should go straight to oatmeal. So, just wondering about others' experiences.
karenc - 1.7 hours ago
i saw the biter biscuits last week and wondered about them! i decided to buy those sweet potato puffs instead and beckett (and mommy and daddy) likes them very much, heehee. he'll take one from my hand and stick it in his mouth, but after that first one he gets too impatient and just leans over and licks it off my hand - LOL, bum!
KateOhm - 2.1 hours ago
Hudson can't have the Biter Bisuits because they have soy in them, but he loves the puffs!
lisamarie8503 - 2.2 hours ago
They are in a yellow box, Gerber makes them. They are great because they are individually wrapped, so they are good on the go :)
lisak - 2.4 hours ago
I feel like the grocery I go to has a poor selection of baby food. I haven't seen biter biscuits. What do they look like?
lisamarie8503 - 2.5 hours ago
Has anyone tried the Biter Biscuits with their babes yet? Emma LOVES them! They make such a mess, but they never get mushy and she sucks them like crazy!
KateOhm - 2.6 hours ago
lisak, I buy the 2nd food meats and mix them with the veggies or even some fruit. Hudson loves chicken and applesauce. The 3rd foods are probably too think and chunky for our babies yet. I don't think I started them with Hunter until 8 or 9 months.
karenc - 2.6 hours ago
jeno, i bought the FP Crawl-Along Drum Roll (they're bongos!), the Lamaze My First Fishbowl, and the Lamaze Chime Garden (it's a pot of flowers that chime and play music when you touch them). i took the bongos and the fishbowl home last night and he instantly started whacking the bongos, hehehe! he was also very interested in the 'fishbowl' b/c it looks like it has water in it. the chimes go home tonight! i try to buy a few toys every couple of months as his senses develop and he becomes more sophisticated. my boss told me her sons LOVED musical stacking rings; so i think it's the FP Dance Baby Dance Classical Stacker. maybe for next month! ;-)
mizzsnazzy - 2.8 hours ago
I'm not giving Nathan any 3rd foods or meats yet. I only recently started him on 2nd foods.
I love the videos!
lisak - 2.8 hours ago
Are any of you feeding 3rd foods and the ones with meat in them? I keep trying to figure out if I should be offering a variety of foods at meal time or what. Right now Ty gets 3 full 2nd foods a day. He takes a bottle with each of those and 2 extra bottles on top of that. I'm not sure when to add in the meats and when to start giving him mini-meals like some carrots, some peas, some chicken, etc.
Addyson mommy - 2.9 hours ago
sonya, that is amazing. I am 34 a can't play anything on the piano.
maya I am sorry you are having a bad day, I am sure it can be heart breaking leaving your little one when she only wants mommy, you certainly are not a bad mommy, your doing what you have to do and that is work.
MTNWOMAN - 2.9 hours ago
jenmarie ~ We have put chunks of watermelon and Cantaloupe in the mesh feeders. I think most fruits work great, but I hear that bananas can be hard to clean off the baggies afterwards! I know my sister would put an apple in it and then stick it in the freezer for her little girl. She really liked the coldness of it.
lisamarie8503 - 3 hours ago
jen- i put mellon in the mesh thingy so far.
Tara0809 - 3 hours ago
jenmarie- in the baggy things i put pieces of fruit and she loves it.
Karen- ya it's a little crazy but exciting all at the same time.
lisak cute video lol and if he ever finds out you posted it on the net tell him he was a real ladies man and all the girls OoooOO and Awwww'd at him lol
sonya thats great about your son you may have child star on your hands ;o)
JenO - 3.1 hours ago
karenc~ what toys did you buy for the Beckstar?? not that Owen needs anymore toys but I always like to hear reviews from other moms!!
lisak - 3.2 hours ago
Ok - Here is my video contribution. Ty having fun in the tub. When he's 18 do you think I should tell him that I shared this video with all kinds of people on the internet! LOL!