6 month old. What are yours doing and is this considered 'normal' development?

[TwoBedsAndACoffeeMachine]

Hi,

DS2 is just 6 months. He's a big baby of 21lbs already but he's tall. He was 10lbs when he was born and is just gorgeous (though heavy!).

Basically I'm just wondering what is considered normal or average development. DS1 was very advanced interms of reaching his baby mile stones. I know they all catch up so he's not a genius by any means but I never had any concerns over his physical abilities.

DS2 is just not as eager by the looks of it! He rolls from his back to his front and can raise his head while on his tummy and looks like he's trying to lift his bum into the crawling position. He has never rolled from his front to his back though so he quickly gets frustrated and cries for me to help him back.

He isn't sitting up at all yet. He just doesn't seem in the slightest but ready or coordinated enough to balance at all. Is this normal? DS1 was very sturdy and able to sit independantly from about 5 months and I know I shouldn't compare but it's worrying to see DS2 is so different sometimes.

He weightbares well on his legs if I hold him standing on my lap.

He laughs hysterically at his big brother and makes good eye contact. He doesn't seem to be babbling at all yet though. Just oooos and ahhhhh sounds. The occassional squeal but no consonants yet. DS1 could say bababab, dadada etc by now.

He basically just seems a bit sort of 'floppy' by comparisson to other 6 month olds. He holds his head up well and turns it to look round with good control but his core muscles doesn't seem very well deveoped at all. When I hold him he seems to just slump onto me rather than hold his own weight away from my body if that makes sense? DS1 was always fairly firm and upright, DS2 sort of leans on to me when I carry him. Is there anything I can do to help him or am I being daft for worrying?

Also even though he is 6 months but he's not sitting independantly, should I be weaning him yet? I have read advice that signs a baby is ready to be weaned are that they sit on their own? Should I not bother starting to wean yet?

My DS1 sounds similar to your DS - though he didn't bear weight when standing either. He didn't sit unaided until he was 8 months, and I only ever heard baby "burbles" from him at this age. He said his first word at 9 months though (and used it regularly enough and in context that it was a true word). He also didn't roll front to back. I still started giving him solids at 6 months, but sat him in a bumbo.

DS2 seems to be hitting his physical milestones very quickly at 6 months. He can roll both ways, sits unaided for long periods of time and claps hands - which I find really odd because he does very little except sit on my knee as he's very clingy. He's no way as gregarious as DS1 though (so I'm worrying about that instead). He also will NOT eat off a spoon or any other feeding implement and insists on feeding himself. BLW it is then.

I think that at this age they're all really varied in what they can and can't do, and seem to concentrate on building one skill at a time. I'd say that if you're worried (and have a nice HV) then go and have a chat to have your mind put at rest a bit.

Hi, my DD is 6mo too, so thought i'd answer.

Wrt to weaning, I took 'sitting' to mean can sit up in her high chair without flopping to the sides. I also have a baby walker which I use purely for DD to stand in (on a thick rug so she can't wheel round) as she wants to be on her feet all day and, like yours, is a weighty one. She is upright in that, and it has a little tray on the front so I put finger foods on the tray for her.

If you dont want to or feel he isnt ready for weaning yet, then wait a while, as far as I know it wont harm him to wait. Or, try sitting him on your kneww while you eat and see if he picks anything up from your plate. This is sign number one: if he picks something up off your plate and muches on it - bingo!

As for mobility, DD can roll front to back but not back to front (should say shes done it once but I wasnt looking ). I find it odd that shes never rolled onto her tummy during her sleep (I am a stomach sleeper). When on ehr tummy she is happy to keep herself propped up for 5 to 10 mins but not really much longer and 9 times out of ten shouts to be rolled back over - think shes forgotten than she can do it.

I was concerned about DD not sitting unaided as she is so happy just lying on her back on the floor surrounded by toys, but I started sitting on the floor and putting her in a sitting position between my legs, sort of using my thighs to keep her in place. At first she just used her legs to drag herself back down to lying but after about 4 or 5 days she is now sitting in a sort of way. Hands in front, next to feet but god help her if she starts to lean, she just goes over.

I think typical sitting up unaided is 5-7 months so your DS is still in the average age for that.

I have a doorway bouncer which seems to have helped DDs core strength, so I would advise one of these.

I love the baby babble DD says words but they are of her own language haha. Sort of "blaaar eeek tooooo rahhh" kind of thing. She can say Mama, but it started after I left her overnight for the first time so she now shouts it permanently. No Dada or Cat or any other of the words I say to her neurotically.

I think you DS sounds perfectly fine and a bit like my DD, just laid back, if not a little lazy. Im sure he will pick up bits and bobs over the next few weeks and months. Im dying to see my DD pull her legs up ready for crawling but it seems like crawling is an age off yet.

Thank you for the advice and reassurance. My friend is popping round tomorrow and bringing her DDs old bumbo so I may try sitting him that and see if he fancies some food while in there! He's a lovely baby in many ways, smiley and laighs a lot but also has a tendancy to be overtired through his lack of napping ( a whole other thread!) which makes him whingy and grumpy as the day goes on but DS1 was just the same. He just seems so much more like a baby than DS1 did which sounds daft but by this age DS1 was clapping and babbling, rolling both ways, sitting etc. Mind you, I had concerns over his lack of eye contact and his oversensitivity to noise which all turned out to be nothing so I think I'll always find something to worry about!

Bump!

Sounds completely normal (past owner of 4 x 6 month olds).

DS never sat alone until 9 months, it's okay to start weaning if he can sit with support, it's just so people don't think it's fine to wean tiny 2-3 month olds reclined in a bouncy chair! He didn't really make sounds either until he was about 1 - he talks for England now :)

Agree with poster about babies this age being very variable. Some at baby group were on hands and knees about to crawl at 51/2 months, one at 7 months was walking (!) when my DS was 6 months. He had only just started rolling and sitting wobbly at that age. I met a friend's baby a month later and her 6mo wasn't sitting at all. They just seem to do their own thing at their own pace. All those babies are now over 12 months and all walking about the same.