Practicing new skills.... (and also, walking?!)

[tory79]

DS (9mo) has in the last few days learnt to sit himself up from lying down and pull himself to standing. He's also really improved his crawling, although its still a bit commando stylie)

However, its causing a bit of an issue with naps/sleep, because he can't keep himself lying down!!! The second he's put down he sits himself up and then tries to stand. And failing that he just belts around his cot. His naps today were a nightmare - I say naps, he had 30m in the car and that was it. I have spent at least 2hrs today trying to get him to nap (never again, not good for either of us) and he just kept sitting/standing, even though he was crying with tiredness.

How long have people found that babies go on practicing new skills like this? Will he get bored of it soon?

Now on the subject of walking, as I mentioned, ds has suddenly discovered how to pull himself to standing. He isn't cruising, but will take a few (very)shaky steps when holding on to my hands. How long have people found that it takes babies to go from this sort of stage to walking? I know thats probably a how long is a piece of string questions, but we have booked to go to Florida in 3 months, and I can't help but think how much easier it would be if he could walk just a little bit, even holding on to someone, as I imagine that having to keep a baby who is desperate to be on the move in a pushchair for so much of the day will be a bit of a nightmare!!

Thanks

I remember this so well!! DS who is now 2.5 did this. I distinctly remember a week where I had to keep my hand on him until he fell asleep (he had self-settled from a very very early age, no controlled crying etc - he just did it) because otherwise he got himself to sitting and couldn't figure out how to lie back down again. For us, the standing thing came a bit later, and I don't remember him doing that in the cot in quite the same way. But yes, it will pass, probably quite quickly - a couple of weeks at a guess but who knows.

Don't hold your breath on the walking thing. My DS was doing what you're talking about at 8.5mo. I was convinced he'd walk early (both me and DH walked before we were 10 months). But he didn't take his first unaided steps until the week of his first birthday and it was a few weeks after that before he could be relied on to walk from A to B, where the distance between A and B was quite small! Certainly not far enough to help you out much on holiday - they only have very little legs. Frankly, in his case, he was such a confident and fast crawler (started at 6.5 mo) that there was no incentive to him I think to move around on 2 legs. But you never know.... I know lots of people who's children have walked much earlier OR have WANTED to walk earlier and have insisted on being walked around constantly from 10-12 months, never independently, so it does your back in. They're all different I'm afraid....

If you want to get anywhere the same day that you leave you destination, you will have to rely on the buggy a lot on holiday. Your best hope is that he's not a child who can't stand being in the buggy, because even if he's walking, it won't help you get anywhere apart from maybe the distance from the lifts to your hotel room. Sorry!!

It took my DD 3mo from pulling up to walking everywhere (instead of crawling to her toys). But it won't help when going out! She walks to wherever she wants, and that's never where you want to go. Quite often in the park when we put her down, she will climb straight back onto her buggy and laugh.

Being able to walk, and being a good walker, is completely different.

My DD has just turned a year, and takes all her naps strapped into her buggy so she can't stand up/roll over/sit up. Maybe you could try that if he really needs some sleep?

She was cruising at 8 months, pulling up at 9, took her first independent steps at 10, but still doesn't walk more than a couple of steps on her own. Even now, she can confidently walk while holding onto one of my hands, but she won't go it alone. And 'walking' doesn't really help me get anywhere with her because a) it hurts my back to hold her hand for too long, b) the direction I want to go and the direction she wants to go are normally opposite, and c) there are far too many interesting things on the floor to stop and have a look at so progress is slow.

We took her on holiday last month, and found the best thing to do was to stop occasionally somewhere convenient and let her have a crawl/cruise around. She just got fed up being in her buggy for the whole day (plus she stopped sleeping so well as she wasn't tiring herself out as much physically).

My son was pulling himself up and cruising at about ten months but he didn't walk independently until he was about twenty months. So don't hold your breath ;)