What Is a 6 Month Old Baby Supposed to Be Doing?
Your baby is halfway to a year already and beginning to notice that there's a fascinating earth out there just waiting to be explored.
And that means the days of being able to plop your babe downward in the center of the flooring, secure that he will stay there, are numbered.
This is the month you lot'll first your babe on solids if you haven't already, and as well when your baby tin can start sitting up better. It may also have baby'southward beginning tooth in shop!
Here'southward what else your 6-month-old is doing.
Your 6-month-old baby'southward development
At a Glance
Sleeping basics
At this age, babies typically slumber almost 11 hours at night (many direct through) and take around ii daily naps that add upwards to three to four hours, though information technology can vary.
Feeding basics
Now's the fourth dimension to start solids! Introduce i to 2 tablespoons to 3 to 9 tablespoons of cereal, fruit and vegetables, plus effectually 24 to thirty ounces (upwards to 32 to 36 ounces at most) of breast milk or formula a day.
Did you lot know?
Babies typically sit down unsupported somewhere effectually the age of 6 to 6½ months sometime. But in that location'south a wide range of normal when information technology comes to when babies chief the skill.
What'due south keeping baby busy these days in the milestone and development department? Plenty!
If he's similar one-half of all babies, he'll likely be able to sit up without support. The "boilerplate" babe sits unsupported somewhere around 6½ months.
Some very normal babies start sitting at four months and others wait until as late as the 9-month-marker. Merely he'll near definitely exist able to sit well in a high chair, which is perfect timing since he'll be eating solids in hostage at present.
Your babe will probably be able to comport weight on his legs when held upright and may even be ready to hit the road at a clamber (though babies who spend petty fourth dimension on their tummies during playtime may reach this milestone later — or skip straight to cruising — and that's not cause for business organization).
Some footling acrobats can pull themselves into a standing position or get into a sitting position when placed on their tummies.
Stimulating your at present-older infant requires new activities and toys that will help boost large and small motor skills as well as social, intellectual and language skills.
Think stacking toys and games (ones with different-size rings or multi-colored cubes), toys that encourage crawling (cars, trains and balls that roll, calorie-free up and make music) roly-poly toys (they correct themselves when rolled over), toys that encourage pulling upward to standing (make sure they're sturdy!) and of course, colorful lath books that will continue your baby entertained.
Your 6-month-erstwhile babe's growth
Who'due south making great strides in the growth section? Your six-month-erstwhile infant is!
Cheers to a continuing diet of breast milk or formula (around 24 to thirty ounces a twenty-four hour period) and solids (ranging from about 1 to 2 tablespoons to 3 to 9 tablespoons of cereal, proteins, fruit and vegetables each per solar day), your baby volition weigh in somewhere between 13 and 23 pounds and measure somewhere between 24 and 29 inches if he's a boy.
If you have a trivial girl, she will hit the scales somewhere between 12 and 22 pounds and measure out somewhere between 23 and 28 inches.
When feeding your cutie to fuel all that incredible growth, remember to pay attention to dietary do'due south and don'ts, such as introducing new foods one at a time and fugitive certain foods altogether (steer articulate of dear until subsequently his starting time birthday, for example).
Your 6-calendar month-old babe's health
Time for baby's vi-month well-baby visit, and probable, his offset flu shot.
The six-month well-babe visit
Fourth dimension for a flu shot
Should you socialize your infant?
How to protect infant in the cold
Postpartum & new baby tips
Introducing sippy cups
At almost the 6-month mark, you tin brainstorm introducing your baby to a sippy loving cup.
Starting at this time means your babe may accept the loving cup more readily and it volition requite him plenty of time to primary it earlier yous need to completely wean him from the breast or canteen.
At first, he'll exercise petty more than than play with the loving cup (and sputter and spit as y'all dribble a few drops into his mouth). But soon he'll acquire that his fascinating new toy can exist a source of succulent drinks.
To assistance him make the leap, showtime with a lightweight, unbreakable plastic loving cup. You may need to try a few different shapes, sizes and styles earlier yous hit on the i he likes all-time.
If you choose a loving cup with a spout, remove the spill-free valve before you lot offer it to your baby. It will be messier, but he'll get the thought of drinking much more speedily.
Most babies can't yet muster the powerful suck they demand to become liquid through the valve (plus studies show that extended use of a sippy cup can lead to tooth disuse considering of the style the liquid is extracted and then pools in the oral cavity).
Serve up water showtime — it'south the easiest, least messy pick.
Your speaking 6-month-erstwhile
Your baby'south language skills are soaring. He isn't fix to form words, but he'll happily do making lots of sounds, imitating what he hears.
And he'll use his growing repertoire of sounds and movements to let you know what's on his heed (whether y'all tin can understand what he's getting at is some other story).
With his burgeoning communication skills ripe for the learning, now's a practiced time to begin teaching him some simple sign language.
He'll before long connect your hand movements with the wants and needs he'due south trying to limited ("more," "eat," "milk," "all done"), and information technology won't be long before your baby can make the signals himself.
He also loves games and finger-plays like itsy bitsy spider and patty-cake — or any giddy vocal or audio you intendance to echo (and repeat and repeat). Don't be surprised if your baby tries to chime in on the chorus.
When information technology comes to dining, brand room for baby considering he'll probably desire to belly up to the tabular array now when you're sitting downwards to a meal, and he can safely begin eating solid (well, teeny, mushy and/or goopy) food.
He'll proceed to become the vast bulk of his nutrients from breast milk or formula, and so don't pay also much attending to whether the tidbits on his plate actually go far into his tum.
His meals at present are more for learning (pocket-sized-motor skills, swallowing!) than for calories and nutrition, although yous should, of course, offer him nutritious foods.
You might also want to stock up on paper towels equally he digs in — and flings every other seize with teeth!
Stopping dark waking
Has baby been waking upward often during the night?
First, make certain he finishes his last feeding of the evening before dropping off to slumber and that he's getting enough to swallow throughout the 24-hour interval too.
Yous might even try gently waking him just before you go to bed for an extra feeding.
The idea is to maximize the number of calories he takes in during your waking hours, and so he doesn't need to interrupt your sleep — and his — for more nutrient.
If he continues waking, chances are at this stage that he'due south searching for condolement. Then instead of offering the breast or bottle right away, attend to him in other loving ways, similar patting him or cuddling him.
Another disincentive to those night feedings: Make those undesired night feedings, well, undesirable, by shortening nursing sessions or cutting back the formula in his canteen.
2nd, get in ho-hum. Don't give your baby the idea that nighttime is playtime. Dim the lights (or turn them off completely where you can), and keep bubbly conversations and sing-songs to a minimum. Soft lullabies are the exception!
And unless his diaper is especially muddied or sodden (or if he's prone to rashes), leave it on until morning — even a diaper alter is just as well much activity!
Nutrients for baby
Vitamins, minerals and fatty acids boost your baby from top to bottom, promoting salubrious brain and nervus development, every bit well as proper functioning and evolution of his eyes, pare, immune function and more.
The cloak-and-dagger to getting them into your little one's diet: Feed him the rainbow!
Carrots and sweetness potatoes are loaded with vitamin A; green veggies, bananas and beans are packed with B vitamins.
Turn to tomatoes, strawberries and cantaloupe for C; and cereal and grains for E.
If infant drinks bath water
You may cringe if you encounter your little i chugging bathroom water that's muddy or (worse) has been peed in.
But don't worry: Dirty bath water (and your babe's pee) doesn't contain anything his trunk hasn't already been exposed to and therefore won't make him sick.
A bit more of a concern is the lather in the h2o. If you're using products fabricated for infants and kids, you have aught to fret nigh. But if yous used an adult shampoo, bubble bath or essential oil, you might want to give the Poison Control Middle a call (800-222-1222) to see if you should expect any diarrhea or an upset tum, depending on how much your fiddling mischief gulped downwards.
All the same, your little bather would need to guzzle a whole lot of bathroom water to go really sick. If it's only a sip or two, there's no need to disrupt the routine.
Do with baby
Hither are two fun ways to exercise with your trivial one.
ane) Trip the light fantastic toe with your darling to some favorite tunes (y'all won't even notice yous're getting in a conditioning!). And not only will your footling 1 love the movement
2) Stream a video. There are enough of postnatal videos for moms to choose from these days but even a Barney picture show has enough singing and dancing to do the trick. (Only because that big, lovable dinosaur is purple and sappy doesn't hateful the kids' Television receiver star tin't inspire some calorie-burning motion!)
Look what your vi-month-old can exercise!
It's halftime in your baby's get-go yr (wow, already?), and your little one may be sitting on his own, eating solid foods and possibly even sporting his starting time tiny tooth.
He'll be working harder than ever at communicating with yous — and commanding your attention (so put downwards your cellphone and start giving baby his due).
Physically, your 6-month-onetime baby is moving closer to moving around (if he isn't already). He can probably roll over from both front to back and back to front, and he may surprise yous by wriggling all over the room this way.
Shortly, your infant may begin to crawl, or to prepare for all-fours forays by hoisting himself up on easily and knees and rocking backward and forward (or often, just hilariously back — diaper-start into the nearest corner).
He probably enjoys being held in a continuing position so he can bounce upward and down (this mini-conditioning is strengthening those leg muscles to prepare them for the real affair: walking).
If you lot place baby in a sitting position, he may be able to concur himself upright. From here, he'll love grabbing anything he tin get his paws on — and stuffing it directly into his mouth.
Make sure he has enough of safe toys to chew on, because mouthing objects is one of the wacky yet wonderful ways he learns about the world effectually him.
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What Is a 6 Month Old Baby Supposed to Be Doing?
Source: https://www.whattoexpect.com/first-year/month-by-month/month-6.aspx