Gross Motor & Cognitive Skills

Forty-four weeks and counting… this is such an exciting time for you and your family!  Things are a bit easier now as your baby has a routine that she follows. She has learned to sleep through the night. Perhaps you and your partner are thinking about a younger brother or sister for your baby.   When my daughter turned a year old, my husband and I started to consider having another baby, too.  It was when my daughter was walking well that we thought ‘okay, we can do this again’ since she was more independent, but then again, that opens up a whole new can of worms! 

Yet again you will see improvements in your baby’s gross motor skills.  Quite a few babies start to walk by their first birthday.  So, by eleven months old it’s not shocking at all if your baby will start cruising.  Cruising is when your baby pulls herself up to stand next to a piece of furniture such as a chair, coffee table or sofa and supports herself while walking along it.   You may see your baby cruising for a while before she takes that first step without holding onto anything.

Have you observed that your baby has taken a real interest in her toys and objects that you are using?  She is exploring various toys, especially the ones that make sounds or music.  Books that play music when a button is pressed are exciting for babies at this age to figure out.  Keep the book on a low shelf and observe her crawl to grab the book and press the button to make the music.  When the music starts playing, she may start dancing by bouncing up and down.  It’s not only cute, but shows that her cognitive skills are developing steadily!