Eight to 10 months can be an exciting period when your baby starts making sense of his or her world, showing just how far along he or she has come since starting to explore their environment for themselves. You have successfully traversed through this crucial first stage in their lives — early infancy stage! Congratulations mama; you did it!
Now your baby is becoming more independent with an increasing curiosity for life around them.
Mobility and communication improve, and they begin, in small ways, to demonstrate they have their own independent mind.
What an incredible joy it can be to both play the roles of mother and baby!
Challenges may arise as your once placid baby may begin to act out during times of separation or when something doesn’t go their way.
“One significant change occurs with object permanence development; your baby now recognizes that something exists even though they cannot see it.”
Peekaboo becomes even more fun thanks to this ability. Simply hide behind your hands or fabric, baby waits patiently, and when they see that you come right back out again it makes their day! Peekaboo will soon become even more engaging to them than before!
Dropping an object at this age is a classic act; your baby drops an object like a toy or spoon and searches for it, where previously out-of-sight was usually out-of-mind. Now when you pick it back up and give it back to her, a game begins: she drops it again while looking for it before dropping it again after you gave it back; thus beginning their first ever interaction between parent and baby!
At this stage, your little one may become distressed without you around; separation anxiety could start manifesting itself. Don’t fret too much though as every baby is unique!
Your baby may once have been easy to hand off to new people; now she may appear wary or may protest at being introduced into new environments.
She shows this way to communicate that she knows new from familiar people and prefers those that she already knows–like you, mama! This gesture conveys to the receiver her knowledge about these individuals as well as any special preferences she might have towards a few specific individuals or groupings of them–for instance herself!
If your baby exhibits such behaviors, give him or her time to adjust and expect some degree of clinginess.
Your baby may now be babble-talking away during these months; some more vocal than others – all slowly grasping that language is communication. As adults tend to speak in higher pitched tones than toddlers usually use, she gains words through your interactions.
As your child babbles, respond in sentences. For instance: “Oh, see that cat over there? It is looking at you; soft cat.” As you describe what’s happening to them, they pick up on this back-and-forth dialogue as their brain absorbs language.
Another sign of her development can be seen through imitative gestures and behavior. For instance, your baby might clap when you do or wave goodbye as an imitation serves as a learning tool and form of communication between individuals.
As soon as most babies learn how to point, this can become an incredible way for her to communicate her needs or desires to you and show it from a distance. At first her pointing may not be precise but soon enough it will.
Your infant is beginning to remember more, even if she cannot yet articulate it verbally. Routines provide invaluable aid for organizing their days – for instance, learning that every time you put on your coat in the morning it means it is time to leave may help her keep tabs.
Her reaction may range from demanding you pick her up or crawling towards the door to crying as she knows you will leave soon, to simply hugging you as soon as she senses your departure and knowing she will see you later on again – whatever it may be, as long as there will be another visit soon enough! Don’t fret though; assuring her of that with a hug before leaving can put her mind at ease knowing you will return soon after, and that will only strengthen their happiness with having you back as part of their family unit! Eventually!
Bedtime may also cause infants to cry out for comfort. Knowing your routine ensures they anticipate you saying goodnight (aka goodbye). Stick with it so your little one has assurances they are okay going into sleep mode.
Physically she is beginning to explore more as crawling begins. There can be wide age range for babies starting to crawl (some never will!), so don’t fret if she has not started yet!
Being mobile can be immensely exciting–she now has more control of her world and being upright gives her new perspectives of it all.
All these changes mean she is building confidence. It’s exciting when she can crawl over and grab onto an object she desires or play the dropping game!
She feels empowered when you demonstrate you remain there for her and show pride in the abilities she is developing.
Shared moments of laughter, affection and warmth contribute to her feeling that she’s not alone while teaching her that she can succeed at life.