The 6 to 9-month stage is exciting as your baby becomes more mobile, interactive, and expressive! This period is all about exploration, curiosity, and connection. Let’s look at the key developmental milestones during this stage.
Motor Skills: Moving, Grabbing & Exploring
Between 6 to 9 months, your baby’s strength, coordination, and mobility increase significantly.
Crawling & Movement
Many babies begin crawling during this stage, but it might not look like the classic hands-and-knees crawl right away! Babies explore movement in different ways:
✅ Rocking back and forth before taking off
✅ Scooting on their belly or rolling across the room
✅ Pulling up to stand and cruising along furniture
Some babies even skip crawling altogether and go straight to standing and walking! Every baby develops at their own pace, so don’t worry if yours has their unique way of getting around.
Grasping & Fine Motor Skills
Your baby’s hand coordination is also improving, allowing them to:
✅ Grab objects with one hand
✅ Transfer items between hands
✅ Start clapping in excitement!
This is a great time to introduce safe finger foods as they begin developing their pincer grasp (using their thumb and forefinger to pick up small objects).
Safety Tip: Baby-Proofing Your Home
As your baby becomes more mobile, now is the perfect time to baby-proof your space!
✔ Secure furniture and block stairways
✔ Cover electrical outlets and sharp corners
✔ Keep small objects out of reach to prevent choking hazards
Vision & Social Development: Recognizing & Reacting
Your baby’s vision is sharper than ever, and they’re becoming more emotionally aware of their surroundings.
Recognizing Familiar Faces
By now, your baby knows their primary caregivers and may light up with excitement when they see you! You may also notice signs of stranger anxiety—they might become clingy in new situations or hesitant around unfamiliar people.
This is completely normal and shows that your baby is developing strong emotional attachments. Offering reassurance and giving them time to warm up to new faces can help ease their anxiety.
Reacting to Emotions
Your baby is watching your facial expressions and tone of voice to understand emotions.
✔ If you smile, they’ll likely smile back!
✔ If they hear a loud noise, they might look at you first to see how you react.
Encouraging positive interactions and speaking to them in a calm, reassuring voice helps them feel secure.
Using Gestures
Your baby is starting to use their hands to communicate! You may notice them:
✔ Waving 👋
✔ Clapping 👏
✔ Reaching for you when they want to be held 🤗
Responding to these gestures with enthusiasm encourages their social and language skills!
Communication & Sleep: Babbling & Routines
Babbling & Sound Recognition
Your baby’s sounds will become more complex, and you’ll hear more babbling as they try to mimic your tone and rhythm.
✔ They may start saying simple sounds like "mama" and "dada" (though not always directed at you just yet!)
✔ They love copying your voice and experimenting with different noises
How to Help:
Talk constantly to your baby throughout the day
Sing songs and read books to help with language development
Repeat simple words and encourage conversation by responding to their sounds
Sleep Routines & Changes
At this stage, many babies start following a more predictable sleep schedule, with:
✔ Regular naps
✔ Longer stretches of nighttime sleep
However, some babies experience sleep regressions around 8 to 9 months, leading to:
More frequent night wakings
Trouble falling asleep independently
This is often due to:
Learning new physical skills (crawling, pulling up)
Separation anxiety increasing
How to Help:
✔ Stick to a consistent bedtime routine
✔ Offer comfort while encouraging self-soothing
✔ Be patient—this phase will pass!
Free Baby Safety Checklist!
As your baby gets more active and curious, safety is a top priority!
We’ve put together a FREE Baby Safety Checklist to help you baby-proof your home and create a safe environment for your little explorer.
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✅ The full milestone blog series
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✅ More parenting tips and expert advice!
Final Thoughts
Watching your baby grow and develop between 6 to 9 months is exciting! Remember, every baby reaches milestones at their own pace—so celebrate their progress and enjoy the journey!
Have questions or concerns about your baby’s development? Don’t hesitate to reach out to your pediatrician.
Tell us in the comments—what milestone has been the most exciting for your baby so far? We’d love to hear from you!
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