7 Month Milestones: What are the Developmental Milestones of My 7 Month Old Baby??

Teething

• Many babies start teething when they are 6 to 7 months old and there are a few exceptions who start teething as early as 3 months. You need to understand the signs of teething.  Now, you need to start thinking of dental hygiene even before your baby starts teething.
• You need to rub the gums with a soft cloth or soft baby toothbrush. Once you see a tooth erupting, you can starting using grain sized toothpaste to clean the teeth.
• While teething, babies can experience a lot of discomfort and soreness. You can utilize a few soothing techniques like, using a washcloth, teething rings, or just your fingers to massage the gums can help relieve the pain.
• The FDA advises not to use any pain relief gels and creams that contain benzocaine, as it can have potential side effects that are dangerous.
• You could try Tylenol for teething pain relief if prescribed by your pediatrician. 

Assisting your child’s physical development

• Tummy time and play time is still very important to make your baby stronger. This will help your baby start crawling faster.
• To encourage your child to move around, placing toys that are just out of reach can help improve their physical capabilities.
• Hold your baby’s hands and make them stand up and bounce. This will make their legs stronger to support their body weight. Stronger legs would mean that walking will become a little easier for them.
• Playtime in a baby gym can help improve their physical development and motor skills.

Safety precautions

• The best way your 7 month old baby explores the world is by touching and tasting. Whatever they find goes into their mouth. Ensure there are no small toys and parts that can become a potential choking hazard.
• Crawling is a 7 month milestone that many babies may have achieved. But as your child becomes more mobile, the area that they will explore needs to be safe for them. Confining their explorations in a playpen will keep your mind at ease.
• You need to baby proof the house, if you haven’t already. Get on all fours and explore to check if the play area is safe.
• A 7 month old baby can weigh almost 2.5 times their birth weight. This means that they may outgrow their car seat. Always check if there is a need to upgrade the car seat, and get one that is perfect for your child’s age, weight, and size recommended by the manufacturer.
• You can continue using the rear-facing car seat until your baby reaches the maximum height and weight allocation provided by the manufacturers.
• The baby car seat should always be placed in the back seat and secured properly. You need to do this each time you travel, even if it is for a short distance.
• Ensure that everyone that takes the baby out knows how to fasten the car seat properly.
• The most important safety precaution is to never leave your baby in the car alone, not even for just a minute.
• With technology at our fingertips, it is easier to just prop up the baby in front of a TV screen, tablet, phone, etc. There are baby-friendly programs that your child could watch while you can take some needed rest and relax.
• The AAP recommends no screen usage for children less than 2 years old. So it is better to avoid screen altogether. Try and use other things to keep your little one entertained.
• Now that your baby is moving, rolling, crawling, scooting, etc., it is important to keep an eye on them when they are on high surfaces like the changing table, bed, sofa, etc. Always keep one hand on the baby.

Assisting your child’s cognitive development

• An important 7 month milestone is that your baby has developed full color vision. So they will love colorful toys when they are playing.
• Give your child toys of different shapes, colors, sizes, textures, etc. to stimulate their brain to learn more.
• Giving them toys that make sounds when they are pressed, poked, hugged, etc. are their favorites. They learn about cause and effect through these toys.
• You don’t need to spend a ton of money and buy all these stimulating toys. Even regular household items are fun to play with. Spoons, pots, pans, bottles, colorful cloth, colorful books with pictures, etc. are all great as substitute toys.
• Before giving your baby any household item, ensure that it is safe for the baby, and only let them play under adult supervision.
• Including classic children’s games like peek-a-boo, itsy-bitsy spider, etc. as playtime staples can make playing fun for both of you.
• The best learning tools that you can give a 7 month old baby are books. Books like the ones that have different textures they can touch, the ones that make sounds of corresponding animals and birds, or the ones that you need to lift sections to see something pop up.
• All these books can help stimulate your child’s brain while they are just having fun.

Adapting to your child’s dietary changes

• • As a 7 month old baby is able to sit without support, it is good to place them on a high chair at the dinner table with the rest of the family. While looking at other members eating, they will try and copy them.
  • Including children at the table with other family members can help them start eating independently sooner. Plus it adds to their social skills, as they learn to interact with people.
  • Some babies can have eczema flare up at different times during their first year. The reason has been linked to the start of eating solid food.

Assisting your child’s communication skills

• • Your 7 month old baby has started babbling, but obviously it is all gibberish still. But you need to encourage these babbles, as the practice of talking is important to build a foundation for having conversations.
  • Talking and singing to them can help them pick up words that they can identity and they try to participate by repeating them.
  • Your 7 month old baby has turned into a copycat and will try and copy everything you do or say. So keep repeating words like mamma, dada, dog, cat, etc., so that they can start copying them.
  • Talking to them and having conversations is important even if you don’t understand anything they say. Responding to them encourages them to talk more.
  • Take your child out on a stroller and point at things and say what they are, this will create words associations for them and they will start to slowly understand what each word corresponds to.
  • If you speak a foreign language, then this is a good time to start using it in front of your child. They are like a sponge at this age and will be able to grasp it more easily.
  • Singing is also another way for them to learn words and also have some fun in the process.

Assisting your child’s social skills

• • Start saying hello and goodbye to make them understand that these are some social etiquettes that can come in handy.
  • You can start having playdates with other babies to develop their social skills.
  • If you have older children, then they can be some of the best teachers for the baby to learn from and also develop the necessary social skills for the future.
  • Start introducing them to everyone that they meet. This will help them understand that this is what is done when you meet someone new.

Assisting your child’s motor skills

• • A 7 month old baby has slowly fine-tuned their motor skills to help them grab and hold things properly.
  • This is a good time to introduce spoons and sippy cups, as this will further enhance their motor skills.
  • Encourage crawling by placing toys at a distance. They will try and reach it by crawling, scooting, rolling or any other way of going from point A to B.
  • Keep their toys on the sofa so they will learn how to take support of the sofa and stand up. This can help their legs get accustomed to holding their weight, which can help them learn how to start walking.
  • Playing with stacking toys or toys that have different shaped items that needs to be placed inside the corresponding shaped slots can help increase not just their motor skills but also their cognitive skills.