Your 7 Months Old Baby Growth and Development

As your little one turns seven months old, he’s finally able to understand ‘no’, and stare at you lovingly when you call out his name. As the days go by, you look forward to seeing your baby grow and develop as per the development milestones. Here’s what to expect regarding infant development at 7 months.

Video: 7 Month Old Baby – Growth, Development, Activities & Care Tips

Growth of Baby

At seven months, your baby is in a transitional stage of life. From being able to bear his weight partially on his feet to trying to crawling when placed on tummy, your little one will go through a range of experiences, as well as a flurry of emotions, when he fails to get the toy he wants, or can’t convey what he wants to say through babbles and small phrases. The shapes of his head and body will change – the head is now looking proportionate to the body. With linear growth, the baby shall look more lean or thin, and the weight of a 7-month-old baby is 2.5 times the birth weight. You may find that girls have longer legs at this age than boys, and you may need to dress them up in the next clothing sizes.

Baby Development

Your baby will be in his developmental stages during the weeks after he turns seven months old. He will be trying out all sorts of manoeuvres on the floor, and can momentarily sit without any support. He will try reaching out to objects by leaning towards them. He shall try to search for a fallen toy, and play with a toy with only one hand. Try to encourage him to sit and enjoy his surroundings, and be by his side whenever he needs you. Your baby will also now be aware of his caregivers, and will be able to differentiate voices of different people. The baby can also develop something called stranger anxiety on seeing new faces. He may want to be cuddled by parents, especially the mother, may need a hug, or may even sit still, doing nothing. Sometimes, he may not even be interested in exploring a new thing. Don’t be alarmed by this – it’s absolutely normal, and be rest assured that you’re doing your best as a parent.

28 Week Old Baby Development

Diaper Rash: This is a delicate time for your baby’s digestive system, as you slowly begin incorporating solid foods into his diet. Your baby may develop a nappy rash, which means you will have to wipe his bottom with a gentle hand, and try patting dry than rubbing. Avoid using hard towels, and change his diapers more often to prevent the rash from developing. Sometimes, red pimples may form on his buttocks due to heat, which is why it’s important to keep him hydrated and his diapers clean. Give diaper free time during the day, and make him sleep on his tummy to let air dry.

Teething: Since your baby is growing, he will start teething also around this time. Make sure to take his mind off the discomfort with games and fun, since it’s very painful. Massage the baby’s gums gently, and give him a pacifier or piece of carrot to nibble on. Keep the hands clean, nails trimmed, and toys cleaned on a daily basis.

29 Week Old Baby Development

Routine: Your baby will slowly get in tune with his routine. He will try to talk to you and spend time with you. This is the time to teach him new things like how to eat finger foods using his hands, like breadsticks, banana, and veggie sticks. He will also be sleeping for longer hours, since he’ll be eating his fill of solid foods every day.

Washing and Feeding: Your baby may leave food stains on his trail, and will want to try eating on his own. Encourage him to eat on his own, as it will engage him for a while when he goes through the weaning process. But, make sure to wash stains off his clothes and change diapers often.

30 Week Old Baby Development

Naughty Behaviour: Your baby will become increasingly naughty at this age. He will bite, toss, turn, and do everything he can to explore the world around him. This also means exploring triggers such as biting you when you breastfeed him. If you yell, he might find your reactions amusing, and he will do that more.

Learning Manners: Since your baby will be busy exploring and trying out different things around him, he may not remember everything he learns. However, you can instill manners into your little one by gently saying no to the actions that you don’t want him to do, such as not throwing toys or biting people, or even grappling with someone’s hair.

Crawling: This is an exciting time for your little one as he begins to venture out indoors and shows signs of crawling, like arching the back to get on knees and hands. Make sure you clean the house and dust thoroughly, since you don’t want your baby falling sick from lack of hygiene. Prevent him from ingesting unsafe particles, since that may lead to diarrhoea and a serious bout of crying.

31 Week Old Baby Development

Experimenting with Foods: Your baby will begin tasting different flavours and textures of food. Let him take advantage of that by introducing different varieties of food to his digestive system.

Teething Time: Your child’s teeth may pop out if he hasn’t already gone through the teething process yet. By this time, his lower front teeth are most likely to emerge.

Lullaby Time: Take him out to the park, and introduce him to different environments. Lull him to sleep during the nights by singing nursery rhymes and other soft tunes that are soothing. Allow him to soak in his visual surroundings, let him make friends with other kids, and observe pets.

Baby Health

At seven months old, you don’t have to worry about immunization or seeing the doctor. Optional vaccines like influenza are on schedule, so discuss them with your doctor. Make sure you clean your baby’s hands before every meal, and try to let him play with toys on the clean floor. Your baby’s immune system is developing, and is slowly getting accustomed to fighting against various infections, so don’t be obsessive about keeping the floor super clean all the time. Just make sure your home is hygienic!

Baby Milestones – 7 Months

At 7 months of age, there are certain development milestones that you should look for in your baby. Certain observations that you can make in your baby include:

• Increased appetite: Your baby will want to try out different tastes and textures of foods.
• Object remembrance: No longer will hiding objects fool your little one. Your child will find them.
• Improved depth perception: Your baby will gain awareness of distances and understand what’s far away.
• Enhanced colour perception: Your baby will be able to identify you and his surroundings. Enhanced colour perception also means he will be able to explore his surroundings and observe them.
• Sound sleep: Hours will get longer, and your baby will sleep more now. This is a good indicator of growth and development.
• Emotional and social development: Your baby will be to able to recognize you and your family members. He will react differently to different voices and become quiet when you say ‘no’ to something. He shall avoid strange faces or voices.
• Babbling: Random babbles include consonant-based sounds, and he may even start saying phrases. He will now be able to say ‘mama’ and ‘papa’, and slowly his vocabulary will enhance, and he will even associate words with the objects around him.

Behaviour

Your baby will now not be phased when you leave the room for work. He will know that you are coming back. Additionally, he may be moody or cranky during the teething process, and may cry a lot when he sees strangers or people he doesn’t recognize. You may have trouble putting him to bed, and his behaviour may become challenging at times, simply because he is exploring and observing his surroundings.

7-Months-Old Baby Activities

These seven months baby activities will aid in the growth and development of your little one. Here’s what to do to keep him busy.

• Recognizing Faces
  Bring out your photo album, and point to pictures of friends and family members. Talk to your baby about them, and say their names. Do this often, and he will slowly start to recollect and be able to identify them.
• Simple Toy Games                                                                                                  Give a rattle or a soft toy in his hand, so he keeps playing with it. Use brightly coloured balls or toys to generate interest. The use of musical toys or moving toys also makes him happy to play with them or simply observe them.

• The Puree Game
  It’s time to put his tastes to the test. Get four bowls of different coloured food purees, and let him try them out. Not only will it develop his sense of smell and taste, but you’ll also get to learn more about his food preferences. Watch out for his facial expressions, and notice what he likes!
• Nursery Rhymes
  Do sing-alongs, and hum nursery rhymes with a picture book. The images will keep him entertained, while your vocal expressions of the rhymes will work his sense of processing already-heard information. This will also develop his babbling skills, and teach him new words.

7-Months-Old Baby Care

You have to remember that your baby has certain needs and varying interests. You may have difficulty sleeping at first because of your baby’s behaviour, but you will slowly find his feeding, sleeping, and behaviour patterns to be a little more predictable, thus making your life easier. Your baby will also get used to his bedtime routine.

Sleeping

At around 6 months and beyond, your baby will sleep for longer, once new foods are introduced to his diet. Your baby’s sleep timings and patterns will vary based on individual profiles, but if you are interested in changing his sleeping routine, think about your own sleeping habits, and consider whether or not he needs you around while falling asleep. Breastfeeding babies will wake up in the middle of the night for one feed, until they are introduced to new food groups and are weaned.

Feeding

Your job is to introduce your little one to new food groups and solids. Your baby will be exploring different flavours and textures, and his appetite will keep changing during this time. You may find him sleeping longer once you add solid foods to his diet. Aim to inculcate healthy eating habits, and let him decide how much he wants to eat (portion size) and how often he wants to eat. Don’t let him snack too much, and make sure he gets his 3 meals a day. Don’t forget to give him a few teaspoons of water after each feed to avoid hard stools.

Tips for Parents

Here are some tips for parents to make their lives easier during parenthood:

• Share with others: For parents with friends and extended family members, we recommend sharing your little one with them. If his aunt wants to take care of your tot in the evenings, let her! The diversity of people will do your little one good.
• Hire a babysitter: If you’re having a tough time balancing work and motherhood, then it’s time to hire a babysitter. Not only will this help you, but your child will also feel  safe and comforted once he gets used to that person.
• Distract him: If your little one makes a lot of noise when told ‘no’, or throws tantrums, simply distract him with a game or a fun activity. Remember, they have wandering and curious minds.
• Mindful Hygiene: Let your baby explore different rooms, and don’t let him spend too much time in the crib. Get him exposed to different microorganisms, as his immune system is still developing.

These are the growth and development milestones you need to watch out for in your 7-month-old baby. Look for these signs in your child, and help him in his growth and development phase. He will be happy, and so will you be!

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