The development of your baby with 6 months

Your little one is half a year old and you are crazy … and it is not for less. In addition, it is not as fragile as it seemed when he was born and every day that passes you will have more and more desire to punch him, so make the most of it because when you want to realize your little one will be crawling like crazy … 

Changes in the baby

At six months of age, if you are a child, your baby (on average) should weigh about eight kilos and measure about 67 centimeters. However, if she is a girl at six months, she will weigh around 7.3 kilos and will measure about 65 centimeters, although remember that these measures do not have to be strictly complied with. 

In addition, the six months is a very beautiful stage also because the first teeth will have begun to appear   and, although they may take time, the first ones that usually come out are the lower incisors, known as central incisors, and between four and eight weeks later they usually follow the four upper incisor teeth (central and lateral). Approximately one month later the lower lateral incisors will appear, which are the two teeth located on both sides of the central lower incisors and, later, the following teeth, which are the milk molars and, finally, the milk canines. 

Development milestones

At six months your little one gets excited if he hears someone approaching, he already expresses his discomfort or insecurity and begins to emit many sounds to get attention and raises his arms to be caught. He is already strong enough to lift the upper half of the body resting on his arms and maybe sitting on the floor for a few minutes on many cushions. 

He also has the ability to transfer objects from one hand to the other, if he has a toy in his hand he will drop it to take another and already holds his bottle. At this age he will also have begun to make positive progress: he claps you on the cheek, spider you and slap you. He will explore his face with his hands meaning “hello”, so say hello to you too and smile at him. 

He makes pedreretas, which becomes his first real language, and says “ka”, “ma” and “gives” constantly, but a new “egg” sound is already emerging. He seems to understand what you are saying, so ask him if this is the case and repeat what you had said and praised him a little, he deserves it!

Feeding

For the World Health Organization up to this age, exclusive breastfeeding is recommended, but, from this age,  you can introduce foods other than milk, such as gluten-free cereals and some fruits. As you accept them, you can also start testing with vegetable purees, although the first thing that is recommended are mashed potatoes, carrots, leeks, zucchini, squash or green beans. 

Once your baby has already tried all these foods and you see that he can tolerate them properly you can introduce the cooked chicken and add it to the mash. Each new food that is introduced should be made every three days or so to see if this causes an allergic reaction or a problem. They are foods that do not usually give allergy, but it is better to prevent and be careful. If you are also sure that your baby is able to suck food without choking, or if you want to follow the Baby Led Weaning method  and do not go through the crushed, you can already give small pieces of food to try them so that you can also get used to its flavor and texture outside of purees. Always choose safe foods such as bananas, pear, cooked and soft vegetables, cooked macaroni, etc. 

Until this age, it was also not advisable to offer water to the baby because it was not necessary and, although it seems strange, the baby does not need it because it gets all the hydration it needs from breast milk or formula milk, even if it has been long hot. But from this age on you can gradually provide water because it is when the amount of milk begins to decrease. Water can be offered in a bottle or in a learning glass, this will depend on how it adapts better, but never give it very cold, always better at room temperature and better to offer bottled mineral water until it reaches the first year. 

Tips to take care of your baby

A very good way to take care of your baby at this age is to play. In fact, only when this stage comes is when dads and moms realize how wonderful it is because at this age they will love to play. You will notice that your little one is already much more active, that he loves to play hide and seek, that it simply consists of covering and uncovering to make him laugh, and that he already begins to relate some objects with others in space or even to separate building blocks or other toys suitable for their age. 

From this age, and until approximately ten months, the child begins to crawl and therefore it is necessary to ensure that you do not put your fingers in the plugs and that you do not play with electric cables or extensions. It would be advisable to cover the plugs with a plastic protector that is difficult to remove or place special plugs, which must be turned in order to insert the plug.

Also avoid that tablecloths, ropes or similar are within reach and that when you stretch them there is a danger that objects will fall on you. Watch when opening and closing doors and windows, as well as access to the stairs if there is one, never leave liquids and hot food very close to the edge of the kitchen, countertop or tables, place safety locks on all doors of the Kitchen cabinets and place all cleaning products in an inaccessible place by the baby due to the great danger of some of them such as bleach.