9-12 Month Motor Milestones

Do you have a trusted resource for milestones? 🖤⁣ I’m here to tell you, it most likely shouldn’t be your baby apps or Google. What I’ve found is that often these checklists aren’t based in research. But that’s why I’m here :) to be a source for peace-of-mind knowing when the research shows your baby may hit certain motor milestones.

I want you to remember, though: milestones are a RANGE. I usually allow about a 6-8 week window on the tail end to give grace if a milestone isn’t met 👍🏻 ⁣but if this happens for every milestone, seek intervention, friend! 

Another important thing to remember is that if your baby is meeting all other gross motor milestones but behind in ONE, it’s not cause for panic! They may be working on another skill or another realm of development and just need a little extra time to catch up 😘⁣

If, however, you are consistently noticing your babe is behind in their motor milestones, talk to a trusted healthcare provider and advocate fiercely for a PT referral. Watch and wait never did anyone any good 😅⁣ Or if you’re needing strategies to decide whether or not to pursue PT intervention or try to work on things at home, be sure to check out my courses. The courses were all developed with simple play-based strategies to get your baby moving and reduce your overwhelm!

I’ve also got a ✨Free 0-24 Months Milestone Checklist✨ that puts everything below into a nice tiny package for you to print off + follow along. Let this be a gentle guidepost toward their development though, rather than a source of anxiety and constant comparison 🤟🏻⁣

I also have super fun Motor Milestone + Purposeful Play card decks (that also make a great baby shower gift). Each card comes with the milestone + 3 play strategies to support it!

Let’s dive into this exciting, but heart-wrenching time where your baby suddenly becomes more upright and on the move!

Oh and, if you’re needing some ideas for push-toys, here are my favorites and I’ve also linked my favorite crawling motivators here.

Some things to be mindful of during the 9-12 month window:

• It’s common for babe to begin learning to pull to stand as they’re also learning to crawl. It’s okay. Don’t panic. The time it takes for a baby to move from pulling to stand to walking independently is often a few months span

• If your babe is pulling to stand in a funky way, standing on tiptoes, etc—it’s okay for the first few weeks! Often they are just trying to get their feet under them, literally. If you notice abnormal posture or patterns 2-3 months down the road, talk to your pediatrician!

If you find yourself worried that your baby may already be a bit behind in some of these, you may find my Crawling Course: Crawl on Track and Walking Course: Walking Workshop helpful as your little one starts to master these milestones! They have all my best simple strategies for building a strong foundation from day one!

And be sure to reference my blog post on Best Shoes for New Walkers.