Wednesday 22 August 2012

Go Baby, Go – All About The Crawl


So, it’s official – Mr. T is on the move. He is commando crawling halfway across the living area, rolling both ways and sitting himself up. Oh and then there’s the fun stuff like attempting to open drawers and having a fascination towards everything forbidden like electrical plugs, sockets and cords.



It’s been so interesting watching him develop this milestone. Mr. T is one, big baby. At the starting weight of 4.18kg (9 pound 4) the only way was up...so it’s taken him a little bit longer to get going and I think it’s because he’s had to work just that little bit harder to lift his big, strong body! He’s sitting on 11kg now and is 9 and a half months old. I was starting to worry he would be a really late bloomer but as it turns out, he was just a tiny bit slow on the uptake.

General knowledge from doctors and paediatricians tells us that all babies learn to crawl in different ways and that crawling is not necessarily defined by being up on one’s hands and knees. We have floorboards in most of our house and I found Mr. T commando crawling in these areas, but when I put him on carpet that’s when he tends to lift himself up to the ‘typical’ crawling position – which makes sense...the floorboards are slippery!

An article from parenting.com regarding the importance of crawling states that “Crawling is a unique experience...It's a real step up for coordination because it's the first opportunity to practice bilateral coordination - using the arms and legs in reciprocal movements,"

I personally never crawled. I was one of those bum scooters that went around mopping the floor with my nappy-cushioned backside as I went from one area of the house to another.  Needless to say – I’m really uncoordinated! I am one of those people that detest aerobic classes because I’m always the person going the wrong way and I’ve never driven a manual car in my life, coincidence? Who knows...

The article goes on to state that, “skipping this milestone can also affect a child's ability to hold silverware or a pencil down the road, since the weight-bearing experience of crawling helps develop arches and stretch out ligaments in the wrist and hand that are needed for fine motor skills.

I’d like to think that me, as a non-crawler, still has the same amount of etiquette as everyone else holding silverware at the dinner table, and sure, I don’t hold my pencil the way most do – I hold it in some weird, thumb over the top fashion, but I can still write and I’m a super-fast typer.

So, I’m glad that my little (big) man is on the move and I’m nervous too, but I wonder just how much missing this milestone would of affected his future quality of life. I can say that as a non-crawling being, I’m pretty happy with my achievements.



You can read the rest of the article regarding crawling at http://www.parenting.com/article/do-babies-need-to-crawl

What are your own experiences of crawling? Do you think it is a crucial stage of development or not?

5 comments:

  1. So relieved that you can use a knife and fork despite skipping that critical crawling phase :P Your little (big) man is adorable and looks ready to get into some mischief. I have a son the same age who was crawling commando for a few months before making the transition. (Helen from www.housewifeinheels.com writing from my sister's computer!)

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  2. lol thanks Susan! Yes, I found that article a little bit extreme on some points myself! He is so cheeky. I'm pretty sure he will be into EVERYTHING. Thanks for reading! Just had a look at your blog. Great read! Will be following you on here and facebook :-)

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  3. YAY!!! I loved the moment my lil man commando crawlled.. he was a late bloomer.. at 10 months - he had problems with his legs so we had to do phsyio from 8 months to strengthen them..

    now at 15 months he is crawling properly and hopefully walk soon!

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  4. My little C was a bit slow to crawl - she didn't crawl properly till 10.5 months (her older sister was crawling at 8). Babies are all different - it's fascinating watching them develop!
    Your little fellow is gorgeous!

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  5. I get jealous of the Mums with babies who don't crawl until later on, I have been chasing my crawler around since 5 1/2 months, ridiculous! He's adorable, it really is so awesome to watch them develop!

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