At eight months, your little one is growing ever more curious about themselves and the world around them. They are exploring their surroundings as well as their limits, and this leads to more than a few discoveries, in addition to all the growing up they are doing. As a result, there are naturally many baby milestones to look forward to this month!

Important Development Milestones For 8 Months Old Babies

Your 8-month-old will be earnestly preparing for that major turning point—their first steps. As such, they are pushing their limits with regard to their physical abilities. At the same time, their social skills are also developing more than ever. Naturally, you will be seeing a lot of important baby milestones this month:

• Your baby is eager to explore the world around them. They will push their boundaries and their curiosity will overrule their willingness to obey the rules. You may find them attempting to circumvent the baby-proof locks you painstakingly put on the cupboards and cabinets. They will try to play with things that are not toys and may put things in their mouth they are not supposed to, so keep an eye out! Make sure that all small and hazardous items are out of their reach and that your child is never left unattended
• At 8 months, the baby should also be able to get to a sitting position without help and sit without support from others. They will also be able to get to their hands and knees from lying on their tummy or sitting position, which is the first step to learning to crawl. If you catch your baby doing this, rest assured, they are not far from being able to zoom around the house. However, remember that some babies skip crawling and go straight to standing
• Speaking of which, some early bloomers may even have started on that milestone! Most babies stand with support between the ages of 7-12 months. By the age of 8 months, they will be able to bear some weight on their legs, and as a result, may begin pulling themselves up using furniture or random objects for support. Some may even take a few short steps while holding on to something!²
• Your baby has, in previous months, started learning cause and effect. Now, they are beginning to grasp the concept of object permanence. That is, they are beginning to understand that objects (and people) continue to exist even when they can no longer see them. You can encourage this development with games like peek-a-boo and hiding objects around them for them to find³

Related Reading: Tummy Time Milestones By Month

Development Milestones For 8 Months Baby

When you are raising a baby and watching them grow, it is not just the big landmark occasions, like their first word and first steps, that matter. Babies are developing in several other areas too, such as fine motor skills, social competence, and more. Here are a few underrated baby milestones.

• Sometime around the 8th month, especially towards the end of the month, the baby may start to develop the pincer grasp. That is, they will start to learn to pick things up with just their thumb and forefinger. This is an extremely important fine motor skill, especially when they start to use utensils and writing equipment⁴
• At the age of 8 months, the little one will be able to understand the gist of what you are communicating a lot of the time. They will even attempt to respond to your words with their own sounds. They will understand some basic words like “no”, “yes”, “mama”, and “dada”, and their own name
• Around this time, they may develop a particular attachment to an object. This object may be a blanket, a favorite toy, a plushy or puppet, or any other thing. The baby bonds with this object and sees it as almost a parent replacement. This is a healthy part of development and nothing to worry about. They are learning to not be completely dependent on you for comfort and to soothe themselves by bonding with another object. They may carry it around when they are out and about and may even want to sleep with it. In this case. Make sure to follow safety precautions⁵
• Your little one’s brain is going through a growth spurt at around their time. Their cognitive abilities, and their memory, and other mental abilities, improve a lot. They can recognize the people closest to them like their parents, nannies, siblings, etc. They are also able to recognize strangers, and this may lead to stranger anxiety. They do not like to be left alone with strangers and prefer to be around familiar people. They fuss and cry. This is normal, and if it causes trouble, you can distract them with some toy. Stranger anxiety usually reduces by the age of 2⁶

Related Reading: How To Make A Baby Laugh? 12 Ways To Make Her Giggle!

Feeding Milestones

At eight months, your baby’s diet will be almost the same as last month, with a few new baby milestones:

• At this age, the baby will need to be fed breast milk or formula 3-4 times a day. Their diet is still primarily milk, but they will have started on solid foods by now
• Until now, the baby ate solid foods primarily in pureed or mashed forms. Now it is time to take it a step further. At 8 months, you can start giving your little one some finger foods. Ensure that the pieces are small and soft enough for them to eat safely, and place a few pieces, spaced out, on an unbreakable plate or tray. Let them pick up the food and bring it to their mouths themselves. It is a great way to practice that pincer grasp!⁷
• Your baby may show their preferences for different types of food. They may turn their noses up at certain food items. Do not force them to eat something they don’t want to — just wait a while and try again

Sleep Milestones

This month probably will not have too much of a difference from previous months. The baby will probably be able to sleep through the night. There may be the occasional exception, due to stranger anxiety, teething, etc. but they are still able to sleep for longer periods of time than before.

They will get around 12-16 hours of sleep a day. That means around 11 hours of sleep at night on average, and around 3-4 hours during the day. The latter is divided into two naps — one in the morning and another in the afternoon⁸.

Speech Milestones

With every passing day, your little one is learning more about how to function in social situations. Their ability to communicate and understand others is increasing. You may see many baby milestones related to their speech.

• By 8 months, your baby will be quite proficient at babbling, blowing raspberries, and other things necessary for language development. They will be able to string together vowels and consonants. This may even lead to them being able to say some small, simple words, like “mama” and “dada”⁹
• On a related note, the baby is also able to understand you better. They are beginning to understand the meanings of different words, as well as your tone and body language. They will respond to what you are saying, by looking in your direction when you speak, or babbling back at you, or some other way
• They will also understand commands like “no!”, though they may or may not actually listen to you. They will turn their head in the appropriate direction if you point something out to them

Related Reading: Side Effects Of Cerelac For Babies

Physical Milestones

In addition to all the mental and cognitive work they are doing, your baby is also growing and developing physically. So by 8 months, you will observe more than a few physical baby milestones.

If your baby is a girl, you can expect her to weigh somewhere between 16-21 pounds. If he is a boy, he will be around 17-22 pounds. Lengthwise, you can expect the baby to be between 28-32 inches on average¹⁰.

In addition to this growth, the baby also develops in other ways. As mentioned above, the baby is able to sit up without help and get to their hands and knees, as well as grab things, hold them with the thumb and forefinger, pass them from one hand to another, etc. They are even preparing themselves for mobility and may start crawling or even cruising soon.

How To Keep An 8-Month-Old Busy

Your little one is more active than ever, meaning it is necessary to ensure they are kept occupied with activities that both nurture and entertain them. But how do you decide what to do with an 8-month-old baby all day? Here are a few fun 8-month baby activities to try out with your little one.

• Books are your best friend when it comes to helping your baby develop. Starting a reading habit from a young age has nothing but benefits, on many levels. Pick out a few colourful books, maybe even ones with different textures, and read them with your baby. It will make for a perfect bedtime routine and sets the mood for some quiet time during the day. It also helps them with their language development. These reasons make reading one of the best things to do with an 8-month-old inside
• Speaking of language development, it is very important to hold conversations with your baby. Tell them about your day, explain what you are doing during each activity, and point out interesting things to them. Each of these increases their understanding of the world and teaches them how to interact with others. You will find that they are responding to your words, whether it is turning away in disinterest, squealing in excitement, or babbling back at you. This interaction is necessary for them to learn how to communicate, both verbally and non-verbally
• Let your baby interact with others. Arrange playdates with other babies their age. Take them outdoors, whether it is to your backyard, or to the park. Let them socialize with babies their age. This helps them develop social skills that are necessary and helps them form friendships. There is no end to things to do with an 8-month-old outside, especially if they have a friend with them. They need to learn to have relationships with their peers
• Encourage them to be mobile. At 8 months, they are learning to crawl, cruise, or move around in some other way. Playing games with them that encourages them to move helps them build the muscles necessary for these big milestones. Keep objects just out of their reach and encourage them to move towards them. Get on your own hands and knees and have little races, or pretend you are chasing them. Not only are these games entertaining for your baby, but they also help them develop physically

When To See A Doctor

By and large, you do not need to worry if there are some small differences in the pace of your baby’s development and what is highlighted in this article. Each baby is different, and they grow at their own pace. However, there are some signs to watch out for, which may allude to a developmental delay or medical conditions. If your baby shows these signs, it is best to consult their doctor as soon as possible.

• The baby is not able to get to a sitting position or sit without support and makes no effort to crawl or move around
• The baby shows a preference for one side of their body or uses one side alone.
• The baby does not respond to your words, does not respond to their name, or does not make eye contact
• The baby does not communicate nonverbally using gestures like waving
• The baby does not look for objects that you hide or is taken from their line of sight¹¹
• The baby has symptoms of sickness like fever, diarrhea, vomiting, etc.
• The baby is refusing all food and drink¹²

Conclusion

At eight months, your baby is getting ready for the big leagues. They are building up the strength and ability to crawl, and eventually, walk. They are also learning more about how the world works and how they should behave around other people. The skills they learn now are essential for their later healthy functioning. But above all, your little bundle of joy is more curious, sociable, and energetic than ever.

This is a time to be savored. And some slight differences from the average developmental timeline are nothing to be worried about.

However, if you think there are signs of some deeper issues, make sure you consult your doctor. Keeping your pediatrician updated on the baby’s developments ensures the baby is growing in an optimal way.