9 1/2 Month Old Still Not Crawling and Other Questions......

I think the doctor is the best gauge on crawling. also she is getting around, so that is a great sign. Everyone crawls at a different stage - and all babies are different. For example, my son rolled over a couple of times and then was done with it. My daughter on the other hand, used rolling as transportation - so she became mobile too early! She would roll across the room. And I know other babies who crawled or walked "late" which is relative and are fine.

In regards to the teeth - that is fine that they are coming in like that - there is no set order for them to come in. I know this because my son got teeth earlier and bottom first and my daughter didn't get any until she was one and she got top teeth first. And I worried about it and asked the dr.

Also, I wouldn't push the sippy cup - she is only 9 1/2 months old. Both my kids at that age used bottles exclusively. You have a few more months. One is really the age where you need to switch.

I know it is hard not to worry - but is sounds like she is doing great.

DO NOT BE WORRIED. 9 months is the AVERAGE age that kids start crawling. It is not a deadline. Our son, now 17 months, crawled at 11 months. He did this crazy one-foot one-knee crawl for about 2 weeks and then started walking at 11.5 months. My point is, don't worry. She's doing great.

I think it's insensitive for parents to keep asking about that sort of thing - it definitely bothers parents when they perceive their kid as "behind" (even when they're not).

As for the teeth thing, again, kids TYPICALLY get the bottom two teeth before the top. But not always. My son got one bottom tooth, then 3 top, then another 2 bottom. When he got his molars he got the right bottom and then the left top first. It's all normal.

And with sippy cups... well, who cares if she doesn't like them? It's not exactly a necessary "life skill" to drink from one, is it? Teach her to drink from a cup. Or a water bottle (like a bike water bottle). Whatever. Doesn't matter.

Ok you get the point - she's doing great. Stop worrying and enjoy your baby. She'll be big before you know it.

K.
I'm a daycare provider and have had alot of babies through out
the years.
don't rush her she'll be fine.
Once she does start you'll be asking why did you even worry or rush her.
Once they start they don't stop.
Not all babies are the same.

My little one is almost 9 months and not crawling either. Here is what I found online. Good luck!

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My 9-month-old doesn't crawl yet. What should I do?
My 9-month-old doesn't crawl yet. What should I do?

Expert Answers
David Geller, pediatrician
To entice your child to crawl, put toys just out of her reach and see if she attempts to reach them. Her crawling style may be rough around the edges, but it doesn't matter as long as she gets around. And, although the average age for crawling is 8 months, many babies wait until later to crawl, or may skip this stage entirely. If your child has had no developmental problems up to this point (she sits without support, grabs objects with both hands, uses her arms and legs equally, rolls over both ways, stands on her legs if supported), you don't need to worry. Some infants forgo crawling and proceed directly into pulling themselves up to standing, cruising on furniture, walking with some help, and finally, walking on their own. Others get around just fine by rolling on the floor, bottom shuffling, or creeping.

My second son did not start crawling til he was 11 months and then he crawled only backwards, but by the time he was 13 months he already was walking holding on to things. My doctor kept reassuring me and said every child is different and will progress when they are ready. My first son took forever to talk. Everyone I knew who's kids were the same age kept saying my son/daughter has over 50 words in his/her vocabulary and my little guy could barely say ma ma. He is 3 now and won't stop talking. I truly believe every child is different and when they are ready to crawl, walk, talk etc.. they will. Just enjoy your little angel because before you know it she will be driving. TIME FLIES.. enjoy and don't worry.

Don't you worry at all! My daughter NEVER crawled!! She scooted on her butt till she was 15 months old, and then went straigh to walking at 15 months. As long as the doctor is not worried you should not be. Really, my daughter never crawled, just walked. aS FOR HER TEETH, SHE DID NOT GET HER FIRST TOOTH TILL SHE WAS A LITTLE OVER 12 MONTHS. hER FORST 2 TEETH WERE HER TOP 2, THEN SHORTLY after that her bottom 2. Now she is getting in all of her molars. She's getting her teeth in different order than most, but it does not matter, they are all comming in. Don't worry. All children are different. They progress at diffrent times. Try not to compare to much to other children or even siblings. They are all different. Don't worry, she may not crawl, or maybe she will, some kids don't! Her teeth will all come in at there own pace! Don't feel as though you need to lie about her milestones, your daughter is doing great and so are you. Just remember thay are all individuals, and do things when it's right for them! Enjoy your baby, and don't worry:)

You could try setting her up on her knees and then getting in front of her with a toy. Try to get her to come to you. Some babies just do things differently. My daughter "walked" on her knees for a bit before she actually stood up and walked. It was just her way of doing it. If people ask tell them your girl is an individual and does neither, that she scoots. Sometimes being "normal" is overrated. Take pride in her cute little ways.
Bottle holding, you can sit with her while she sits up with it, gently tip her head and the bottle back, keep it up she'll get the hint. I had to do this when I switched to cups, my little one wouldn't tip her head back until I helped her.
Teeth. My girl got her bottom two and had those only for the longest time. Then she finally got one of her top ones then the one on the side came in, but not the second top one yet. Now the second top one and a third one on the bottom are coming in as well. It would seem that they have their own schedual for coming in.

I hope this all helps. Good luck.

My intention is not to sound mean, but you need to quit comparing your child to others, because over the course of her childhood you're going to drive yourself insane if you do! As long as your pediatrician is not concerned about her development, then you should relax too.

Crawling - some babies never crawl. One day they start to pull up, cruise, and walk - all without crawling. Don't panic about this.

Sippy Cup - some kids pick them up at 6 months, others not until 12 months and others just skip the sippy cup altogether. Keep offering it. If she doesn't get it, don't sweat it. I put the sippy cup (with water) out on the high chair tray for my son at every meal. Sometimes he is interested, sometimes he isn't. Sometimes he drinks from it, other times it is his teething toy. But it's there and he does know what it is for when he's ready to drink from it.

I too am a child care provider. My advice is that all children learn at their own pace. The others in you daycare setting might be advanced for their age. I've been told that the best thing is to let your child be on the floor as much as possible so they know that they have to get themself around. If you are worried about a developmental delay, I would check around your area for someone to evaluate her and/or speak to your physician for a referral. I personally wouldn't worry about it that much as long as you are encouraging her to be mobile. Good luck!

My daughter never crawled. She went straight to walking at about 10 months. She only "crawled", it wasn't a traditional crawl, for maybe a week. Does your daughter show any interest walking or bouncing if you hold her up. My daughter would have bounced on our laps all day if we would let her, before she started pulling herself up and doing it herself. Does your daughter use a bouncer or walker? Those might encourage her. My daughter loved the bouncer at our house and the walker at day care. She walked in the walker really early and even freaked out the day care provider.

You remind me of how i used to be. My son did this army drag thing. THey figure out how to get one place to the next and that's just fine. He didn't walk until 14 mo and i've met plenty of mom's whose kids didn't walk up to like 18 months. I think he may of learned to crawl the week before he walked. No biggie. They do what works for them. Sippy cup? really, skip it. Not good for them anyway. You can get those cups w/built in strays or go straight to a regular cup. Teeth? my sons' teeth came in all over the place. Come to find out the "normal" is not normal. I don't know any kids that the teeth came in the "normal order". My boy had his front 2 teeth a molar and one eye tooth. It was kinda funny.

Rest assured, your child will not be 5 yrs old unable to walk drink or chew. You are just too worried. It took me a long time to figure that out, and i also felt like i was either doing sommething wrong or there was something wrong w/my boy that he was not on "schedule". You'll figure out quickly that your little girl is way ahead of the gang in other areas.

no sweat : O )

Is she talking yet? Most babies either walk or talk first.

My 7 month old is jabbering away and still hasn't shown any interest in crawling. She's also is reaching for my cup to drink so I bought her her own today.

My oldest learned to walk at 12 1/2 months and my middle at 10 months.

My point is all babies move at their own pace. Don't worry about it. As long as your pediatrition is ok with it, don't worry. She's fine. :) I know another little girl that never crawled. She went from scooting on her butt to crawling.

And as always, if you feel really concerned, you can always get a second opinion. ;)

Honestly, other mothers can be really annoying. Quite honestly, she seems to be progressing FINE. And if your pediatrician isn't concerned, than I wouldn't either.

All children grow at different rates. Some babies crawl at 6 months and some at 12 months or so and some not at all! If your child is walking/crawl by 2 years or so... yea, then she might be a little developmentally delayed.

Sippy cups... just keep trying. Some kids hate them. My daughter is 16 months old and I still can't get her to take a sippy cup/sippy nippy for the life of me. She won't drink anything all day. You just have to keep trying and trying... and buying and buying different types of sippies. I highly recommend NUBY stages (comes with two types of nipples - one harder bottle and one sippy nipple).

As far as teeth... I have twins. My sons bottom came in first, my daughters top came in first. You daughter sounds just fine. If you are really concerned, you can always ease your fears and have her checked out my a pediatric dentist. He/She will be able to let you know if he sees anything of concern but my guess is that she is just fine.

As far as tipping bottle back enough - she'll learn. I have twins. My daughter took a little longer to get the idea that she needs to tip her drink back further when she is sitting up drinking.

Just remember... ALL KIDS grow at their own pace and as long as they are following their own curve and within reasonable ranges of "supposed to be's" don't worry. It can be hard sometimes... but you have to have faith.

Crawling is not a milestone. You saying that she scoots backwards...that is her crawling. Getting from point a to point b.
My daughter got her top teeth first then her bottom ones. Don't worry about it she is moving along just fine.
One big thing is DON'T compare her to the others! She will progress at her own pace.
To all moms out there I suggest looking into either Healthy Families or Parents as Teacher programs. I have them come out to the house and it is great! It is not a welfare program so they are NOT coming out to your home to check on how clean your house is and that kind of stuff. Good luck and she sounds like she is doing fine.
K.

first take a deep breath and calm down
if your child was 9 months and could not sit up i might be worried
my dd didn't crawl until 9 months and i had to coax her with something she wanted but then walked by 11 months so don't worry
when are you offering sippy cup and what is in it
my ped always said no formula or juice in a sippy that young only whole milk and continue to offer it at meal time over and over again she'll get it by the time the bottle goes at 1 year give it time don't rush her growing up when she's running you'll miss the play time when she stayed in one place

Hi K.,

1. My girlfriends little girl 'never' crawled. She scooted. Then one day, she started to try and walk. They call it creeping (holding on to move along the couch, chair, table, etc). It all takes time and all babies are different. My daughter is 11 months and I learned (although it's hard) to try not to compare her with others her age. My cousins baby (15 months) hasn't even attempted to walk. His sister was 18 months when she started and she's perfectly fine. I'd hate to say, but enjoy it.....once they start moving around, you'll never sit :o)
2. I'm not sure about the teeth issue, but I'm sure it's O.K.
3. give her time with the sippy cups. When we started our daughter on them, I filled it all the way to the top with water. She slowly figured out that she needs to tilt her head back a little more to get to the bottom. Which cups are you using? I use the Playtex one's with the handles on the sides.
4. The bottle holding....my husband and I always had a joke about our little girl...she NEVER held her own bottle...he would say 'what do you expect when we are raising a princess'. She did hold the smaller 4 ounce bottles much easier than the 9 once. We use the Avent Naturally, which I think part of the problem is the 9 oz bottles are thicker than the 4 oz. It's hard for her little hands to hold. Again, one day she just did it.

Enjoy every minute. Our daughter just started walking last week. Well...for sure we won't sit now. Now is when all the bumps and bruises will start. All babies are different and tend to go at their own pace.

Feel better soon...you're not alone!