What should a 7 month old baby's daily routine be like?

Daytime nap

Pediatricians recommend three daily rests for a 7-month-old baby, but in practice this is not easy to do. It's difficult to put a little playful child to bed when there are so many interesting things around.

Noisy games should only be played after sleep.

When getting ready for bed, combine quiet activities such as reading a book or talking with your parents and siblings.

You should not let your baby sleep before going to bed at night. After all, then he won’t fall asleep on schedule and will break his routine. If the second day's rest was missed, then you should reduce the time of the evening festivities and put the baby to bed earlier. The total duration of daytime sleep should be up to 4 hours.

Night rest

Night sleep at any age should be comfortable for the child

At seven months the baby becomes more active. In most cases, he already knows how to crawl, masters new movements, and every day is accompanied by a sea of ​​emotions. Such a busy time tires the baby. Therefore, night sleep becomes longer and more restful than before. The toddler can wake up at night for 3-5 seconds and fall asleep again. On average, a night's rest should be 11 hours. Sometimes 7-month-old babies wake up for other reasons, such as:

• feeding;
• full diaper;
• room temperature: perhaps the baby is cold or hot;
• teething or tummy hurts.

One of the main rules for a child is compliance with the regime. The baby understands when he has a meal or rest. To make it easier to put your baby to sleep, you need to create some kind of bedtime ritual and repeat it daily. For example, swimming, reading fairy tales, listening to calm music. The main thing is that evening games are not too active. Then the baby will quickly fall asleep and sleep all night. Pediatricians recommend putting children to bed between 20:30 and 21:30.

Position

Babies in the first months of life sleep in the position in which their mother laid them. A seven-month-old baby can already roll over from his back to his side or onto his stomach, so he will choose a comfortable position for himself.

• In Plastun style. The baby lies on his stomach with one leg tucked under him.
• On knees . The baby, lying on his tummy, bends both legs under himself, lifting his butt up.
• On the side, curled up.
• On your back, arms and legs spread out to the sides.

A child does not need a pillow until he is one year old. The mattress should only be hard, made from natural materials.

Do not cover your baby with a blanket that is too heavy. It is better to wear pajamas or use a children's sleeping bag. Then it will be easier for the baby to change position while sleeping, and the risk of suffocation in the lush feather beds will be reduced to zero. The recommended sleeping position for a baby is on the back. Then the body is relaxed and the muscles rest.

Comfort

Often the presence of a loved one nearby helps the baby sleep more soundly

To make your vacation last longer, you should create the following conditions:

• Mode . The age of the baby is not important. If a child goes to bed at the same time every day, it becomes a habit. Then, by a certain time, the body itself will produce hormones that are responsible for sleep, and it will be easier for the baby to fall asleep.
• Mood. A few hours before rest, you should stop active games. Use a bedtime ritual. It is not recommended to play cartoons on your computer or TV. The best soothing remedy will be only your mother’s voice.
• The atmosphere in the nursery. Before going to bed, you should ventilate the room. Recommended air temperature is +18 - +21 o C. Take care of the lighting in the room during the day. Close the curtains or lower the blinds. A night light will be a faithful assistant if a child is afraid of the dark.
• Silence . Loud noises will worsen the quality of sleep and your baby will not get enough sleep.

Summary

Sufficient rest will provide the baby with a good mood and excellent health. From the birth of the baby, it is important for the mother to create a daytime and nighttime sleep schedule and monitor how much the baby sleeps. The child will know when it is time to play, sleep or eat. Over time, the baby will fall asleep without anyone's help.

A seven-month-old baby begins to actively explore the world around him. He has been awake for a long time during the day and rarely wakes up at night. And although each child develops individually, parents should still know the average standards for sleep and wakefulness.

How long does a 7 month old baby sleep?

The total duration of sleep for a child at this age is approximately 15 hours a day. Most of it falls on dark time - 11 hours.

Night feedings are being reduced, but the seven-month-old baby still needs them. Although some children manage to sleep soundly all night and require a hearty breakfast only at 6 am, most infants wean themselves from “snacks” at night only by 9 months.

The baby's daytime sleep changes - he needs two or three rests a day for one and a half to two hours.

Pediatricians believe that sleeping three times a day is still preferable, since the abundance of new sensations tires the baby. It takes time to assimilate them.

Parents need to carefully monitor the baby’s behavior and at the first signs of fatigue send him to his crib. The baby usually switches to two naps a day by the age of nine months.

So the baby has crossed the line of his half-year, and now he is 7 months old. More and more often it seems to you that a child at 7 months is very big and can do a lot. This is partly true. But in the near future, new discoveries await him, which means he will need the strength that only high-quality and complete sleep gives. Today we’ll talk about the baby’s sleep at 7 months.

With each new month of life, the child’s need for sleep duration, wakefulness and exercise changes. Children at 7 months begin to sleep less during the day, but longer at night. In total, the daily need for sleep is reduced and is about 13-15 hours, of which an average of 3 hours is spent on daytime sleep, and 10-12 hours at night.

A 7 month old baby's waking time varies from 2:45 to 3:30-3:45 (if the baby switches to 2 naps). It’s too early to talk about a time-based daily routine, because the duration of wakefulness and the number of dreams are not yet stable. However, at the age of 7 months, there may already be a fairly predictable rhythm of the day, thanks to which the day becomes clear, and certain activities can be planned without difficulty.

No matter how strange it may seem, the quality of sleep is directly influenced by properly organized wakefulness.

What points should parents pay attention to?

1. Compliance with the duration of wakefulness . It is important to choose exactly the time that suits your baby, so that by the time he goes to bed, the child is tired and wants to sleep, but not overtired. The quality of sleep is affected by both a lack of wakefulness and its excess.
2. By the time of laying down, the baby should be in a calm state, and not excited . Organizing quiet waking hours will help you with this. Have a list of activities that will relax and slow down your child.
3. It is also important what the baby is doing while awake, whether he is sufficiently stressed physically, intellectually and emotionally . Your task is to distribute the load in a balanced manner, taking into account the needs of the child at 7 months.
4. Balance of active and quiet wakefulness . If you start to slow your baby down too early, he may show you false or habitual signs of fatigue, starting to lay down according to which, you will either have resistance and a long laying down, or a short sleep. At the same time, by giving your child active exercise for too long a period, you risk getting an overtired baby by the time he goes to bed, even during his usual waking hours.
5. A ritual that both you and your baby enjoy . A ritual is a sleep marker by which the child determines that he should now sleep. It should be pleasant and relaxing. But if the mother does not like any of the elements of the ritual, she is in an anxious state, which is immediately transmitted to the child. As a result, the baby begins to get nervous, and bedtime is delayed.

A baby at 7 months can sleep both 2 and 3 naps. Ate at 3 naps, the quality of night sleep does not deteriorate, which means now this is suitable for the child. But be prepared for the fact that at any moment the need for 3 sleep may disappear. Just at the age of 7 months there is a transition to fewer dreams.

You can understand that your baby is ready to sleep less often by the following signs:

• Nighttime bedtime is greatly shifted due to late bedtime;
• after 3 sleeps, the baby wakes up dissatisfied and capricious, there is a feeling that he wanted to go to sleep at night;
• the child begins to resist going to bed on the 3rd nap, or does not fall asleep at all;
• after 3 naps it takes a long time to get the baby to sleep at night;
• the number of frequent awakenings at night increases;
• short dreams appear during the day;
• the baby begins to wake up earlier in the morning;
• The duration of wakefulness increases.

If over the course of 3-5 days you observe any of the listed signs, it means that the child is showing you his readiness to switch to 2 sleeps. Pay close attention to your waking hours and signs of fatigue.

The transition period is not an easy time for the whole family.

The usual way of life changes, and the quality of sleep may temporarily deteriorate, since the baby still needs to adapt to the new duration of wakefulness. Days with 2 and 3 sleeps can also alternate, which is completely natural. On average, the transition period lasts from several days to several weeks.

What other sleep features does a baby have at 7 months?

Children at this age become more mobile, actively mastering the skills of crawling, sitting and standing on support. New abilities are perceived by the child as a super power, which both pleases and frightens them at the same time. It is not surprising that with the advent of new skills, the child’s sleep deteriorates.

This happens for several reasons:

• The child begins to practice new skills everywhere and even in his sleep. To eliminate this problem, I recommend paying more attention to developing skills during active wakefulness, and teaching your baby to lie down from any position.
• The baby does not yet understand how to react to new abilities; they scare him to some extent. It is important here that the mother conveys a positive attitude towards these events, praises and encourages the child more.

The ability to move more makes new places in the house available for exploration, which immediately becomes interesting for the child. But sleeping for a 7-month-old baby is now a boring activity that distracts him from other important matters. It becomes difficult to put a child to sleep when he is captivated by new tasks. He may take a long time to go to bed, sleep restlessly, fitfully, and wake up more often. In this case, maintaining a daily routine becomes especially important. A rhythm that is understandable and familiar to the child will help him cope with the new state more easily.

The key difference between a baby's sleep at 7 months is the outgoing 3rd sleep. Firstly, it becomes shorter (less than a cycle) and secondly, it is inconsistent because it depends on the duration of the first and second sleep. Sometimes it is necessary to leave nap 3 as a micro-sleep (up to 20 minutes) to give the baby the opportunity to have his usual nap. This is important to do so as not to impair the quality of your night's sleep.

As a rule, at 7 months, complementary foods are gradually introduced; the baby already likes some foods and arouses interest, but he categorically refuses to try some. In such cases, do not insist on introducing a new product, because even this may cause problems with sleep.

Children feel their body well, and if the baby doesn’t want something, it means he doesn’t need it now. With complementary feeding, the load on the gastrointestinal tract increases, which can lead to a number of problems: constipation, diarrhea, bloating, excessive gas formation. An uncomfortable state provokes deterioration of sleep.

If your baby doesn't eat enough during the day, he may start waking up more often at night and asking for food. Due to the fact that the world around has become more accessible to the child, he may lose interest not only in sleep, but also in food. In this regard, monitor the number of calories your child consumes during the day so as not to provoke frequent awakenings at night due to hunger.

Also, at the age of 7 months, the baby’s separation anxiety reaches its peak. The child does not want his mother to leave at all, he is worried about this and may begin to sleep worse.

Girls, I know that the age of 7 months is not at all easy, both in terms of sleep and in terms of the overall development of the baby. Therefore, I want to give you some recommendations that will help strengthen affection and improve sleep:

• To spend most of the time in contact with your baby, take care of your waking place. In each of the rooms, organize a corner for your child, where he would be interested in staying, and where he could always see you while you are minding your own business.
• Talk to your baby, especially if you leave the room. Voice contact will help him cope with your absence more easily.
• Play peek-a-boo or hide and seek more often. These games are great for teaching a child that when mom disappears, she always comes back.
• Be sure to make a list of options for active and quiet wakefulness. They will help you in those moments when you don’t know what to do with your baby.
• Throughout the day, practice new skills, praise your child more and show your joy at all his successes.
• Decide on the number of night feedings. A child at 7 months usually eats 1-2 times at night, and some children no longer need food.

Author: Tatyana Kremneva.

What prevents a seven month old baby from sleeping?

It is quite difficult for babies of this age to switch to a new sleep and wakefulness schedule. Parents should make this transition as comfortable as possible.

The most common causes of sleep disturbance are:

• noise, loud music, working TV;
• cold or, conversely, stuffiness in the nursery;
• wet diaper;
• pain due to intestinal colic or teething.

Also, babies get scared if their mother is not around for a long time. They may cry and stay awake to get attention. If you previously slept together with the baby, and at 7 months you decided to put him to bed separately, this regime should be introduced gradually.

You should not wake up a soundly sleeping baby to feed. He will wake up on his own and eat with great appetite. But before putting him to bed, be sure to feed the baby; discomfort due to hunger is a common cause of restless sleep.

Fresh and slightly humidified air in the nursery contributes to sweet dreams. All things that collect dust must be removed from the room. Choose bedding and clothes for your baby from soft natural materials.

If there are no objective reasons, but the baby still does not sleep well and is capricious, it is worth visiting a pediatrician. If there is a hidden disease, the doctor will prescribe appropriate treatment and after recovery the baby’s sleep will be restored.

In fact, the number of parental questions increases every month. The baby is getting older and requires more and more attention. 1 year and 7 months is just another stage in the development of a child, however, it must be approached with the utmost seriousness.

What to feed

An approximate diet is always compiled taking into account the child’s age, level of activity, anthropometric indicators (weight and height), taste preferences and other characteristics. Below is an approximate menu for babies 7 months old and the amount of food at one time, which parents can independently adjust, taking into account the needs of the child.

Sample menu for a day for a breastfed or bottle-fed child

Menu for a 7 month old baby for every day of the week with recipes

What should you be able to do?

At 1 year and 7 months, your baby probably knows everything he should. He is physically active and inquisitive. She loves to walk in the fresh air and enthusiastically meets her peers. Some of the children at this age take the position of an observer, while others run with the neighbor’s children as equals - despite the difference in age. The baby is a small personality with its own special temperament. Now the character is beginning to emerge in the little man. Parents may be upset by the baby's endless tantrums, but be patient: everything is just beginning. The “hysterical” period, when the child reacts with tears to conditions that are uncomfortable for him, will last up to three or four years. Therefore, do not be nervous about trifles, since there is no escape from them. It’s better to enjoy your child’s new skills - it’s much more useful and enjoyable.

Classes

It is too early for a child of 1 year and 7 months to go to developmental classes in children's centers. But no one is stopping you from working with your child at home. The main thing is that you have the time and desire for this. There are many educational cartoons that can be used for learning. You can keep your little one occupied with thematic cards that teach colors, animals, shapes, and so on. Walking is another relevant answer to the question of what to do with a one-year-old and 7-month-old baby. Walk as much and as long as possible. Long walks relieve problems with sleep and appetite.

At the age of 1 year and 7 months, there is no better game for a child than the game of imitation. Now the baby is copying his mom and dad more than ever. Why not turn pampering into a game by adding educational elements to it. Does your child reach into the closet to find a sock, like dad? Ask him to choose only blue socks or only white socks from his underwear drawer. Reaching towards the bookshelf like mom? Let him take several books and stack them one on top, recreating the semblance of a pyramid.

By the way, at this age the baby is especially actively interested in toys that were given or purchased for him earlier. The mosaics and construction sets that he scattered around the room focused his attention, forced him to think logically and get to the bottom of the truth. He easily builds towers from LEGO or bricks, his attention is no longer as distracted as before.

Remember, there should be just enough toys to hold the baby’s attention. The more toys there are near a child, the more difficult it is for him to concentrate on one thing.

Nutrition

The menu for a baby aged 1 year and 7 months still does not allow fried foods. To be frank, it is better for us, adults, to refuse such food. There is no need to grind soups and vegetables anymore. The number of teeth the baby has can easily cope with stewed or boiled food. When grating salad, which must be included in the diet of a child aged 1 year and 7 months, use a coarse grater. There is no longer any need for small items.

What to do if your child is not eating well

If your baby doesn’t eat well, reconsider his diet: perhaps you are giving your 1 year and 7 month old foods that he doesn’t like very much and that can easily be replaced with a more tasty alternative. The basis of the diet is animal proteins. They still make up a large part of the daily menu.

If you are interested in how much a small child sleeps per year and 7 months at night, we will answer: from ten to eleven hours. But the number of daytime sleeps is not two or three, but already one. At this age, the baby switches to one nap during daylight hours. The duration of such sleep can reach three and a half hours.

If your child continues to have difficulty sleeping at night at 1 year and 7 months, reconsider his schedule. It may be worth moving your bedtime later. It’s also probably worth spending more time in the fresh air, allowing your child to actively expend energy.

A child's daily routine at 7 months: How much should a child sleep and stay awake at this age? Should I feed at night, how to create a daily diet and diversify the child’s menu? We'll tell you in the article!

FAQ

Can a baby walk at 7 months?

All children are different, but, as a rule, babies begin to walk when they are one year old.

How long should a seven month old baby sleep?

Experts recommend 12-16 hours of sleep per day, most of which come at night. During the day, children of this age usually sleep 2-3 times.

Can a baby crawl at 7 months?

Some babies can crawl at 7 months, but they usually start crawling between 7 and 10 months. Some children do not crawl at all, but immediately begin to walk.

What can I give as complementary foods to a 7 month old baby?

In addition to breast milk or formula, you can give your baby baby cereal mixed with breast milk, formula, or water, as well as pureed vegetables or fruits. Over the next few months, you can offer your baby pureed meat and eggs.

Is it necessary to supplement a child's drinking at 7 months?

Breast milk or a few sips of water can quench your thirst between feedings. When your baby starts feeding, offer him water between feedings. In hot weather, give water 2-3 times extra to prevent dehydration.

Sleep-wake schedule

At 7 months, the baby needs to sleep 11-12 hours at night with breaks for 1-2 feedings and 2.5-4 hours during the day. Based on this, we build a daily routine.

A seven-month-old baby can have either 3 or 2 daytime dreams. They can begin in the “sleep windows.” In this case, the quality of previous sleep and time spent awake are taken into account only slightly.

Therefore, it would be correct to start dreams in the intervals:

When you get up at 7 am, the daily routine will be as follows: morning sleep at 8.45, lunch nap at 12.00 and evening sleep at 15.30.

If your child is on his third nap, it should be completed before 4:30 p.m. to make bedtime easier.

The duration of sleep will depend on the atmosphere in the room, the appropriate time and the baby's ability to associate sleep cycles with each other.

Nighttime sleep will begin quite early at 7 months. Approximate bedtime is between 18.00-19.00.

Avoid going to bed before bedtime if your child refuses to take his third nap.

If your child's sleep is poor under the current regime, start changing the daily routine according to our recommendations from the time you get up in the morning. This way, the baby will gradually begin to sleep better.

The table below provides general recommendations for sleep and wakefulness at 7 months:

Table with approximate daily routine

• 6:00-8:30 The period of awakening, morning meal, washing procedure and hardening air baths.
• 8:30-10:00 Morning dream.
• 10:00-12:00 Time for the second meal and active wakefulness with mandatory gymnastics and a relaxing massage.
• 12:00-14:00 An educational walk in the fresh air, gradually turning into sleep.
• 14:00-16:00 The next feeding of the baby and active cognitive leisure, consisting of alternating educational games and gymnastic exercises.
• 16:00-18:00 Second walk, sleep in the fresh air.
• 18:00-21:30 Fourth feeding of the baby, time to communicate with family members, evening bathing procedure.
• 21:30-22:00 Evening meal.
• 22:00-6:00 Night sleep.

A few more additional options with a daily routine (you will already choose the best option, taking into account the characteristics of your baby):

The proposed table is just an example of a rational alternation of routine moments (feeding, sleep periods, walks, classes and hygiene procedures) and should in no way be perceived as an instruction requiring strict adherence to each point.

An indicator of the success of any daily routine is the baby’s excellent health. If he eats with appetite, plays with pleasure and without problems, without throwing hysterics, falls asleep at the hours allotted for this, then the regime meets all his physiological needs .

About sleep mode

7 months is an age that clearly demonstrates how individual each child’s body is. One seven-month-old baby still requires three fairly long (1.5-2 hours each) periods of daytime sleep, while the other is already physiologically ready for his daytime rest to become biphasic .

Such children can be given the opportunity to relax in the morning (from 11-00 to 12-30) and evening (from 16-00 to 17-30) hours. It is easy to calculate that the total duration of sleep for some babies is thirteen hours (4.5 during the day and 8.5 at night), while for others it is only eleven. In the latter case, a significant moment comes in the life of a 7-month-old child: the duration of periods of active wakefulness begins to prevail over the duration of periods of sleep.

Let us repeat once again: if the baby is active enough and is in a great mood, the mother should not worry and try to put him to bed in accordance with the previous schedule. Reducing the duration of daytime sleep means only one thing: an older child simply needs a new daily routine .

There is another option for organizing sleep, which some 7-month-old babies choose for themselves: they prefer to sleep for 2-3 hours while walking in the fresh air, and rest for no more than an hour in the morning and evening. Within a month, the hourly intervals of daytime rest will be reduced to forty minutes.

About walks

A 7-month-old baby's daily routine must include time for at least two walks in the fresh air. They are unusually fruitful for both his physical and intellectual development.

The little one, well aware of the existence of a huge world outside the walls of the apartment, is looking forward to the opportunity to gain many new impressions. He rejoices at meetings with people, animals, birds, listens carefully to his mother’s comments accompanying these meetings, reacts to them with active humming, lively facial expressions, and waving of his arms.

While walking with the child, the mother must take care to follow safety rules: an actively moving baby who can fall out of the stroller must be securely fastened . You should also carefully protect your baby’s delicate skin from exposure to bright sunlight.

Read also: how to walk with a child in the heat

About the feeding schedule

Feeding seven-month-old babies continues to be five times a day, and the intervals between feedings should be at least four hours. Some babies still continue to wake up at night to get some food (the number of such awakenings can be from one to three).

At 7 months, both infants and artificial babies have already adapted well to complementary feeding: cereals, vegetable and fruit soups and purees, baby cottage cheese and all kinds of juices have become full participants in their daily diet . The only difference in their diet is that infants continue to receive mother's milk three times a day, while formula-fed infants continue to receive a bottle of formula (at least twice a day).

Most young mothers often wonder which dishes are healthier for their children: factory-produced or home-cooked? If the mother is confident in the complete safety of the vegetables and fruits that she will use to prepare soups and purees (this is only possible if they are grown in her own garden), then preference should be given to home-cooked food. If there is no such confidence, it is better to give your child juices and purees from store-bought jars .
We read on the topic of complementary feeding: introducing complementary foods to children on breastfeeding and introducing complementary foods to babies on IV

If the mother is going to feed the baby homemade porridge, she should grind the cereal to flour using a blender or coffee grinder. If they are unavailable, it is better to purchase a factory-made semi-finished product intended for baby food.

I would like to pay special attention to the introduction of cottage cheese into the diet of a seven-month-old baby. It should only be for children, adapted for an organism with an incompletely formed gastrointestinal tract. Its main difference from the adult product is its very low acidity and more delicate consistency.

Children's cottage cheese prepared in a dairy kitchen or factory specializing in the production of children's products has all these qualities. The closed production method carried out there eliminates the entry of pathogenic microorganisms into the product. It is better to introduce your baby to cottage cheese by introducing it into fruit puree, starting with one teaspoon and gradually increasing to three or four.

The best time to introduce your baby to new products is during the daytime. Before napping, it is better to give your child a hearty sweet porridge: having eaten well, the baby will sleep much longer and more soundly. This point applies to both infants and artificial babies. .

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If the child gets hungry a little earlier than the established daily routine prescribes, the mother can deviate a little from it: 15-20 minutes does not solve anything . In the opposite situation, when the baby refuses to eat, you should not force feed him. The reason for refusal may be due to:

• the child did not like the taste or smell of the product offered;
• the baby is frightened by the too persistent behavior of the adult, forcing him to eat;
• The baby is quite fed up with breast milk.

What to do with a child

A 7-month-old child is an active explorer of the surrounding space, tasting all objects by taste and touch. Many babies of this age not only crawl well, but also try to stand on their feet, and especially developed ones are already confidently taking their first steps. This activity requires parents to be very vigilant: knowing that the inquisitive baby puts everything in his mouth, they must remove all small objects (needles, beads, coins, pins) from his path.

IMPORTANT! How to secure your home for a small child

For the successful intellectual development of a seven-month-old child, the following activities will be useful:

1. Reading books and looking at bright illustrations (pages in books should be made of thick cardboard).
2. Rhymes with repeating sounds are useful for the development of a baby's speech. Having memorized constantly repeating sound combinations, the baby will begin to reproduce them independently.
3. A 7-month-old child knows and distinguishes his favorite toys well. Having laid out 4-5 objects in front of him, you can ask him to find the one he needs among them. For every successful fulfillment of a request, the baby should be praised.
4. When introducing your baby to the shape and size of objects, it is very useful to use a pyramid. Mom must first assemble it by stringing rings in descending order of size, commenting on her actions. After this, you need to give the baby the opportunity to disassemble the assembled pyramid, making him an active participant in the gameplay.
5. You can buy your child several dynamic toys: a tumbler, a spinning top, or one of the modern toys, when rotated, new pictures appear. Observing their movement contributes to the development of the baby’s logical thinking.
6. To develop the search skills of a baby actively crawling around the apartment, you can use the game “Hide and Seek”. First, they hide a bright toy in front of his eyes and ask him to find it. When the baby becomes interested in the process, you need to hide the toy again, but this time on the sly from him, not forgetting to put part of it on display: this will make the search easier and will make the baby happy. At the next stage, the mother can hide herself so that the baby can find her by her voice.
7. To develop fine motor skills, you can give your baby a plastic bucket and ask him to collect scattered walnuts, for example. The mother should set an example at the beginning of the collection. The baby will be happy to join in the process.
8. The same purpose is served by special beads or spirals with balls, cubes and cones strung on them, which can be purchased in any toy department.

When teaching a baby new skills, you should create an emotional, joyful environment: only under this condition will the baby be happy to take part in developmental activities. The main task of developmental activities with a child is the desire to teach him to achieve his goal .

We read in detail: about the development of a baby at 7 months and about skills and abilities at 7 months. Also watch the video below:

About the importance of massage and a set of hygiene procedures

Considering the extreme activity of young children, who make a lot of energetic movements every minute, the mother should focus her main attention on massage sessions with elements of gymnastic exercises. An experienced nurse will introduce her to the technique of such a massage and a set of useful physical exercises during her next preventive examination.

The complex of daily hygiene procedures, still consisting of the ritual of morning washing, washing the baby at the next diaper change and evening bathing, should be supplemented by the task of caring for the baby’s first teeth . For this purpose, you can purchase a set of special napkins in the form of finger pads soaked in a cleaning solution. Putting a napkin on her finger, the mother carefully wipes the baby’s teeth, the surface of the tongue and the oral cavity after each feeding. If such napkins are not available, mother can use a piece of bandage.

Evening bathing of the baby can now be done in a large bathtub, with a special rug placed under it for safety (like bathing a child). In addition to traditional rubber toys, you can give your baby a toy watering can or bucket - manipulations with water transfusion will not only interest the baby, but will also contribute to the development of his intelligence and fine motor skills (useful bath toys).

Those who still doubt the advisability of subordinating the life of a 7-month-old baby to any regime should know that babies accustomed to a certain cyclicity of feedings, periods of sleep and wakefulness develop much more successfully than their peers who behave quite chaotically.

← daily routine at 6 months daily routine at 8 months →

A little about complementary feeding

The baby's diet becomes more varied. You can already add yolk/egg, meat, dried goods/cookies, cottage cheese to the menu. It is better to give new products separately at different meals.

A seven month old baby will eat 4 to 5 times a day. Organize feedings around breakfast, lunch and dinner so that the baby gradually gets used to eating with adults. Additionally, introduce snacks.

• What to include on a child's menu?
• When and how many times a day to feed?
• What if your baby doesn't eat well?

Give breast or formula after meals. Also think about ways to develop his interest in regular food. Include a variety of foods in your child’s menu—that is, the diet should be balanced. But don’t force him to eat if the baby refuses. Adjust the menu depending on the season.

What is the mode for?

A daily routine is a universal way to organize the life of a family in which an infant is growing up. This will also be the first stage in preparing the child to attend kindergarten and school, where all life is structured according to a routine and schedule. Children in themselves do not have a physiological need for a daily routine. The child needs food, drink, fresh air and parents nearby. The regime is more needed by parents who, after a month of night feedings and rocking the baby, understand that this cannot continue and it’s time to change something, introduce a strict regime in order to be able to sleep at night.

The daily routine for children of the first year of life cannot be established once and for all, for the whole year. As your child grows, his needs for rest and food will change, so adjustments will have to be made. A child's daily routine at 7 months must be taken into account his physical development.

At seven months, the baby is already awake quite a lot of time. He is actively trying to crawl or is already crawling, and is very interested in everything that comes his way. The number of feedings is 4-5 times a day. Sleeps approximately 10-11 hours, daytime sleep - 3 times for 1.5 hours. Time for games and walks can be up to 3 hours between periods of daytime sleep.

Baby development at 7 months

At this age, the baby can move in search of a hidden toy. You can already play “Ladushki” and other sign games with him. He loves simple fairy tales and nursery rhymes. You can also play hide and seek - hide a toy under pillows or a blanket and ask your child to find it.

The baby should already recognize familiar faces and concentrate on his favorite toys. When he plays, he often smiles and laughs. While reading, you can give your child a book with bright pictures and thick pages that he can turn over himself.

A child at 7 months already understands emotions and reacts to them. He also answers to his name. Now he understands the meaning of many words and can point his finger at familiar objects. Continues to communicate in babble. When communicating with your baby, use gestures and show the emotions that you describe to him. Give him the opportunity to see your face while doing this.

The child must roll over in any direction, sit independently, begin to crawl and take the first steps with the support of an adult. You can practice new skills while you are awake so that the developmental leap does not affect your baby's sleep.

Share in the comments what questions and difficulties you encountered when your baby was 7 months old?

During the first six months of life, a child and his parents go through a difficult journey. Together they overcome the first illnesses and develop their own feeding regimen. The baby is growing up, and his behavior is gradually changing. At this stage, the question often arises about how much a child usually sleeps at 6 months and what he should be able to do. After all, proper development and good health depend on proper sleep.

Baby 7 months: Feeding

At 7 months, children can already try solid foods. Here are some tips on how to gradually introduce complementary foods:

• At this age, the main diet is still breast milk and/or formula. Solid food is just a supplement for now. Also, complementary feeding is a way to teach a child to eat from a spoon. Be prepared for more food to end up in your bib, on your face, or on the floor at first.
• Use a small spoon and offer your baby half a spoonful of puree or less for the first time.
• The baby should sit upright - on your lap or in a high chair.
• Choose a time when your baby is not tired, in a good mood and not too hungry.
• Try giving your baby a spoon after breastfeeding or bottle feeding. This way the spoon will be associated with the comfortable joy of feeding.
• Here's what you can offer your seven-month-old baby in food: monoporridge mixed with breast milk, formula or water, pureed vegetables and fruits. It is better to give one product at a time for several days, so you will know whether it causes an allergy in the child or not.
• If you want to make your own meals rather than buy baby food, you can use a blender or a regular fork to mash fruits or vegetables. Food should be properly boiled or steamed, be soft and not contain any spices (including salt).
• Your baby may not be ready to start eating solid foods. He will definitely let you know if you need to wait a little longer with complementary foods: the baby may turn away or cry when you bring a spoon of puree to his mouth. Just try again in a few days or weeks.
• When your baby can sit up on his own, try giving him food that is cut into pieces that he can pick up and put in his mouth. Good choices include small pieces of soft sweet potato, chicken, or whole grain crackers.
• Talk to your pediatrician about whether your child needs to take vitamin D or iron supplements.

How much should a 7 month old baby eat?

Your baby will continue to master the art of spoon feeding over the coming weeks and months. Breast milk or formulas remain his main food for now, so feed the baby with them in the same volume as before introducing complementary foods. Not much of the new food offered will end up in the baby’s mouth - while he is just learning to eat from a spoon, getting acquainted with the smells and textures. To know for sure that your child is getting the right amount of nutrients and is developing according to schedule, be sure to consult with your pediatrician. If you are worried that you are overfeeding your baby, first discuss your baby's nutrition with your doctor before making any changes.

How complementary feeding can affect your baby's stool

When you start giving your baby solids, you may notice a change in the color and consistency of the stool. The stool may become denser, but the smell may become stronger. If you notice that your child's stool is very loose or watery, visit your pediatrician - he will try to find out what is irritating the child's digestive system.

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How much sleep should a 6 month old toddler sleep?

Each baby develops its own routine. Therefore, it is difficult to say exactly how much he should sleep. It depends on the character and activity of the child. But for the harmonious development of the baby, the duration of night sleep should be at least 8 hours, and daytime sleep should be about 3-4.

The main signs that your child is not getting enough sleep:

• the baby is capricious for no apparent reason;
• the child arches while in the arms of an adult;
• The baby refuses the usual daytime activities and reacts sluggishly to his favorite toys.

In such cases, you need to try to improve the child's sleep. To do this, you need to walk more and ventilate the baby’s room well. The child's clothes should be comfortable, made of soft fabric.

If the baby has trouble falling asleep in the evening, then you can bathe him in a decoction of chamomile, lemon balm, mint, valerian or motherwort. It is useful for your baby to have a massage before bathing. A bedtime lullaby will help your baby calm down and relax.

What to do with your time when your baby is awake

By six months the child becomes active and inquisitive. He is already rolling over onto his tummy and back. The baby can get on all fours and swing from side to side. Some babies sit and crawl on their own.

The child touches and tastes any object available to him. This is how the baby learns about the world. More and more time is spent on games:

• Reading. A 6-month-old baby can and even needs to read books. At this age, the baby loves to look at pictures. In this case, you need to name the objects and animals depicted on the pages. Describe their color, size, sounds they make.
• Activities with toys. At six months, a child, with the help of an adult, can string pyramid rings onto a base or place cups on top of each other. It's good if the baby has musical toys with buttons. They will help develop fine motor skills, hearing, and hand sensitivity. At this age, you can use unbreakable mirrors and rubber toys for play.

You should not play with small objects with your child. They can get into his ear, nose or mouth.

At 6 months, the baby spends less time sleeping. He may seem more moody than before. But this way the baby simply attracts the attention of adults. And regular activities with the child, traveling around the apartment or street will help him develop properly and become calmer, and improve his sleep.

Newborn babies often confuse day and night, but soon settle into a routine and the problem disappears. But it also happens that the baby grows up, but it is not possible to establish a healthy and restful sleep. If at 7 months a child does not sleep well at night, this situation needs to be corrected. Disruption of night sleep not only prevents parents from getting enough sleep, but most importantly, it harms the child’s health.

Child development

At seven months of age, the baby enters the second half of his life. He actively plays, develops, sleeps less and is awake more, tries new food and explores the world around him with all his might, not only trying to get his hands on everything, but also to try it out. Therefore, parents need to be on guard all the time. All dangerous objects must be hidden away.

The table below is an example only.
Don't forget that small deviations are the norm. But if you are concerned about obvious delays in height or weight, the child is restless, sleeps and eats poorly, then do not delay your trip to the pediatrician. Only his consultation will help determine the cause. Physical development of a child at 7 months

What can a baby do?

• Sits independently, without support from adults. He sits on his own for quite a long time.
• He begins to try to crawl, but it is still difficult to support his body weight in his arms.
• When the baby lies on his stomach, he takes light and small objects with one hand and leans on the other.
• Turns over quickly on its own. During this period of the first bruises, parents should not leave the baby alone for a minute, especially on a high bed. The baby's movements are still uncoordinated and awkward.
• The child drinks from the bottle himself and regulates the process.
• Can stand up on his feet in the crib and squat. The sides serve as support.
• With support, he moves his legs under his arms and tries to walk.
• A separate topic is teeth and their eruption. Some children already have 2 of them, others don’t have any yet. There is no reason to worry, as teeth should appear before one year. Everyone has an individual schedule.

The main indicators of teething are excessive drooling, moodiness, increased body temperature to 37 - 38 degrees, sleep disturbance, swelling of the gums, and lack of appetite. The child puts everything into his mouth and touches his face and ears.

At this time, parents need to show maximum patience, since painless appearance of teeth is rare. Sleepless nights usually begin, and accordingly, the daily routine can completely shift.

Mental development

1. The baby knows his name and understands when his name is called.
2. Recognizes everyone who plays with him or is often near him. He worries and even cries when he does not see his family for a long time.
3. The babbling period begins, the baby points to toys, bright objects, animals and people.
4. The baby understands intonation, severity and affection. Willingly goes into the arms of loved ones, but may repel strangers.
5. Usually, at this age, the right hemisphere is actively developing, so the child uses his left hand more. It is not at all necessary that a son or daughter will be left-handed; this period is short-lived and any conclusions are premature.
6. At this time, the baby may be frightened by too loud sounds. They disturb and bring discomfort. Try not to turn on a vacuum cleaner or other “noisy” household appliances, as well as loud music.

Seven reasons for your baby's poor sleep

This is a very common occurrence when a child wakes up in the middle of the night and cannot sleep. The period of wakefulness can last 2-3 hours. At this time he plays with his mother or with toys. If he has learned to crawl, sit or stand up, he can practice and improve this skill.

Why this happens at night is easy to explain:

• Long sleep during the day. Exceeding the norm threatens such “partying” in the middle of the night - the child simply feels rested and does not want to sleep.
• Overexcitement. Active games with your baby in the evening will not allow him to relax, calm down, and will lead to poor sleep and a restless night.
• Violation of the regime. Going to bed too late also leads to overexcitation, fatigue, and, as a result, poor sleep.
• Light source. Your baby is no longer a newborn, and leaving a night light or lamp on overnight may interfere with his restful sleep.
• Doesn't fall asleep on his own. If he can only fall asleep in his mother's arms, when rocked or fed, when he wakes up at night he will want the same ritual to fall asleep.
• There is no clear regime. If he sleeps at different times every day, this ultimately results in poor night sleep and periods of wakefulness.
• Feels discomfort. Uncomfortable clothes, uneven bed, hot or cold, thirst, teething pain.

Try to correct the situation if at least one of the reasons occurs in your case. You may be able to achieve restful sleep for the whole family.

Violation of the daily routine of a 7 month old baby

From the moment of birth, the child’s body gradually adapts to the daily routine of the adults around him; as a rule, he sleeps at night, eats and plays during the day. The created daily routine for a child is subordination to the lifestyle of adults, says the famous pediatrician E. Komarovsky. Sometimes the system crashes. Illness, moving, teething can significantly disrupt the established order, and the baby will confuse day with night.

To return to normal life and night sleep, it is necessary to restore the once established order.

Important! Children's sleep at night is the key to a healthy family. A child needs healthy, adequate parents.

Rules for organizing children's sleep:

1. Walk more during the daytime and do not let the baby get enough sleep.
2. Do not overfeed during the day so that the child does not feel sleepy immediately after eating.
3. In the evening - bathing in a cool bath and immediately feeding with milk or formula.

A child who is tired during the day will fall asleep soundly and sleep for at least 6-8 hours at night.

It will take 2-3 days to restore nighttime sleep, then the regime can be “softened” a little.

The established daily routine must be followed, but do not panic if a meal occurs 30 minutes later than the scheduled time. A disaster will not happen if the baby sleeps for 20 minutes. more than indicated in the schedule. The flexible and reasonable approach has not been canceled. Attempts to strictly adhere to the regime until the minute will only cause a feeling of guilt in the mother. She will feel like a bad mother who did not fulfill the plan she had drawn up. The regime should be convenient for all family members; it should serve them, not they him.

Compliance with the regime is difficult for the parents, not for the child. Strictness is required from parents. But the result will not keep you waiting.

When planning her day, mom will have enough strength not only to care for the baby, but also for dad, as well as watching her favorite TV series or going to a cafe with her friends.