First step for baby

Your baby will probably figure out how to work himself all the way around from lying on his stomach to sitting up during the ninth, tenth, or eleventh month. Yet even if he can't get there himself, if you sit him up, he should probably be able to sustain a sitting position for some time by the tenth month.

The key has always been maintaining balance. Throughout this year, your baby has learned tocoordinate his musclesfrom the top down. First came control over his neck and head, then his shoulders and upper torso. After that, he began to use his arms and his hands with ever-increasing dexterity. Then came the hips, thighs, and knees, and suddenly your baby was crawling. By now, your baby has control over nearly every muscle in his body. All he needs to do is practice keeping everything in sync so that he can maintain balance.

Not only can your 9- or 10-month-old baby now sit for quite some time without toppling over, he can use only one hand to support himself, so he can use the other to pick up toys (or other objects) and play with them.

Of course, your baby is not content to just sit around anymore. During the next three to six months, your baby will make developmental leaps and bounds. (Actual leaps and bounds come later in the second year.) Your child will probably achieve the following milestones very soon:

Baby Doctor

If you're worried that your child may be developmentally delayed, consult your pediatrician. The doctor will probably reassure you that your child is perfectly normal, but it doesn't hurt to ask. After all, this reassurance may be just what you need to hear.

Baby Doctor

Don't worry if your child appears to be bowlegged when she first stands. Nearly all babies are. Even when she stands with her feet together, her knees probably won't touch. Rest assured that this is perfectly normal. Your child will probably remain bowlegged for at least another year.

• Pulling himself up to a standing position (9 to 12 months)
• Cruising along the edges of furniture (9 to 13 months)
• Standing on his own with no support (9 to 14 months)
• Walking (10 to 15 months).

Again, please keep in mind that all the ages included here represent average ranges. Your baby will progress at his own individual pace. His development may fall at the beginning or end of the range, or even outside the range, without cause for concern on your part. Just because he pulls up at seven months and walks at nine months doesn't mean he's from the planet Krypton, and just because he still hasn't done any of these by his first birthday doesn't mean anything is wrong.

Baby's First Steps

Is there anything you can do to encourage your baby to take his first step - or is it all genetically predetermined?

Baby's first step is a developmental milestone that most parents never forget. But waiting for this moment can be an anxious time for parents who may have friends and relatives whose children walked at an earlier age. When it comes to walking, babies are on their own time table and when they take their first step is no reflection of their intelligence, size, or the parenting skills of their mom or dad. Former family clinic supervisor at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children, Ruth McCamus, assures us that when it comes to walking, every baby is unique. "On average a child will begin walking at age of 12 or 14 months but considerable differences are likely. Some children begin walking much earlier and some as late as 21 months."

While we can't speed up a baby's first step, there are things that may hold a child back explains McCamus. "Sometimes if a baby is a very proficient crawler or roller he may be happy with this form of mobility for some time." McCamus adds that there's little a parent can do to get their children walking except to "provide an encouraging environment with lots of praise for progress. But baby herself will delight in her accomplishments."

Pediatrician Dr. Marvin Ghans agrees that outside of a little encouragement there's nothing a parent can do to change their child's walking timetable. "Children will walk when they are ready. I think it's good to take them by the hand and walk with them and help support them. But they don't really need lessons", says Dr. Ghans. He also stresses that walkers should not be used. "Walkers have been found to be cause of many accidents including serious head injuries from children falling down steps in them."

Most children are walking by the time they reach eighteen months. If your child hasn't reached this milestone by then, it is advisable to consult your baby's doctor.