6-9 Month Workshop

6- 9 Months is such a lovely age. Your wee baby that you brought home from the hospital only a few months ago has now started to develop into a real little person with their own special personality. Your baby will begin to have desires of their own and these desires may not always match yours so for the first time you may start to see the strength of your baby’s personality and will!

In the first 12 months of life, your baby learns about trust. By nurturing your baby as you have done since birth, you have started to lay down the ground work for you baby’s emotional well being and you are providing your baby with the greatest key to becoming a confident and secure individual who knows how to love and how to be loved. Some babies will struggle during this stage with separation anxiety when they are separated from you but this is actually a great sign of the good job you have been doing in building your baby’s emotional attachment to you and as with most stages, it will pass.  

There are some big developmental changes that occur in your baby during this stage. Your baby is becoming more physically active and mobile and is able to take part in so much more of your family/s life. Remember, every baby is different so your baby will develop at their own pace and in their own time. Your baby’s feeding will also take on a whole new dimension as you start to introduce solids into your baby’s diet, although their milk intake will still remain their primary nutrition until around 9 months old.

Many sleep challenges can be highlighted during this stage which can cause a lot of stress and frustration for parents. Around 4 months of age, your baby’s brain developed the connections to be able to self soothe. Your baby’s brain also developed the ability to make connections between their behaviour and the behavioural reaction from you as their parent, so establishing healthy sleep habits and having a good settling technique to use during those times when your baby needs more support, is key. The 6-9 month workshop continues to build upon the key foundation skills of the 0-3 and 3-6 month workshops but if you didn’t have the opportunity to do these sessions, don’t worry as it is never too late to arm yourself with information and to learn some great tools and skills. These foundation skills will see you through every situation that  tends to challenge a babies sleep such as neurological, physical and emotional developmental changes, teething, illness or even just a change to your baby’s environment or routine.

$50: 2 Hours (It includes a Booklet, with all the information covered in the workshop – giving you the ability to refer back to it in your own time and/or to be able to make comments or notes along the way.  

The focus of this workshop is on providing you with information on what is normal for you baby at this age. Sleep, feeding and activity are all interrelated so have an affect on each other, so I will be discussing all of these aspects during this workshop. When I am in your home, I also have the advantage of observing you in your own setting and how you are managing things with your baby through their feed, wake, sleep cycle. I learn a lot from this observation and so am able to give lots of helpful advice, support and reassurance throughout my visit. So please consider this option if you would like a more personalised session and have a look at the 6-9 Month Personal in-home Session under Baby Bliss Services/Sessions for further information on the extra’s that are included in this more personalised session. 

At the end of this workshop, I want you to feel empowered with knowledge and are armed with the tools and skills that you need to confidently care for your baby during this stage. 

In this Session I Cover:

Sleep:

Normal sleep behaviour for a 6-9 month old

Understanding the sleep process, sleep cycles and phases of sleep

How to gently establish healthy sleeping habits in your baby; creating positive sleep associations and providing consistent, predictable patterns and rituals etc

How to prevent your baby from becoming Over tired or over stimulated

Feeding:

Normal feeding behaviour for a 6-9 month old

Understanding the breastfeeding process

What to do when my baby is easily distracted when feeding

When is the right time to start solids?

Baby Bliss recommendations around introducing solids

Stage 1 (6-7 months), Stage 2 (7-9 months) and Stage 3 (9 months onwards)

Finger foods

Waketime/Activity

Normal behaviour for a 6-9 month old

Routines/Patterns

Helping you to identify your baby’s natural patterns

Transition phases as your baby reduces their number of naps during the day

My 80:20 Rule

Settling Technique:

Helping your baby to learn the important skills of Settling and Resettling

(I am not able to teach my Sleep Technique effectively in a workshop setting to give it the respect and time that it deserves as it need to be tailored specifically to each baby. It is one of the greatest tools that you could have in your tool bag so if you would like to learn it, then there are two options. 

If you live in Auckland,  I can come to you but if you live out of Auckland, I can do this in a private session online with you. I will spend approximately 1 hour with you for $50 and guide you through using this technique with your baby.)