8 month old going off to play by himself...

[Fujiko]

My 8 month old has been exploring our house for the last few weeks, on his own. Of course, we close the doors to the rooms he shouldn't have access to, and block off areas that I don't want him, but he'll go from the living room all the way down our long hall to play in his sister's room (they will soon share it). He will play there alone for quite a while. Then he wanders back to the living room. Is this type of independent play okay? My dd was never interested in toys and things as a baby, and would much rather be where I was. He's different. I suppose it's also important to note that there aren't any toys with little pieces in her room, IOW it's pretty well baby proofed. Thoughts?

[ErinYay]

Are you asking:

Is it okay that my 8-month-old likes to play by himself?!

Because, sister, it's the okayest thing EVER!

V is also VERY independent, and can (and does!) play alone, happily, for looooong stretches of time. As she's become more mobile with the walking stuff, she's become a lot more cuddly, which is a BIG change from how she was even a month ago.

It's such a joy to have a baby who likes to do her own thing, but then cruises over for hugs.

[hakeber]

I would say, yes. It is okay and can be very good for babies to have their own space to learn and explore, as long as you are confident he is safe. Why not?

DS was like this and at 5 still is and dd is just starting to get more independant. It's a lovely moment in parenting when you realize you have two hands again.

[Juvysen]

Originally Posted by ErinYay

Are you asking:

Is it okay that my 8-month-old likes to play by himself?!

Because, sister, it's the okayest thing EVER!

My 6 month old has been exploring on his own, too... So weird to have a kid that's into checking out toys - my older two were so not into toys.

He does freak if he's reminded that I exist (like I walk by) and I don't take him with me, but if he gets into stuff, he'll just keep wandering around and checking stuff out. So cute.

[treeoflife3]

DEFINITELY okay. I wish my kiddo would do that more, but she did it a bit even that young. She still would rather be on me. Its a huge point of frustration that she won't play with her toys most of the time and just wants to use me as a jungle gym.

[Fujiko]

Originally Posted by ErinYay

Are you asking:

Is it okay that my 8-month-old likes to play by himself?!

Because, sister, it's the okayest thing EVER!

LOL, yeah, pretty much! It just feels weird with the baby across the house...by himself...and that's okay.

Thanks ladies. I really am not complaining, but I was just making sure I wasn't some kind of negligent mother for letting my baby have nearly free roam of the house.

[ErinYay]

It's remarkable ALREADY doing the whole:

Me: "What are you up to?"
::crickets::
Me: "Oh, crap."

Fortunately, the quiet isn't a portent of doom too often. (Yet...)

[love4bob]

Mine does the same thing! I set her down in the living room with me, get on the computer, look up, and she is gone! haha! She is so fast! Normally she goes in the playroom to check out the toys.

[remijo]

My DD does this but I can't trust her. She will find something (doorstops, that piece of fuzz on the floor, picking at the carpet to get up strings, outlets (even with those little covers on them) - she will find whatever it is that she's not supposed to have and play with it. So she's always going off on her own but I have to follow her because she quiet does mean destruction. I even have two rooms with nothing but baby good stuff in them and she will spend the whole time trying to climb over the gates, under the playpen, anything she can do that will frustrate her and make her scream. So, in short I would do anything for her to be able to go off and actually be able to trust she'd be ok.