Wild 10 month old! Normal behaviour?

[callahansmama]

I have a 10 month old son and feeling a little overwhelmed with him at times:)He is the most active and physical baby I have ever seen! He can be rough and I spend a lot of time demonstrating and modelling "gentle" with the dog and another little girl that I babysit part time in our home. He just wants to be into EVERYTHING and moving all the time and god forbid I want to cuddle, he wriggles and writhes out of my arms. He is just always ON, almost never just relaxes and camly does anything. He hates to be dressed, undressed, changed, washed after eating - even baths are crazy because all he wants to do is stand up and grab the faucet and try to climb the walls lol.   I nurse him and he eats a variety of finger foods (whatever we are eating basically) but only in small amounts so he still nurses around the clock (although most of it happens during the night). I will nurse at any time but I mostly offer after naps when he is groggy because that's the only time he will be still enough. He does settle down to be rocked at nap time and bedtime although he still wakes anywhere between 2-4 times per night and I try to co-sleep with him for the last couple of hours (would do more but he sleeps better on his own for the most part), partly to give him lots of mama time that we miss in the daytime when he's so busy. He is generally a happy baby and we " talk" alot and he loves climbing all over me on the floor and knocking down towers of blocks and he will crawl around me while I read a book. I try to give him lots of time and attention and do lots of fingerplays, songs and games. I am a sahm and we live in a remote northern community across the country from any family where you literally have to fly in and out so besides a few days after his birth and 3 weeks when he was 4 months old, he has spent almost every single day in this house with just me. We sometimes go to playgroup but it often conflicts with his naptime. The weather has been too cold to even go for a walk since about November so it has been just recently that we have gotten out for a walk two times a day. His dad gets home at 5, feeds him dinner and then he is in the bath by 6:15 and out like a light by 6:45 or 7. We are heading back south for a 5 week vacation and then once we are back it will be warm here and we can spend lots of time outside (as we will on holiday too). He has 6 teeth and  four of them are coming in all at once right now. He has been cruising and crawling for 2-3 months.

So my questions are:

1. Is this typical behaviour? ( I have a degree in early childhood education but I haven't done much work with babies and I have never seen one like this lol)

2. Do you think he could have cabin fever like I do?

3. Do you think that the tension/frustration that goes along with learning to walk could be contributing to his wildness?

4. Any ideas about how to calm him down or teach him to relax a little? He will have no part in baby massage and even when I use candlelight and lavendar in the bath he is still squirrely!

I love this kid to death and his determination and spunk is one of the things I love most about him but it feels like it's getting a bit out of hand. If this is typical "boys will be boys" then no big deal but I was just wondering if anyone else has a little terror like mine. Lord help me when he's 2!

Thanks so much if you read this far lol!

[callahansmama]

Aaaaah, I just started to read the spirited babies thread and I think that's where I belong!

[Knitting Mama]

1. Sounds normal to me! Some babies are just extremely physically active. My girl is too, though she does sometimes have interesting quiet times when she's obsessed with some little toy she just picked up.

2. Oh yes, this is a very real possibility. Back when I was still pregnant and was planning on staying home, I decided that I needed to get out of the house every day or else I'd run the risk of being very isolated and getting depressed. This really has served me well, because as it turns out, my girl is the kind of baby who goes absolutely wild if we don't go somewhere every day. Stir-crazy is a good word for it. When I say we do something every day, I'm not talking about a playgroup or a baby activity, per se. While we do do those a couple of times a week, sometimes our "going somewhere" is as simple as going to the grocery store or Target. It just has to be something to break up the day for my very social baby.

3. Yep, every time Cecilia is working on a new milestone she gets crankier and wilder!

4. I really think that getting him out and doing things out of the house will help with this. It makes my baby a totally different person. But beyond that, it's just going to take time. He will probably always be a very active person, which isn't a bad thing at all!

[callahansmama]

Thanks! One of the hard things about where I live is that there is nowhere to go! (600 people in this town and alot of them are contract workers - very tiny and nothing to do!) There are two tiny general stores and we do go into town a couple of times a week. The library is only open in the evenings and on Saturday so that's out. I babysit a little 14 month old part time so I thought that might make life a bit more interesting but he just terrorizes her! He is not rough with bigger kids but he tends to bowl over other babies who aren't walking.

[SeattleRain]

I'm pretty sure you're describing my 9 month old! He was recently described as a "maniac" at his 9 month WBV on Monday because he was literally trying to scale the doctor and was eating her face with wide open mouth. He spends most of his day crawling on his belly back and forth across the house, chasing after the poor cat, and scavenging for food on the floor. Right now he's in the process of trying to pull up so he's pulling up on EVERYTHING. The laundry basket, the dining chair, the Fisher Price table, anything. Bath time includes him trying to swim in the water and sucking the washcloth... and choking... and repeat. We had to buy double outlet covers because he's LICKING out outlets.

I think it's normal. He's just a high energy little guy. The only thing that I can think of to suggest is what my ped told me on Monday about food. Daniel is 9 months and still hasn't doubled his birthweight and he hasn't relaly gained more than 5 oz in 3 months and she thinks this is because he's burning more calories than he's eating. She told me to make sure I'm feeding him nutrient dense foods with lots and lots of calories and fat, instead of just fruits and veg puree. So today for lunch we're going to suck on some steak and eat some mashed potatoes with olive oil. If your guy isn't eating that much, it's all the more important for him to get the most out of his food.

[LeaPea]

You just described my daughter! It can be so frustrating some times cause she doesn't stop for a minute. She even moves in her sleep!! Lol! You definitely should join the spirited babies group. We know exactly what you mean.

[Mommyof3nSC]

1. Is this typical behaviour? ( I have a degree in early childhood education but I haven't done much work with babies and I have never seen one like this lol)

*I have 3 children, I bottle fed the first two & nursed the youngest. I nursed until almost 11 months & he was just as you described. The only difference was he was nursing more during the day. As long as it was there he would take it, but the up ever 3 hours all the way to about 14 months was hard. He is trying to be independent right now, hence the not wanting to cuddle and the all over the place. As for the no changing & bathing & all that its just the age, all of mine acted like that at one time or another.

2. Do you think he could have cabin fever like I do?

*It definitely could be cabin fever. Babies need a change in environment as much as we do, they just can't verbalize it like we can. Try to do some more organized activities, like sitting down to read a book at the same time each day (yes I know he's not going to want to sit, but you sit & keep sitting until you are done with the book) eventually he will catch on & sit with you.

3. Do you think that the tension/frustration that goes along with learning to walk could be contributing to his wildness?

*It could, but babies don't hold on to things like we do, in a few seconds its usually gone. My two year old is over things within 90 seconds.

4. Any ideas about how to calm him down or teach him to relax a little? He will have no part in baby massage and even when I use candlelight and lavendar in the bath he is still squirrely!

*I think its just him, his personality right now & his adventure in learning the world around him. Again you can try to be a little more organized with some activities geared towards him. Try a craft time each day, even if its not something very detailed, just something he will get his hands into. It will help his attention and give him something to look forward to.

[callahansmama]

I never thought of the food thing! He self-feeds and while I offer him chicken, beef, egg yolk or fish at least once or twice a day, I usually end up throwing it out. I think he does need to eat more probably. He loves yogurt and cheese but also fruits and veggies and that is what he mostly eats (although no purees). He is very big though - 24 lbs at 10.5 months! He has been big since he was about 2 weeks old. I think he doubled his birth weight by 2 months! Tripled by 7 or 8! It has slowed down because he's so mobile but maybe I will try some higher fat stuff. I'm not trying to avoid it, I guess I just try to give him a healthy diet as I can. He does like avocado and toast with butter. I will keep trying. Good to know he's not abnormal! I tried cheerio play in plastic bin today with cars and cups and he loved it. I'll just keep trying new things. I thnk I will aim to get to playgroup two days a week too. Thanks everyone!

(I did post in the spirited babies thread but it didn't show up?)

[EDDMayDay]

I don't know, but it sounds like you have a future Olympian or sports star on your hands.  Find a way to focus his energy (when he's older), or at least let him wear himself out so that he sleeps longer.  

Best of luck!  I hope you find something local that will help you with your little guy!  I totally understand the "too busy to nurse, mom!" thing, my daughter just turned 11 months today and she is exactly the same way.  I try to feed her immediately after waking up (morning, naps, etc) so that she's nice and groggy.

[theveganmom]

This sounds exactly like my 9 month old son, I can barely keep up. I just baby proof as much as possible to make it easier for me, also active type toys, my MIL bought us a baby trampoline it has a handle on it and he loves to hold on and jump. Also a little radio flyer walker wagon keeps him busy. Other than that he has little interest in toys mostly tries to climb everything. Also I think going out in nature will help a lot. We live in Vermont so winters are long, I brought him outside and let him crawl around on the grass this spring and it he loved it. All I can say is good luck and hopefully when he is older you can focus the energy.