In this Article
You may notice a whole lot of changes happening in your 13-month-old baby. He may seem to be more independent and may have turned into a little explorer. He may have plucked a few steps and may be walking in a cute wobbly way. Here in the following article, we shall be discussing what all is happening with your 13-month-old baby in terms of growth and development.
13 Month Old Toddler Development
Your little voyager may be exploring everything in the household, therefore be ready to capture some fun moments with your little one. Though this age may tire and tax you a bit, you would not want to miss all the wonderful things that your baby does at this age. It is recommended to be little aware and vigilant of your baby’s actions as your baby’s eyes may see and explore what you may not have even paid heed too. In the following paragraphs, we shall discuss your baby’s physical, social and cognitive development and what other 13-month-old baby milestones he is likely to achieve.
Physical Development
According to World Health Organisation, the average 13-month-old baby weight is approximately 20.2 pounds and 21.8 pounds for girls and boys respectively, and the average height for this age babies can be 29.6 inches for girls and 30.3 inches for boys. These are the average parameters for weight and height, but every baby is different, and if your baby does not fit into these parameters, there is no need to panic. Following are some common physical development milestones that a 13-month-old baby may achieve:
- Your baby can stand and sit independently.
- Your baby is able to walk by holding your hand or furniture in the house.
- Your baby has a better grasp and is able to hold smaller objects like crayons, pencils and coins using his fingertips.
- Your baby is able to clap and waves you goodbye.
- Your baby plays games like peek-a-boo with you.
Social and Emotional Development
Your baby at this age has a better understanding of emotions and feelings than before. He is more social in exhibiting various emotions too. Here are some of the social and emotional skills that your baby may have acquired by this age:
- Your baby may seem clingy and needy; this may be due to separation anxiety.
- Your baby may spend some time playing on his own.
- Your baby may throw tantrums if he feels stressed or anxious.
- Your baby may laugh and giggle at various things that amuse him.
- Your baby act wary of strangers may hide and act clingy under such circumstances.
Cognitive and Language Development
Your toddler is soaking and processing too much information at this stage. He may act amazed and frustrated too, and these feelings are very normal. During this time, your toddler is able to achieve following milestones in the sphere of language and cognitive development:
- Your baby is able to understand and comprehend verbal commands.
- Your baby may point at things that he wants or wishes to play with.
- Your baby may babble few words like, “mama”, “dada” etc.
- Your baby may have learnt to say ‘No’.
- Your baby may communicate his feelings through gestures.
Behaviour
As your little one’s world expands and opens up, so does his box of emotions. You may find your baby’s behaviour changing, and you may find him becoming clearer with what he wants now. Is your baby becoming spoilt? No, he is not; your baby is just trying to absorb and assimilate what all he is observing and experiencing. You may be required to exercise a great amount of patience with your little one as it may not be easy for you to have things your way from now on. Brace yourself to deal with tantrums, separation anxiety and various other changing behaviours at this stage.
Food and Nutrition
On an average, your 13-month-old baby requires approximately 1000 calories a day, though it is not necessary that you go by these standards. In simpler words, by this age, your baby can have one-fourth of what you are eating. Your baby may be all picky and choosy at this age; you can help her make her choices in food. It is recommended that you may introduce various tastes and flavours but if your baby resists certain food items, refrain from force-feeding. Your 13-month-old baby feeding schedule may include three main meals and two mini meals or snacks. It is suggested that you give him a variety of food items that contain fruits, vegetables, cereals and dairy etc. in appropriate amounts.
If you have not transitioned to solid foods, you can also start giving full-fat milk to your toddler. This is the time when your baby’s brain is developing, and it requires good amounts of fat to aid brain development. Though if you wish to wean your baby off from the breast, now is a good time but if you want to continue, you may do so for up to two years of age.
It is important that you give due importance to your baby’s diet and nutrition at this stage. Keep monitoring your baby’s weight and growth if he is a fussy eater and gets it touch with your doctor if he is not gaining enough weight. Discuss what you can include in your 13-month baby food for proper growth and development.
Sleeping
You may notice that by 13 months of age your baby is more settled and almost has a set routine of sleep. However, sometimes this pattern may get disrupted due to teething, developmental issues and sometimes due to illness. But on an average, your baby will be sleeping 11 to 14 hours in 24 hours. This can be further divided into one or two daytime naps and one uninterrupted night sleep.
It is very common for your toddler to feel easily distracted and he may even refuse to go to sleep. This is because he gets so lured by the things around and wishes to explore that sleep may seem a futile activity. If your baby still resists going to sleep, do not force him to do so. It is imperative you create an environment for sleeping and also stick to a schedule. Also giving your baby warm water bath before bedtime is a good way of inducing good sleep.
Play and Activities
Your baby is more active and playful than ever before, and all he wishes to do is play and have fun, but you may notice that he gets easily bored too. The question here is what you can do to keep your baby fruitfully active and happy at the same time. Worry no more; here we have some fun activities and games that you can engage your toddler in.
- Do things together: Your baby loves to do things and chores with you. It will be a good idea to let him be with you in your daily chores. If you are cutting vegetables, you can give him some to play with. If you are doing laundry, give him a cloth and a mug of water to fiddle with and so on.
- Books for colouring and drawing: Though it may seem a little early it is not. Kids at this age love to scribble and thus now will be a good time to give your baby a picture colouring book and some colours.
- Peek-a-boo: Your toddler will love to play this little hide and seek game with you.
- Play with the ball: You can play many games with the ball and playing pass and pass can be the one you can start with
Vaccination For Thirteen Month Old Baby
It is very important to stick to your baby’s vaccination schedule and health check-ups. However, if you have missed any of your baby’s 12-month-old vaccination, you can get them now. Here are some of the one-year vaccinations that your doctor may recommend for your baby:
- Meningococcal (MenCCV)
- Hepatitis B (Hep B)
- Haemophilus influenza type b (Hib)
- Measles, mumps and rubella (MMR)
Tips for Parents
Here are some tips for the parents to take better care of their 13-month-old babies:
- Your child loves to explore. Thus it is suggested that you get your house child-proofed.
- Your baby has started walking; it is recommended to buy him a good pair of shoes that provide good support for walking.
- Do not miss any of your baby’s doctor visits and vaccinations.
- Take care of your baby’s nutrition and diet and consult your doctor if required.
- Get a good car seat for your baby.
- Refrain from smoking in your baby’s presence.
- Make a sleep and feeding schedule for your baby.
Consult a Doctor If
It is normal for the parents to compare their baby’s growth and development milestones with the other kids of the same age. Every baby is unique and different in his own ways, and thus it is not advisable to do so. However, if you notice that your baby is not achieving common milestones that he should have achieved by this age, you may consult your doctor. If you notice these developmental delays in your baby, talk to your doctor about it:
- Your baby is not able to stand.
- Your baby is unable to grasp objects with fingers.
- Your baby does not understand your simple instructions.
- Your baby is not emoting or expressing
If you register any of the above-mentioned symptoms or any other symptoms that may not seem normal of a baby of this age, you should consult your doctor.
