Is your baby around other babies?

Heidi - posted on 06/27/2012

my daughter who is 2 now has been going to a baby and toddler group since she was 7 months old its only for a hour and a half a week te rest of the times she with adult her siblings are adults and she fine i dont see a reason ur baby shouldnt be ok just being with adults hun

Sarah-Louise - posted on 06/25/2012

Here is my opinion, which is not totally unfounded. I took child psychology in college which didn’t really make a whole lot of sense until I had my son 8 months ago. The education was both a good and bad thing, good because I have an insight not many mothers have and bad because honestly it makes me a little paranoid. One big thing in baby development is social interaction; because it’s something they’re going to have ALL their life. Social stimulus starts actually in the womb, which most people don’t get. They are already developing by listening to the tones of your voice. When they are born, having a limited amount of people around is usually the best thing, babies need less stimulation at this age and more consistency. However when you child really starts to pay attention to his/her surroundings you want to start to introduce them to more people and different social surroundings in order to develop the part of the brain that processes that. Having your child only around adults isn’t a BAD thing but it’s also not beneficial to your child’s development because let’s face it, they aren’t going to be behaving like that for a very long time. Having your child around other babies is vital for their understanding. Kind of like you wouldn’t be able to dive into a pool without seeing someone else do it first. Having your child around other small children allows them to see different stages that they have yet to reach, or have just passed. My son and I go to a baby group once a week where he gets to play with a number of children who are around his same age. The interaction is great, I LOVE watching him play with the others. He has learned very well that the babies who are a bit older are okay to crawl all over and generally be a bit rougher with and the younger babies he has to be gentle with (he loves holding hands with them and petting their cheeks when they cry. SO CUTE!) Then he also gets some one-on-one time once a week with one of the babies from the group. He is now at the point where he recognizes the different kids and is able to adapt his behavior accordingly. It is very important to have your children around others during the developmental stage of babyhood (around 3 months and up) in order to secure their ability to interact in different social situations as well as with different people. As they get older it will be much easier for them to get along with others and understand that you must act differently in different situations with different people.

Krystal - posted on 09/18/2010

Well my son has his cousin who is 15 months old and hangs around other kids occasionally that are between 8m-2yrs. I dont think it would matter too much when they are younger. I guess when they can move around crawling/walking it would be good for them to interact with other kids. My son is 6 months old when he sees other kids walking around he wants to go after them so he can play with them, but he hasnt learnt to crawl yet. But he wants to be everywhere that people are. Maybe even going to a playgroup or even daycare so your baby can watch all the other children. My son will eventually be going to daycare so that I can go back to work a couple days a week. My friend finally took her son to daycare once a week and he is 2. He found it a little hard a first as he wasnt round kids his age before he went to daycare, but now he is good.

Jessica - posted on 09/18/2010

Both my kids were around other kids/babies from an early age. Our oldest started daycare when he was just over 6 weeks old, as I had to go back to work, being that I was starting a new job. And this time around, although our youngest only started daycare about 3 weeks ago when I went back to work, and he was home with me from when he was born March 31st until the last week of August, he has been around other kids/babies quite a bit, besides his brother. I am fortunate to have MANY friends who have children and/or babies for him to be around, on top of daycare stimulation. (I have 14 friends right now that are pregnant and due between now and February of next year, as well as about 8 other friends/family that have recently had babies). I think as long as you are playing with your child, it isn't as big of a deal as it seems until they get to that age where they truly start interacting and playing with other kids. Have you checked into playgroups?

Heidi - posted on 08/22/2010

i have a daughter a 5 months and she has a friend at 4 months shes fine im taking her to a baby group next month to get her socisled

Jillian - posted on 08/18/2010

My daughter is around other kids all the time. I am very fortunate to have a best friend that has a daughter that is 3 weeks younger than mine. They love to play on the floor and talk to eachother, and even just lay and stare at eachother. I believe that they can teach eachother things, and that kids should be socialized.

Kimberly - posted on 08/14/2010

Both my girls have always been around other kids, both their own ages and older, and I love watching them interact. With that, it is always good to expose them to other children when you can, but s long as they get age appropriate interaction from adults, it is not going to hurt them any :-) If you are that worried, maybe start a play date with moms in your area, or spend time at the park so she can watch other kids play.

Natalia - posted on 08/13/2010

I would seem to think it is ok but I'm not really for sure. My 5 yr old plays with my 5 month old all of the time and also my 10 yr old step daughter. I did have a rough time with my 5 yr old when he started pre-K though because he was not used to being around kids his age....Hope this helps.

Karina - posted on 08/13/2010

My daughter is 4 1/2 months old and his been around a variety of ages (from babies like her to elderly people). She's a very smart baby and is already dragging herself up to something or someone when she wants it. She pays attention to everyone and everything. She especially loves the color red or any shade of it (other than pink) and she's very active. I whisper into her ear sometimes and she stays still and listens. She occasionally laughs at something funny I whisper to her. One time we took her to my friend's house to visit and see her son. Her son is 2 months older than her and was rolling around easily and getting on his knees and hands. She saw him do what he did and tried to do exactly the same thing but got mad because she couldn't ^_^. So I guess it's a good thing that I keep her around different people. it helps her learn many things and techniques.

Christina - posted on 08/13/2010

Mason's around alot of kids. All different ages, mainly in our community all of his buddies are out of town visiting family members, but they will be back next month. His friends are usually a year old or younger.

Loren - posted on 08/13/2010

I am an infant teacher where I work and my daughter gets to come with me. She loves watching the other babies and toddlers play and move around, She is so good in the room I was very surprised. Look for a play group that you could go to and see how she does ! Social interaction is good for kids no mattter what age because it helps with there social skills and watching there personalities with others as they grow !

Shannon - posted on 08/13/2010

We are in two meetup groups as well as we go to the library for baby time. A lot of times Jackson is the the youngest but he really likes to watch all the older kids. And now within our groups we have found babies close to his age to have one on one play dates with. The more we do it the more they seem to interact. I find it very beneficial. And maybe it is just a coincidence but it seems like several of the babies have done several things for the first time at these play dates. Jackson sat up on his own for the first time on a play date!

Alicia - posted on 08/13/2010

I watch my friends son 3 times a wk & i was told my my dr that even though my son is only 5 mos & my friends son is only 1 yr, that it is very good for them to be around each other at such a young age. They really dont play with each other, but they do stare & try to talk to each other (its so cute, might i add!!). I dont think its bad that your child is always around adults, but what about searching around your city or town for places that set up playdates with other mothers & their kids?

Teresa - posted on 08/12/2010

you could use an internet search for baby groups in your community. I take my baby to a baby group run by the company that hosted our prenatal classes. once a week it is nice to be around other babies and other moms with babies the same age as Caleb.
getting your child to be comfortable socializing with other children at a young age (before preschool/kindergarten) is important, but they are still really young and it isn't that urgent of an issue yet.

Rosy - posted on 08/11/2010

Lachlan is hardly ever around other babies either, I do see my friend with a 14 month old girl quite a lot but there isn't much interaction between them (I think she thinks he's a dolly lol). I don't think it's too much of a problem! x

Danielle - posted on 08/10/2010

My son (4 mos) is always around other babies and children, and even being so young he loves to play and interact with them. More than anything it is so wonderful to watch him have fun with them and get so excited! I definately helps your child socially if they can interact with others their own age from an early start.

Katie - posted on 08/10/2010

My little guy is also fascinated with other babies. We go to an early years centre near our home. They offer programs like infant massage and other baby/toddler gatherings. It's all free, so it's been nice seeing him interact with other little ones. He also has 7 cousins between the ages of 1 and 7, so he has been around kids quite a bit. I would recommend finding some type of mommy and baby program in your area.

Becky - posted on 08/09/2010

i'm a nanny to 1 yr old triplets, so my son sees other babies a lot..!

i think she would be fine... though when she gets a bit older, i think it'd be wise to at least bring her to a park or a play group so she can see other babies her age... it's good for a baby in social and mental development... (i am an infant teacher at a private education center). My son has been around babies and toddler since he was 8 days old..my friend had a baby 1 day after my son was born, so they hang out a lot, and then i have several friends that have babies between the ages of 3 mos and 1 1/2 yrs :) my son LOVES other babies...

Renee - posted on 08/09/2010

All you moms are lucky to have mom and tot groups around you. I live in a rural area and there is no such thing around where I live. All of my family lives over 300 miles away. Most of my friends also disappeared after I had my son 2 years ago. None of them are married or have kids...they still like to go out and party and have a good time and I can't do that with a husband and 2 kids.

April - posted on 08/08/2010

I take my daughter to a couple of baby groups each week, when I can...and I have a couple of friends with babies close in age that I try to get together with as often as possible, but it is hard with so many different schedules.

Amanda - posted on 08/08/2010

I guess its great socially for the babies to be around other babies, u know! mine is just fine. he is 5 months now.

Dianne - posted on 08/08/2010

yes i joined a mums and bubs group early on which is free and we all had babies (12 of us) within a month or two of each other, after the official catchups (6wks) we continue meeting at each others houses/coffee shops, the babies love seeing each other and it will be great for them to play together when they are older. theres nothing wrong with not seeing many babies but i think they enjoy and benefit from seeing their own age group

Kimberly - posted on 08/08/2010

I have a few friends with babies, but I see them very rarely. If you'd like to have more social time with other kids, try taking her to the park, or a community centre with mom and baby programs. You'll get social time too!

Renee - posted on 08/08/2010

My son, who is now 2 is only around kids when we visit family...but they are all older than he is by 6+ years. We see them about every 6-8weeks for a few days. Now with my daughter (4mos) she is only around her big brother. My son is very social and loves to be around people no matter the age, but has a certain fascination with kids his own size. I feel the same way as you, that I might be depriving him of social interaction with other kids his own age. There is no day care around me that has openings until they are 3yr and potty trained. I also work out of my home so I have a hard time seeing paying for day care if I am home.

Amy - posted on 08/08/2010

My now 4 year old was never around kids/babies and is really smart for his age. He starts pre-school in the fall so it should be really interesting since he prefers playing with kids that are older. My daughter is only around my son and occasionally she sees her cousin who is a month older but really only has any interest in her brother.