Baby 7–12 months

12 Month Old Baby

Around the first birthday

What this month often looks like

Around the first birthday many babies play back-and-forth games like peek-a-boo and wave bye-bye.
Some babies begin saying a special word they use for a parent or a familiar caregiver.
Many pull up to stand and move sideways along the furniture while holding on.

Pulling up to stand while holding stable support is something many babies do around their first birthday, though the age varies widely.
Getting up is often solved well before getting back down.
Some babies begin moving sideways while holding furniture. Others stay happily seated for a while longer, and both are ordinary.
Picking up a small safe object between thumb and finger is something many babies do around one year.
Looking for an object that you hide from view is something many babies do around one year.
Searching may become more deliberate: lifting the cloth rather than looking at where it was.
Waving goodbye, and using other familiar gestures, is something many babies do around one year.
Handing an object to you and waiting may be an invitation to keep a game going rather than a gift.
Using a familiar sound or word with meaning, such as calling a parent, is something many babies do around one year. Some do this later, and the range is wide.
Independent walking is not a first-birthday requirement. It arrives across a wide age range, and standing, cruising or moving another way is where many babies are at a year.

Stable, low, non-tipping surfaces suit this stage. Baby walkers are not used.
Hide a toy fully under a cloth while they watch, then wait rather than helping.
Roll a soft ball back and forth. The returning is the part being practised.
A familiar action song, repeated, is still one of the most useful things you can offer.

Look how far you and your baby have come.
It is okay to still be figuring things out.
Standing practice arrives on its own schedule and does not need encouraging.
Finer hand control usually shows up in what gets picked off the floor first.
Being wrong about where it went is part of working it out.
Gestures often carry meaning steadily before any word does.
A year in, most of what you know about your baby was learned by paying attention, not by being told.

Celebrating small wins — yours and theirs — is worth it.

41 activity ideas suit this age — most take about five minutes and need nothing you do not already have.

ParentSide has 60 recipes for 12–18 months, each with its texture, portion and preparation notes.

Services ParentSide defines for this stage. Each page explains what the service covers and which professionals are approved to provide it.

Sources

If you are worried about your wellbeing or your baby's wellbeing, consider contacting a qualified health professional.