Baby Not Reaching For Toys

[Anonymous]

I just noticed that my 5 month old doesn't reach for toys. He uses his hands a lot to bat at toys and grab them, so I guess I didn't notice that he wasn't going for them himself. It's more that once he coincidentally hits one, he keeps repeating that motion. I'm actually embarassed because I told the ped he was reaching at his last appointment, and my mom and DH thought he was as well. His daycare teachers confirmed that he doesn't reach for anything yet. His vision is fine and he's hit every other milestone on time. Just wondering if anyone has experience with this and whether I should be concerned?

[Anonymous]

I don't really see the difference between what you are describing and reaching for toys. Babies usually try things the first time by accident (i.e., their hands bat against something, they try it again more purposefully). In a couple of weeks he will be doing it more purposefully.

[Anonymous]

PP, if we hold a toy out to him or above him, he will just stare at it or 'talk' to it. He will only grab it if we hand it right to him or if he's moving his arms around and happens to hit it. If he's in his playgym, he has better luck with batting at things because it's hard to miss those toys but for the first minutes or so in it he usually just stares and babbles. He doesn't start batting until he accidentally hits something with his arm. So, yes, it's all accidental and not purposeful.

[Anonymous]

Agree with PP. My DD didn't make a concerted effort to reach for toys until about 5 or 6 months and then it was somewhat clumsily. She's also a bit lazy I think and doesn't really extend herself to grab things too far out of reach. But if you're worried, speak to your pediatrician. There's nothing wrong with being proactive.

[Anonymous]

As a parent of twins, I've learned that whenever I get worried about one of my children being "behind" in some milestone or another, I'll notice that he'll be quicker or more advanced in some other "milestone". At this stage, they are learning and it's hard to learn everything at once. My perspective is that they focus on different things and try to get better at what interests them first. Our 6.5 mo twins, one is a babbler and is already starting to improve on certain sounds and noises. He's also the watcher and has to identify anything and everything, but he's less developmentally advanced on sitting up and motions. The other twin is more advance on motions, closer to sitting up on his own, kicking and control of his limbs. But, he's less interested in things visually and less interested in forming sounds. So, check to see if your son is more advanced somewhere else.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't worry too much about it, but give your pediatrician a call to clarify. If she/he is concerned, they'll tell you to come in for an appointment.

[Anonymous]

This sounds normal to me. Bring it up to your pediatrician if you're concerned.

[Anonymous]

That is normal. It's exactly what my DD was doing at that age.