Baby Blog

The moment your baby is able, whether at two months or ten months old, they begin to put everything and anything in their mouths. Since my baby boy was a few months old this has been one of his favorite pastimes. I thought once he could walk and talk he would grow out of it.  Okay well that didn’t happen. The nature and scope of baby’s mouth exploration may have changed but it hasn’t gone away. So what do you do when baby has to put things in his mouth?

Of course the best thing is not to have anything available for the baby to actually put in his mouth. And of course this is totally impossible. Unless you are super mom, have a home free of any objects and a baby who is unable to move.

The best thing to do is a daily sweep. Every morning, bleary eyed and coffee light I wander through my home carrying baby Nik and surveying my surroundings. I get on the floor and look under furniture, check the reachability of bills, books and bags, feel with my bare feet for dropped pins and paper clips and remove any visible temptation to higher ground before putting Nik down.

In my house, we are at the point where I can actually ask baby Nik what he has in his mouth. My darling child will politely remove the object from his mouth, show it to me then pop it back in his mouth and begin to run. If I glimpse a toy, a piece of paper or a piece of toast, I’ve learned to slowly saunter in his general direction. If I see hints of metallic, sharp points or any item I do not recognize, it’s time to run.

I’m stunned I still have baby weight giving the amount of room to room sprinting I endure on a daily basis.

Other than that (checking and reclaiming I mean not running and baby weight) there seems to be only so much you can do about baby putting things in their mouth.  It’s a matter of picking your battles and of course constant supervision.

I asked baby Nik to put his puzzle pieces away this afternoon. I watched as he licked each piece before placing it in his puzzle box. I was reminded of an archaeologist friend who determines the type of rocks in their vicinity by licking them. Maybe baby Nik will never grow out of this stage. He could just find different things to put in his mouth.

Hopefully it’s a flute or a saxophone and not dirty rocks from the field.

A mother can dream.