'Fraidy Cat

Maisy's closing in on 6 and a half months old, and she still doesn't roll over. This isn't anything I lose sleep over. I know all babies are different. Maisy supported her head from a super early age; she can pick up a Cheerio with a pincer grasp; she's been imitating sounds and facial expressions since she was 4 months old; and she's been sitting since right before 5 months. So she doesn't roll over? Big deal.

Here's my theory about the rolling: She's a 'fraidy cat. Or should I say 'fraidy kitty? I have some evidence to back this up. First, though, here are a few reasons I've ruled out:

Ruled-Out Reason #1: Not enough tummy time
Like many babies who sleep on their backs, Maisy wasn't a huge fan of tummy time. We were persistent, though. We started early. We figured out the times of day that work best. We let her fuss a little as long as she wasn't all-out crying. We let her be when she was content. We gave her a variety of toys, mirrors, colorful blankets. We got down on her level. Really, we did tummy time.

The result was a baby who could do an awesome, long-lasting, straight-armed push-up since four months. However, she hated the feeling of flailing around on her tummy "swimming" with her arms and legs. She'll do a little more of that now, reaching after toys and using a leg for leverage, but mostly she's just a push-up rock star.

Ruled-Out Reason #2: She's not strong enough
This is like reason #1. And like I said above, she has some seriously great upper body and back strength. It's just that she doesn't let herself go. If she gets tired of her everlasting push-up, she carefully lets herself down. When she's ready, she pops back up again. Plenty strong.

Ruled-Out Reason #3: She's not motivated enough
Okay, I can't completely rule this one out. Maisy is a pretty contented baby, so sometimes on her tummy she'll just chill out or suck her thumb happily. But she likes playing with toys, and she reaches for them when she sits, when she's in her exersaucer, when she's in her car seat. And finally, more frequently now, on her tummy.

Evidence for a 'Fraidy Kitty
This morning, Maisy was happily and noisily sitting up and playing with some toys. I was washing dishes nearby. Apparently, she decided she wanted her little lion rattle toy which was just out of reach. Bam! Baby down! (Flat on her face.) And baby screaming! I swooped her into my lap and calmed her down.

Soon, I tried to tempt her with the lion rattle again. She really seemed to want that toy, but just the sight of it set her to sniffling again. Finally, she cautiously reached for it - and pulled back. Reach - pull back. Reach - pull back. When she felt safe enough, she reached for it and got it, happily shaking it. When she dropped it, I attempted to tempt her again, but no such luck. It was just too scary. My little cry-baby-'fraidy-kitty would not go after that mean old lion again.

This isn't the first time Maisy has landed sprawled out when reaching for a toy from a seated position. (It's really pretty funny, even though she rarely thinks so.) What I've noticed is that she does it less and less, in part because she's a bit more coordinated. Mostly, though, I think she's learned from her mistakes and figured out what her limit is. She just figures, "Whatever, Toy, I don't need you," and moves on to a different form of entertainment.

I think I have a cautious baby. She definitely doesn't get that from Daddy. And you know what? I'm okay with having a little 'fraidy kitty. Fewer ER visits are fine by me. As for the rolling, she'll roll if she needs to, and I don't doubt that she'll crawl, walk, and run eventually anyway. Probably not too much climbing, though, but I guess time will tell.