Do you believe in wonder weeks?

I am such a believer in the concept of wonder weeks. It just makes so much sense.

But before I start with all the times I have witnessed the phenomenon, I will start with what it is. A period of time when your baby is particularly troublesome, demanding, or fussy due to the fact that he or she is going through a developmental leap and will emerge on the other side with a new skill, such as:Crazy, climbing monkey.

I can not remember when I first learned of the concept. It may have been when EBug was a tiny tiny tot, but I really latched onto the idea with Brother Bear. I remember when he was about 12 weeks old, he started acting weird. He had been napping and sleeping at night really well for a while and then boom! He just seemed fussy and kept waking up at odd times. Of course I needed answers. So, I wandered around on the internet and stumbled upon a list of the wonder weeks. Sure enough there was week 12 on the list, and  just as the theory suggests, he came to the end of that week having learned to suck his thumb and was happy as a clam.

Babies go through stuff. They just do. They are developing and changing at an insane rate. Everyone wants to assume that every time a baby is unusually fussy they are getting a tooth! But it’s not always a tooth, people! Brother Bear has five teeth. That’s it. And I can count way more than five periods of time when I have thought, “What in the world is up with this kid!”

The reason I find this concept blog-worthy is because it has been so helpful to me. It gives real backbone to the “this too shall pass” mentality. When Brother takes a few short naps or seems to have been possessed by a siren, I don’t fret myself into a tizzy, I just wait a few days, it passes, and he can do something new like laugh or roll or crawl or babble or point.

He has recently passed through just such a time, and it truly has been a wonder. Certain days it feels like he wakes up older. It’s weird. And this past week he has just felt so very old all of a sudden. I know that he has shed a little of his babyhood, and that’s hard. But I know he’s growing into himself and has gained a new skill, and that is exciting. We have a walker! And we are all so proud of him. We have all been cheering him on and helping him practice, and he is really getting good.

He will still crawl some, if something is super urgent and he needs to get somewhere fast. But he can take many many steps and is gaining balance and control.

I am glad this wonder week is coming to a close. It’s rough when they fuss and fuss without explanation, so getting to the other side of these time periods is an accomplishment for everyone!

*One thing to think about with wonder weeks. I personally don’t think that every baby can be put on the exact same developmental calendar. Every child definitely acquires his skills in his own time. I am just totally into the concept that fussiness and sleep interruptions can precede a new skill. It helps me relax a little 🙂