# Day 241: Month nine

> Eight months old today. The 9-month list is now one month out, the checkup at the end of this month brings a developmental screening questionnaire, and corrected age still counts.

- Series: Your ninth month, day by day (https://chorevia.com/learn/ninth-month), day 241 of 365, week 33
- Canonical URL: https://chorevia.com/learn/ninth-month/day-241
- Last reviewed: 2026-10-21
- Publisher: Chorevia (https://chorevia.com)
- Cite as: Chorevia. "Day 241: Month nine." Last reviewed October 21, 2026. https://chorevia.com/learn/ninth-month/day-241

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

Eight months old today. The last month's notes are at [your eighth month](https://chorevia.com/learn/eighth-month). This month ends at the 9-month visit, so it starts with the list that visit will ask about, read the way it's meant to be read.

## Heart

By 9 months, most babies are shy, clingy, or fearful around strangers; show several facial expressions; look when you call their name; react when you leave; smile or laugh at peekaboo; make lots of different sounds like "mamamama" and "bababababa"; lift their arms to be picked up; look for objects dropped out of sight; bang two things together; get to a sitting position on their own; sit without support; move things from one hand to the other; and rake food toward themselves ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/9-months.html)). Your baby is 8 months old. The list is a month away, and "most" means skills at least 75% of babies show by that age, so a missed one is a reason to check in, not to wait and see ([Zubler et al., 2022](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35132439/)). Born early? Use corrected age for milestones during the first 2 years ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/preemie/Pages/Corrected-Age-For-Preemies.aspx)).

## Head

What's new this month is the visit. The AAP recommends a standardized developmental screening at the 9-month checkup ([Lipkin & Macias, 2020](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31843861/); [AAP, 2025](https://downloads.aap.org/AAP/PDF/periodicity_schedule.pdf)), often a parent questionnaire like the Ages & Stages Questionnaires ([ASQ](https://agesandstages.com/about-asq/)). Expect a full exam too, questions about sleep and pulling to stand, and fluoride varnish once teeth are in ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/Your-Childs-Checkups/Pages/Your-Checkup-Checklist-9-Months-Old.aspx)). You fill the questionnaire in yourself, which is why today's activity is a dry run. And if a worry is already there, you don't have to wait a month: ask about screening now, or call your state's early intervention program for a free evaluation; you don't need a referral ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/families/concerned.html)).

## Body

What the month looks like, from the guide. Crawling is usually mastered between 7 and 10 months by the babies who crawl, though a few scoot on their bottoms or slither instead ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Movement-8-to-12-Months.aspx)), and it isn't on any CDC checklist ([Kretch et al., 2022](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35876833/)). By the end of this stage, most babies pinch with thumb and finger and practice on anything small, from cereal to dust balls ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Hand-and-Finger-Skills.aspx)). Separation anxiety usually gets stronger around 9 months ([Swanson, AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/toddler/Pages/Soothing-Your-Childs-Separation-Anxiety.aspx)). Each gets its own day.

## Try today

### The screening preview

- **Time:** 10 minutes, with your partner if you can

1. Open the CDC's 9-month list on your phone or print it ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/9-months.html)).
2. Read each item out loud as a question, the way a parent questionnaire like the ASQ asks them ([ASQ](https://agesandstages.com/about-asq/)): "Does your baby look when you call their name?"
3. Answer "yes," "sometimes," or "not yet." No scoring; the list is for a month from now.
4. Write the "not yet" items on the back of the paper. Those are the ones to raise at the visit; screening is meant to open a conversation with your pediatrician, not end one ([Lipkin & Macias, 2020](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31843861/)).

**Make it work:** If you were told to use corrected age, use it here too ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/preemie/Pages/Corrected-Age-For-Preemies.aspx)).

## Watch for

- **Normal:** a baby who sits alone but tips when reaching far; sitting without support has until 9 months ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/9-months.html)). **Bring it up with your pediatrician** if by 9 months your baby doesn't sit without support, look when you call their name, or babble lots of different sounds ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/9-months.html)).
- **Normal:** a skill that shows up one day and hides for a week. **Talk with your pediatrician** if your baby has lost skills they used to have ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/9-months.html)).
- **Normal:** a low fever that came and went with a cold. **Call your pediatrician right away** for a fever over 104°F (40°C), or shaking chills lasting more than 30 minutes ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/tips-tools/symptom-checker/Pages/symptomviewer.aspx?symptom=Fever)).

## For you

A new month, the same list for you, briefly. The CDC's urgent maternal warning signs apply for a full year after birth: a headache that won't go away or gets worse, dizziness or fainting, changes in vision, a fever of 100.4°F or higher, extreme swelling of the hands or face, trouble breathing, chest pain or a fast-beating heart, severe belly pain that doesn't go away, heavy bleeding, overwhelming tiredness, or thoughts about harming yourself or your baby. Any of them means care now; tell whoever sees you that you were pregnant within the last year ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/hearher/maternal-warning-signs/index.html)). The quieter line holds too: if sadness has lasted more than two weeks, go to your own doctor without waiting for a visit ([Office on Women's Health](https://womenshealth.gov/pregnancy/childbirth-and-beyond/recovering-birth)).

If you're the partner: the baby's questionnaire comes at the visit. Hers doesn't. Ask the question yourself tonight, and listen past "fine."

## Sources

- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Milestones by 9 Months." Learn the Signs. Act Early. program, updated 2026. https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/9-months.html
- Zubler JM, Wiggins LD, Macias MM, et al. "Evidence-Informed Milestones for Developmental Surveillance Tools." *Pediatrics*, 2022. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35132439/
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Corrected Age For Preemies." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2018. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/preemie/Pages/Corrected-Age-For-Preemies.aspx
- Lipkin PH, Macias MM; AAP Council on Children With Disabilities, Section on Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. "Promoting Optimal Development: Identifying Infants and Young Children With Developmental Disorders Through Developmental Surveillance and Screening." *Pediatrics*, 2020. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31843861/
- American Academy of Pediatrics and Bright Futures. "Recommendations for Preventive Pediatric Health Care" (Periodicity Schedule). 2025. https://downloads.aap.org/AAP/PDF/periodicity_schedule.pdf
- Brookes Publishing. "About ASQ." Ages & Stages Questionnaires, accessed 2026. https://agesandstages.com/about-asq/
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Checkup Checklist: 9 Months Old." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2021. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/Your-Childs-Checkups/Pages/Your-Checkup-Checklist-9-Months-Old.aspx
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Concerned About Your Child's Development?" Updated 2026. https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/families/concerned.html
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Movement Milestones in Babies 8 to 12 Months Old." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2021. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Movement-8-to-12-Months.aspx
- Kretch KS, Willett SL, Hsu LY, et al. "'Learn the Signs. Act Early.': Updates and Implications for Physical Therapists." *Pediatric Physical Therapy*, 2022. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35876833/
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Hand and Finger Skills." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2009. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Hand-and-Finger-Skills.aspx
- Swanson WS. "How to Ease Your Child's Separation Anxiety." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2026. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/toddler/Pages/Soothing-Your-Childs-Separation-Anxiety.aspx
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Fever" (symptom checker). HealthyChildren.org, accessed 2026. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/tips-tools/symptom-checker/Pages/symptomviewer.aspx?symptom=Fever
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Urgent Maternal Warning Signs and Symptoms." HEAR HER, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/hearher/maternal-warning-signs/index.html
- Office on Women's Health. "Recovering from birth." US Department of Health and Human Services, 2021. https://womenshealth.gov/pregnancy/childbirth-and-beyond/recovering-birth