Your Baby at 8 Months: Crawling, Peekaboo and Separation Anxiety

What your baby is doing

Eight-month-olds are often crawling, scooting, or rolling to get where they want to go, and some are pulling up on furniture. A big mental leap is object permanence: understanding that things still exist when they’re hidden. It powers peekaboo, the joy of dropping things off the high chair, and the sudden distress when you leave the room.

Coming up by 9 months, the CDC lists milestones such as looking when you call their name, reacting when you leave, making sounds like “mamamama” and “babababa,” looking for objects when dropped out of sight, and sitting without support.

Separation anxiety

Protesting when a parent leaves is a normal part of development, according to the AAP. It often shows up in the second half of the first year. What helps:

• Short, warm goodbyes. “Bye, buddy, I’ll see you after lunch.” Then go.
• Don’t sneak out. It can make the next goodbye harder.
• Practice small separations at home: leave the room while talking, come back, repeat.
• A consistent routine at drop-off.

It can be hard on parents too. It’s not a sign anything is wrong; it’s a sign your baby knows who their people are.

Safety at crawling height

Get on your hands and knees and tour the house. The AAP recommends:

• Gates at stairs, hardware-mounted at the top.
• Water heater at 120°F (49°C) or lower to prevent scalds.
• Cords and blinds out of reach.
• Toilet lids closed and bathroom doors shut; never leave a baby alone near water.
• Small items like coins, button batteries and magnets off the floor.

Play ideas

• Hide and find: a toy under a cloth, then under one of two cups.
• Obstacle courses: pillows and cushions to crawl over (with you right there).
• Stacking and knocking down: you stack, baby destroys. Repeat forever.
• Name things constantly: words build long before they come out.