Rocking on hands and knees

Crawling is one of the things that often turns up somewhere between seven and ten months — months in which there is nothing to do but play. This game offers the hands-and-knees shape without asking the arms to hold all of it: a rolled towel under the chest takes some of the weight, so the position is there to try today. Rocking forward and back over their own hands is the whole game, and the wobble is usually where the laughing starts.

🛡️ Tummy-down play is awake play — stay in the room, never leave them alone on the roll, not for a moment, and never for sleep. Keep the roll under the chest and armpits, never under the chin, so nothing can press against the face. Stop at the first sign of tiring — arms folding, a head that comes down and stays down, grumbling that doesn't settle — rather than at the end of a count. And once they can move, clear the floor around you first: cords, small objects and the edge of the sofa are all within reach now.