To Crawl or Not to Crawl? That is the question!

Did you know that if children never crawl they have learning disorders, trouble readings, poor hand/eye coordination, and weak hand muscles, at least that’s what I’ve been told. So, you can understand that when my 9 month old baby had no interest in crawling but wanted to stand (never sit) at all times, I became a little worried.

After much debate I decided to do a little research. I wrote my college professor who is an expert and genius in the area of child development. He said, “I don’t know of any research linking crawling and reading. Some people may be misinterpreting some things….. there is evidence that a mobile child gets to explore his/her environment more which would stimulate brain growth. However, it doesn’t matter if that is crawling, walking, or a parent that moves the child around a lot. The key is that the child gets to see new things in his environment. I guess in simple words….. don’t worry. If she wants to walk that means she is ready…. encourage her and let her do it.” Also, I’ve generated a long list of people that never crawled and are still totally normal, intelligent, athletic, contributing members of society. So, now that I have the green light I decided I would teach Sadie how to walk. Guess who decided she wants to start crawling?!?! The one and only….

Well, she’s not crawling yet but she keeps intentionally getting on her stomach and kicking, kicking, kicking. She’s not going anywhere….but she’s kicking. That is a major break through! We did have a play date with her adorable friend Fisher this week. I think maybe he was a positive influence on her.

So, in the end, as always, I’ve discovered, after much worry, that I need not worry. Sadie should survive and live a happy life, whether she crawls or not, and I have not yet done anything that will interfere with our goal of her having that happy, productive, meaningful, loving, successful, wonderful life – I hope!