Are We Smarter Than a Six-Month-Old?

Six-and-a-half-month-old, I suppose I should say. Though what's changed in the last two weeks isn't that Sean's learned to stand up in the tub, but that we've been reminded that it's a bad idea for us to let him, and we're being more vigilant about trying to keep him from doing it. (Yes, I'm aware of the Yoda line ("There is no try. There is only do.") but when I see footage of Yoda giving a baby Jedi a bath without having him/her lurch up, I'll admit "trying" is an inferior goal.)

The thing is, we've usually got four hands around Sean, holding and washing and playing, which means that he's generally where we want him to be, but there's an implicit limit there: we can keep him from wobbling over, from face-planting into the water, or from squirming over the side of the tub (for now), but he's discovered that if he scoots his bottom forward and then arches his back, he can use our leverage against us and thrust himself into the air, and sometimes even stand up.

I guess we shouldn't be surprised; our pediatrician *did* tell us he'd start learning how to manipulate us. We just figured when he was naked and still wobbly on his feet, we'd have more advantages.

Actually, it's not that hard to get him back into a sitting position; I can just pick him up, swing him forward a bit so his legs get out from under him (while Merrie takes a momentary break from washing him), and then put him right back down in the water. It's just that about a second later, he finds the front of the tub with his feet, straightens his legs, twitches his hips, and suddenly it looks like he's trying to pole vault over the rest of the water, with his back arched and his head thrown back.

His insatiable curiosity and determination reminds me of walking a dog; there are times when I've thought (and sometimes said), "Why don't you just go the other way, without making me figure out how to adjust both of our positions?" And sometimes I remember: because we're supposed to be able to figure out to persuade someone else, be it dog or six-month-old, how to do what we want them to do.

I hope this experience increases our odds of out-witting subsequent versions of Sean; the concept of an eight-month-old doesn't seem too different, but the eleven-year-old might be tricky.