The development of a baby is a truly remarkable thing.

It wasn’t until my sister had a baby that I understood just how quickly they mature.

I would see him one week, and by the next week, it seemed that he had grown another inch and had learned a new skill.

According to Understood, “In the first year, babies develop new ways to think, communicate, and solve problems. They develop physically and learn to interact with people.”

Not only is the first year a time of rapid growth for babies, but it is also a very fragile time for them as well.

What you do and don’t do with them will stick with them for their entire life.

According to PBC Expo, “It is well known that what happens in the first year, not only matters, it matters a lot. Babies who have the right early movement experiences in their first year have better coordination, concentration, memory, behavior, and perception as they get older.”

So when one parent found his 8-month-old trying to climb off of his bed on his own, he figured he would let him try.

It would only aid in the baby’s development after all and if he stopped him, it may have actually impeded his motor-skill development.

In the video, we watch as the little guy crawls his way towards the edge of the bed.

And he does so with such determination, like he knows exactly what he is doing.

When he reached the edge, he does a wobbly three-point turn and scoots his back-side right up to it.

At this point, many of us wouldn’t be able to hold ourselves back from grabbing at him before he falls.

But this parent has other plans.

Either the parent is confident in their baby’s lowering skills, or they feel like the drop isn’t far enough to raise much of a concern.

Either way, the baby works his chubby little legs over the edge and the parent lets him go.

I couldn’t help but hold my breath at this point, silently rooting for the little guy.

Then he swings his legs free and lets them dangle in the air.

He clenches the comforter on the bed and lowers his body slowly until his feet make contact with the floor.

Success!

From here, the baby gathers his balance–which is still pretty wobbly at his age–and looks over his shoulder.

He drops to one knee, and then the other, and begins to crawl away.

The speed at which this development takes place will never cease to amaze me.

And when I have a baby of my own, I hope that I can trust him as much as this parent does.

If my baby wants to start climbing all over the house, I’ll do everything I can to facilitate his exploration in the safest way possible.

And I’ll have my phone handy, of course, so that if the little-one pulls off a spiderman wall-climb, I’ll have the documentation to prove it.

And if you’ve got a baby at home, make sure you’re documenting their successes as well.

This baby was able to pull in over 7.5 million views on Youtube.

How many views do you think your baby could get?

There’s only one way to find out.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

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By B.T. Swezey

hi@sbly.com

B.T. Swezey is a contributor at SBLY Media.