One To three Month Olds
This is the first installment of our “milestones and development” feature and we are going to start with ages 1-3 months, naturally.
The first few months are the hardest as a parent because even if you have done it before it is all new again for the first couple of months. Diapers on little bottoms, waking to eat every two to three hours and bathing a squirmy, little creature.
This time your baby will be growing at the same rate he did the first few weeks of life, he should gain about 1.5-2lbs and grow 1-1.5 inches each month of his life. At about two months the soft spots on the top of his head should still be open but the spot on the back of his head should be closed.
One of the most important physical developments at this point is strengthening the neck muscles. Tummy time will help her increase her neck strength by picking up her head if only for a few moments at a time, it is like her exercise.
She will also start to strengthening her inward curved legs during the second month. Her legs will get stronger and she will shoot them out in front of her, especially if she is having gas pains. Her hands will also not be as clenched as they first were.
At one month old a baby cannot see beyond 12 inches and if you are close enough he will study anything within this range. Around three months your baby should be tracking things that are followed by his head and may even be able to bat at them. If your child isn’t tracking objects by three months, talk to your pediatrician.
Other milestones to look for by the end of the third month are:
-develops a social smile
-smiles at the sound of your voice
-turns head toward direction of sound
-starts using hands and eyes in coordination
-pushes down on legs when feet are placed on the ground
Remember, as with children of all ages, they develop at different rates, if you suspect your child has not reached more then one of these milestones and is at least three months old, consult your pediatrician.
babies, infants, pediatricians, milestones, infant development, infant milestones, parenting, moms, one month old, two month old, three month old, pregnancy
April 30th, 2007 at 2:11 pm
This post brought up a great point about strengthening a baby’s neck muscles between 1-3 months. When there’s so much to worry about — basics like feeding, sleeping and bonding — there are easy ways to incorporate tummy time into a newborn’s schedule. The Pathways Medical Roundtable, experts on early motor development, recently put some recommendations on the Web. Hope these are helpful!
http://www.pathwaysawareness.org/?q=whatcanido/276
Erika