The first three months of a baby’s life are filled with sleepy parents, steep learning curves as you establish your baby’s routine, and being amazed by the new baby you’ve created! But these first few months are also filled with major developmental milestones as your baby’s skills develop. As new parents, you may not realize there are steps you can take these first few months to boost your baby’s development.
While it might not seem like your newborn is doing much besides sleeping, eating, and soiling diapers, their body is making miraculous developmental changes!
This article is designed to help new parents understand the significant development from birth to three months. We’ll guide you through the major milestones, how you can foster development, and offer advice on speaking to your pediatrician.
Your Baby’s First Month
Your baby’s first month will pass in a blur, and you’ll probably look back and struggle to remember what you did besides feeding your baby and changing their diaper. However, if you can find a few moments among the newborn whirlwind, you’ll witness some spectacular developmental milestones!
1 Month Milestones
- Noticing sounds
- Moving their head from side to side
- Lifting their hands to their face
- Making tight fists
- Eating every three to four hours
During your baby’s first month, they should begin responding to sounds around them, especially familiar voices and sudden loud sounds like a dog barking or a car honking. Your baby will recognize Mom’s voice from birth because they often heard it in the womb.
Many of your baby’s early milestones are physical. They will begin moving their head from side to side, looking at what’s around them, and responding to familiar voices or loud sounds.
Your little one will also make tiny fists with their hands and will grasp onto your finger or a toy if placed in their palm. They will also begin to raise their arms and hands to their face, a skill they’ll need in a few months when they start feeding themselves!
Your newborn should eat every three to four hours at most. Babies who are nursing may eat every one to two hours at times. A newborn should only go two to four hours without nursing or having a bottle of formula.
You can use the Baby Daybook App to track your baby’s feeding times and how much they ate so you never miss a feeding!
Your Baby’s Second and Third Months
By month two, your baby will have made some significant physical milestones. Over the next two months, your little one will continue to grow and develop rapidly. You may even glimpse your precious tot’s first genuine smile! Babies “smile” from birth, but it is an involuntary reflex; however, sometime between 6 and 8 weeks old, your little one will give you their first true grin!
2-3 Month Milestones
- Smiling
- Reaching for objects
- Uncleaning their fists
- Raising their head and chest when laying on their stomach.
- Cooing and gurgling
- Following objects with their eyes.
During the first month, making a clenched fist was a milestone; now, your little one will learn how to unclench their hands and purposefully reach for objects of interest. Your baby’s vision is still fuzzy, so objects should be placed less than two feet away. They’ll also begin tracking objects with their eyes when moved slowly.
Your baby’s muscles are developing all over, and when they’re on their tummy, they’ll begin to raise their head and chest, a precursor to crawling!
Lastly, your baby is starting to communicate beyond cries and burps! As your baby’s early language skills develop, you’ll begin hearing cooing and gurgling sounds.
Boosting Their Development
While much of your baby’s development in the first three months will happen naturally, there are some things parents can do to aid or boost their baby’s development and keep it on track!
Language
First among these things is talking and reading to your baby. None of us are born with language; we learn and hear the language we’re exposed to. The same goes for social skills and customs. These skills are taught via nurture. The more you talk and read to your baby, the better equipped they’ll be to speak process language and eventually read and write.
Talk, sing, and even read your baby the weather report. It doesn’t matter as long as they are exposed to speaking and language.
If you’re a dual language household, don’t shy away from speaking both languages to your baby; it will not slow down their learning. On the contrary, much research points to the benefits of dual language learners. They have better grammar skills in both languages, are better at math, are more empathetic, and perform better overall academically.
Physical Development
To boost your baby’s physical development, engage their naturally developing skills, such as tracking and grabbing objects and head and neck support. Around two months old, you can begin holding a toy or object. About 12-18 inches from your baby’s face, slowly move it from left to right. Babies prefer patterns and bold colors like black and white or primary colors.
Give your baby some independent play by placing them on a play mat with items hanging above them or giving them rattle socks, which will entice their interest in reaching and grabbing.
To develop your little one’s head and neck strength, engage them in tummy time daily.
Tummy Time Guidelines
- Wait 30 minutes after eating.
- Always supervise your baby during tummy time.
- Never do tummy time in their crib. Back is best for sleeping.
- Start with 1-2 minutes of tummy time multiple times daily and build up to 5-10-minute sessions.
- Lay on the floor opposite your baby and talk to them during tummy time.
When to Worry
Every baby and child develops at their own pace, so resist the urge to compare them to siblings or other babies you know. Some babies develop skills more quickly or later than the timeframe mentioned above, and in most cases, your baby being a little later is no reason for concern.
Use the Baby Daybook App to track your baby’s developmental skills and milestones. Our Development Tracker allows you to snap photos and record special moments! You can also track their growth to ensure they’re on track for their height and weight.
Your baby should have regular wellness checkups at one, two, four, and six months old. The doctor or nurse will review developmental milestones with you during their check-up.
If your baby is not responding to loud noises or voices by one month, mention it to your pediatrician. Likewise, if your baby cannot track objects with their eyes at two to three months or doesn’t reach for objects by three months, that is another concern to discuss. It is also worth mentioning if your baby isn’t smiling by three months old.
In most cases, it is nothing to worry about, but discussing things with the pediatrician will, if nothing else, provide you peace of mind.
Takeaway
The first three months are an exciting time in your baby’s development, so tracking these momentous milestones is essential. You can foster your baby’s development by talking to and engaging with them. Using Baby Daybook, you can snap photos to record these precious moments so you don’t miss a thing. Plus, you’ll have a record to refer to and look back on for memories.
Sources
Well-Baby Care Visits & Developmental Milestones (Age 0-12m). Cleveland Clinic. 2021. my.clevelandclinic.org [Accessed January 2024]
6 Potential Brain Benefits Of Bilingual Education. NPR. 2016. www.npr.org [Accessed January 2024]
Tummy Time. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby. 2022. www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au [Accessed January 2024]
