Your baby, 0 months 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 and older

Congratulations on the birth of your baby! Caring for an infant can be scary and overwhelming at times, but you and your baby will get to know each other in no time. Becoming a parent is a big change and can take some time to adjust to. Make sure that you accept help from friends and family in the early weeks.

Newborn babies move between six states throughout the day. Your baby could be in deep sleep, light sleep, a drowsy state, awake alert, fussy alert, or crying stage. It is important to recognize these stages so that you can adapt to your babies needs and develop a better understanding of what soothes him the best.

Babies like to look at human faces the most. They can not see very far and can not distinguish colors very well. Besides the human face, babies like brightly colored patterns, mirrors and objects that are red, black or white. Babies will stare at things but can not grab ahold of anything quite yet. It is comforting for your baby when you hold her close, rock her and speak gently to her. It is important to handle your baby carefully and always support their underdeveloped neck.

You may be tempted to put your baby to bed with you, but this is dangerous. Babies should sleep on their backs in their own crib. Young babies can begin to develop some type of a schedule. All stuffed animals, bedding and pillows should be removed to reduce the risk of suffocation. You can put your baby on her belly for tummy time several times a day. This will help to develop muscle strength.

When traveling, always use a properly installed infant restraint seat. To ensure the safety of your baby, have their carseat checked by a licensed car seat installer. Because car accidents reduce the quality of a car seat, never buy used car seats and replace yours if it is in an accident.

Babies cry for lots of reasons. When a baby is crying, that his means of communication. He is experiencing a need that is not being met. Babies cry because they are hungry, wet, tired, hot/cold, experiencing pain, overstimulated, and many other reasons. Soon you will be able to decode your babies cries. Sometimes babies can not be comforted and it seems that the crying will never end. When you have tried everything and nothing seems to work, put her in her crub and close the door. Come back in a few minutes to check on her. Whatever you do, don't take any frustration out on your baby.

Your newborn will be ready to eat every two to three hours on average. Formula fed babies may go longer in between feedings. Remember to burp your baby after each feeding to reduce gas and fussiness. Breast feeding can be trying for the first few weeks. It takes patience, support and dedication, but you can do it. If you are encountering problems, ask for help. Call your doctor, the baby's doctor or a lactation consultant.

Developmental Milestones Newborn


Physical

• It may look as if your newborn baby is scrunched up with his arms and legs not fully extended. Your baby is used to being inside the womb, and this is normal. If he appears bowlegged, don't worry. It's part of the stretching-out process and will most likely fase away by the time he's five or six months old.
• Your baby may lift his head briefly when he's lying on his stomach by the end of this month. Give your baby plenty of tummy time to help him develop his muscles. He may also be able to turn it from side to side. Jerky movements give way to more smooth ones as his nervous system and muscle control mature. Your baby's primitive reflexes, such as sucking and chewing on his hands, remain dominant.
• Baby's vision is still fuzzy and he can not see very far. Your baby likes to look at your face. Keep it close by and talk to him when you are holding him.

Intellectual

• Right now food is the most important thing in your newborn's life. Sleep comes in at a close second. Most newborn babies will feed every two to three hours around the clock. Sleeping patterns are equally intermittent. Most newborns sleep for a total of 16 to 17 hours in a 24-hour period, but that's usually broken up into eight to ten naps. By the end of the month your baby may have developed something of a feeding and sleeping pattern, but you may not notice any real pattern for months. It is hard to put a newborn on a strict schedule. Sleeping helps your baby regain energy and it also helps brain development.
• Right now your baby doesn't have much of a personality. Crying is the only way that your baby knows how to express himself. He spends his time moving in and out of several different states of sleepiness, quiet alertness, and active alertness.
• Your face is the most interesting thing to your baby right now. He also likes high-contast objects. Show him black and white toys at playtime.
• Learning begins immediately, so take all opportunities to teach him about the world around him. Use his quiet and alert times to play and talk with your baby.
• Your baby can recognize faces and may try to imitate gestures. Give your baby the chance to imitate you. Stick your tongue out and give him a chance to repeat it. Then, do it again. Even if he does not do it, he is watching you!
• Mobiles with high contrast patterns and picture books with strong line drawings will capture your baby's attention. When your baby starts fussing, its time to stop and move on to something else.
• Babies like their own reflection. Place unbreakable mirrors at cribside or on the floor for them to focus on.

Emotional

• This month your baby becomes quiet and calm when you speak to him gently and hold him upright. He may even make an 'ah' sound when he hears your voice and sees your face. Most babies love to be held, caressed, kissed, stroked, massaged, and carried. Touch is an important means of communicating with your baby.
• Your baby can show you their feelings. She may yawn, arch her back, turn her face, fuss or cry if she is overstimulated. She will coo if she is enjoying something. Pay close attention to what your baby is `telling` you.

Age Appropriate Toys:

• Rattles
• Play gyms
• Unbreakable mirrors
• Mobiles
• Soft toys
• Musical toys
• Toys with lights
• Swings
• Bouncy seats

Comments:

Comments 51-75 of about 24461 for month 0
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rls- I♥mythreebabies - Wednesday, 1 Feb
I'm in children's ward with seb for 24 hr monitoring, trying to get to the bottom of his breathing. Dr said it was probably nothing to be concerned about but better safe than sorry. Fingers crossed it's all good news.

milkyway - Wednesday, 1 Feb
I am so tired...my little man stayed up all night again crying. Every time I put him down he'd sleep for 40 mins and then wake up again crying. I caved in and gave him some formula last night as I felt like my milk was giving him tummy aches. It worked and he slept for 4 hours after the very small formula feed. I also put some colic medicine in the bottle which might have helped too. I don't know what's wrong. I'm pretty sure it's my milk thats making him gassy. I'm going back to drinking soups and fibrous food again - I'm pretty constipated so I think I'm causing him to be gassy and constipated too. :( I know this will only last a few months - gotta ride the wave!!

charcharsuperstar - Tuesday, 31 Jan
Hi mommas! Magnus was born on Fri , so he's 5 days old now. Very chill baby except he wants to party at night !! Just like mom, dad & big sister !! Well just seeing who is over here! Xoxo

milkyway - Tuesday, 31 Jan
Just come back from Boots as my sons been awake all night and day crying with some kind of pain, so bought dentinox colic drops to see if they make a diff...Boots have their own gripe water but its for age 1 month upwards.

Rubes - Tuesday, 31 Jan
My tesco store said they havent had gripe water in store for months and believe its been discontinued. Ask your drs before using it!!!!!

rls- I♥mythreebabies - Tuesday, 31 Jan
And Sebastian has thrush in his mouth - off to the Drs before it transfers to me, if it's not too late already!

monika01 - Monday, 30 Jan
hi mommys my lo is almost 6 months . for a hard tummy buy some gripe water avaible at most grocery stores.. helps reduce hard tummy gas and dicomfort.. it works like a charm and is summer helpful also gogle the baby belly rub.. moving ur babys feet in a circle motion onto tummy area.. the bicycle helps too. ... as for the breathing thing my baby did that too ... i purchased an angel care monitor to help ease my thought. you can get the sensor pad one only or there is one wiht a camera too.. which i love.. but it is pricy. i got ours in babies r us.

theclaudios - Monday, 30 Jan
My LO is 3wks old and has a hard belly. I was thinking it was from gas bc she does grunt a lot. Not sure if I should take her to the doc since I already have an appt next Tuesday.

rls- I♥mythreebabies - Monday, 30 Jan
Anyone else's babies miss a breath or two every now and again? I seem to have to give seb a poke to remind him to breath? Dr has referred us to paediatrics on Wednesday to get checked but said it might be normal or might indicate sleep apnea (sp?).

Rubes - Monday, 30 Jan
Arun is 1 month today according to this site. Feels like 30 years not 30 days lol see you on the other side ladies!

love4bb - Sunday, 29 Jan
Hi charmed, that's a crazy situation. But you did a great job at taking care of yourself n your kids. Stay strong n take care.

mybabysuprise - Sunday, 29 Jan
health nurse is wrong Rubes, that colthe/fussy time and over stimulation is likely the cause. try putting him to sleep in the car seat, I am willing to bet acid relux is also partly responsible. the only time the burning stops is when they are nursing so they want to nurse a lot. his crying makes him swallow more air for gas. have you tried gripe water

mybabysuprise - Sunday, 29 Jan
hi rubes and rls, rubes I answered about the crying in 25 months.

Rubes - Sunday, 29 Jan
God what a shitty situation. I hope things work out soon! ** well Arun is on day 3 of crying for no reason. I'm so confused. I don't get it. How can he cry all day for no reason?

rls- I♥mythreebabies - Sunday, 29 Jan
Charmed - what a nightmare situation, I hope things settle down soon for you all.

charmedby3tobe - Saturday, 28 Jan
Hey guys, this is the first chance I have had to pop over to this side of the message boards. Caitlyn is now 8 days old, and she is such an amazing baby! She sleeps 3-6 hours at a time, before she wakes up to nurse. She has 2-3 wakeful periods about an hour or so long during the day, and none at night. She is such a sweetie, and her brothers love her to bits. The last week has been a bit of a wild ride though. My husband and I have been having issues for months, and I told him it was over between us on Boxing Day, but he didn't have a job, and I couldn't just kick him out. Well after Caitlyn was born he went nuts. When she was 4 days old he got piss ass drunk, and spent 45 minutes in the middle of the night coming in and out of the bedroom (which Caitlyn shares with me, and also where our toddler was sleeping that night, as he was sick with a nasty cold). Every time he came in he would yell at me, then he'd walk out and slam the door. As I mentioned, he was very drunk, and he kept picking up Caitlyn, and walking around with her. I couldn't take her away, as he would have flipped out, and she might have gotten hurt (ie, dropped, not deliberately hurt). So all I could do was lie there, and wait for him to bring her back. The following night he got drunk again, and this time he threatened to kill himself, got a knife from the block in the kitchen, and started talking about stabbing himself. I locked the kids and I in the bedroom, and called the police. They took him away at 4:30 in the morning, and held him until he sobered up. But once he was sober he insisted he never meant anything by it (despite the fact that the police had to forcibly take the knife from him on arrival at my house) and so the hospital refused to take him in to emergency psychiatric services, as they decided he wasn't a suicide risk. I told the cops I didn't want him coming back home, my kids do not need to be witnessing this kind of behaviour, and our relationship was already over. But the police said they couldn't stop him from coming back, so they called me half an hour before they released him, to warn me, and told me to take my kids somewhere safe. So we packed up, and went to my mom's house. He got his sister to take him in, and was out of the house the same night, so we are back home now. He had his first supervised visit with his kids today, and he just held Caitlyn and cried. I felt so bad about kicking him out, but he is poison to be around. We need him to be out of the house, for our own good. So now I'm officially a single mom of three. It's going to be an interesting road, but I know that the four of us will get through it together.

linzp1982 - Saturday, 28 Jan
Hi everyone thought I'd say hello now we are all on this side of the fence. :-) my little girl is now 11 days old and it's been really smooth so far, the easiest baby of the three I've had I'm sure those little baby horns could grow over night but so far she has been an absolute pleasure :-)

rls- I♥mythreebabies - Saturday, 28 Jan
I think seb must be doing a growth spurt, seriously feeding non-stop!!

Rubes - Saturday, 28 Jan
Thanks guys. My first had colic but she'd cry 12 hours straight, not all day! I suspected he had colic last week. It's gotten steadily worse! Can't believe I could have another 3 months of this! Milkyway, sorry about your baby's hernia. Hopefully it'll fix itself!

lilyxox19 - Friday, 27 Jan
@rubes Glad to hear your husband is back home. Hopefully everything will soon calm down for you. I'm sorry to hear the your lo is having such a hard time. Just keep taking deep breaths. Even though your lo will still cry, they do find comfort if we give of peaceful, calming vibes/aura. Good luck!

kaylaaa - Friday, 27 Jan
Rubes it sounds to me like your son has colic. My son had a lot of trouble with 'bum wind' and i had a lot of stress trying to settle him, he would scream for hours. My second son had the same issue but i realised instead of trying to make him stop crying, or settle him to just wait it out. i would comfort him of course but i took the pressure off myself, you know that feeling of 'i need to fix thisNOW' well i stopped feeling that way, let him cry without feeling like i was failing him and it made it much easier to cope with. i learned a massage trick where you rub clockwise circles firmly on their tummy for a minute or two, then get their legs, push their knees together and firmly rotate them around and up in a circular motion (clockwise also) and they should strain when they push upward. do that for a minute or two then let the baby rest and hopwfully within the next few mins he will poop and feel better, if not repeat. Sadly though, for the most part my kids just had to grow out of it. Do you have any support?

rubes - Friday, 27 Jan
I'm seriously out of ways to calm him down. I havent a clue anymore. Tried all the ole tricks. Even his favourite position (aeroplane) isn;t working!!!!

rubes - Friday, 27 Jan
Why won't he stop?????

rubes - Friday, 27 Jan
Husband is home now, and Arun has literally not stopped crying all day. He only shuts up when he's on my breast, which is making him awfully sick. He keeps throwing up, has terrible gassy pains. He literally can't eat anymore. Health Visitor told me to let him cry until the next feed. Ummm. OK. But I didnt epect him to cry ALL DAY. :(

milkyway - Friday, 27 Jan
Rubes - sorry you're having a hard time at the moment - hope things work out. Took my son to the doctor today, and it turns out he has a slight hernia :( I knew his belly button was weird! Anyway, I have to wait until he's 6 weeks to see if it goes down by itself, otherwise they're going to treat it with silver nitrate. If that doesn't work, then they will do an operation when he's about 3 or 4...Ugh..This little man has scared me so much since he's been born, with the canula in his hands, and then we're waiting for a scan for his hip, as there was a click in the left leg, and all the blood tests and glucose tests he had when he was born. It seems he's being tested so much poor baby. I hate seeing him have needles and things poked around his body - he's just a baby :( :(

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