Infant Milestones To Watch Out For

Did you know at Precious Memories we have an Infant Day Care? In our youngest classrooms, our caretakers will follow each infant’s individual schedule. We try to keep the baby’s routine as consistent as possible to their routine at home. This first year of your infant’s life is such a time of growth and change.

Whether you’re a seasoned parent or a first-time mom, the first year of your child’s life is a time of change and uncertainty. Just when you figure out what your baby likes, they change their mind. Same with growing, one day they just learned to roll over, and the next they’re on the move crawling.

Knowing what developmental milestones to expect during infancy may help ease your mind as your baby grows. Don’t forget, each baby is different. Try not to compare your baby with someone else’s.

1-3 Months

Now that you’ve made it through the first month with your baby, they should start interacting more with you. This is also when they will start to interact with the world around them.

Developmental milestones for this age include:

• Raising his head and chest briefly during tummy time
• Bringing his hands to his mouth
• Gripping objects and opening and closing his hands
• Reaching for dangling objects (even if he can’t get them)
• Playing with his fingers
• Smiling and trying to get you to smile back
• Tracking objects and better eye control
• Cooing
• Pushing his legs down flat when he’s on a flat surface

Do activities like tummy time, cuddling, reading books, talking and sing to them, and consider introducing a pacifier to help self-soothe.

4-6 Months

Your baby is getting louder! They may be experimenting with their voice as they squeal and makes other noises. You’ll probably also notice they are getting better at gripping things and moving their hands to do what they want them to do. Milestones include:

• Babbling with consonant sounds and laughing
• Pushing up on her arms while doing tummy time
• Sitting up with support
• Enjoying play time
• Good head control
• Rolling over (you’ll probably noticed she can only do front to back at first, but soon it’ll be both directions)
• Reaching for and grabbing objects
• Switching an object from hand to hand
• Crying if mom or dad are out of sight
• Recognizing familiar faces
• Supporting her whole weight when she’s on her legs and held upright

Your baby loves interaction. Encourage play in all of your interactions with baby. Give them opportunities to play with age-appropriate toys and household objects. This is also a good time to begin establishing regular routines for sleep, playtime, and feedings.

By six months, you can start introducing your baby to solid foods.

7-9 Months

Your baby is probably mobile, which means it’s time to start baby proofing your home. The first stage is usually “army crawling” on their arms and legs. But soon your baby will be doing a normal crawl on their hands and knees. But if your baby isn’t crawling, don’t panic! Some babies go straight from scooting to walking. Other common milestones include:

• Playing simple games like peekaboo
• Responding to shows of emotion
• He may try to climb up stairs
• He’s likely to have some stranger and separation anxiety
• Babbling becomes more complex
• Clapping
• Sitting without support (eventually he’ll also be able to get in and out of the sitting position without help)
• Responding to his name or words like “no”
• Pulling up to a standing position and walking along furniture
• Putting objects into a container and then taking them out

This time is a great time to encourage your baby to learn new skills. Give them time and a safe space to explore. As they plays they’ll develop skills. Talk to your baby often and play games like peekaboo.

10-12 Months

During this last phase of infancy, your baby might look and act more like a toddler than a baby. They’re growing and developing by leaps and bounds. Developmentally, you may be seeing your baby doing the following:

• Cruising around the room while standing and holding onto furniture
• Waving bye-bye
• Playing games at mealtimes (such as dropping her spoon over and over again)
• Begin talking (a few basic words like “mama” and “dada” at first)
• Picking up small objects between her thumb and forefinger, which makes it possible for her to start feeding herself
• Turning pages while you read
• Holding a spoon by herself
• Helping while you’re dressing him (pushing her arms through her sleeves)
• Stacking and sorting objects during play
• Pointing at objects
• Copying you in pretend play (for example, by holding a phone to her ear)

During this time they may begin walking, but this can vary for different children. Many babies walk at their first birthday, but some won’t until later. Don’t be too worried if she’s not interested in walking yet.

Your baby is almost a toddler. Read to her. Play games with her. Encourage her to keep building her skills in safe ways, and give her praise for good behavior. She’ll develop quickly during these months.