Time flies when you’re having fun, but time flies faster when you’re a mom. We know that the precious little moments can pass just as quickly as they come, and it can be hard to make sure you’re paying attention for both the small moments and the big ones. From first steps to first words to first grade to first car, there are so many milestones your little one will have in life. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Here are five milestones you should look out for in your baby’s first three months.
Eye contact
Eye contact is one of the first baby milestones you should look out for. Usually, newborns tend to first make eye contact around six to eight weeks. When your baby makes eye contact with you, your little one is saying “Hey, I know you. You’re my mommy.” Developmentally, eye contact means that your newborn is making neurological growth and communication skills are on track.
Social smiling
A social smile is not your typical happy-baby-smile that spreads across your newborn’s face when he’s captivated by a new rattling toy. Rather, a social smile is the grin your baby has in response to someone else’s smile. Social smiling usually occurs within the first three months and is a sign that several parts of your newborn’s little brain are maturing. This smile means that your baby is picking up social cues and trying to connect and communicate with others.
Cooing
Besides crying, cooing is often the first sound your baby will make. Baby cooing generally occurs around your little one’s first eight weeks and is a sign that significant brain activity is occurring in your baby’s front temporal lobe. If your baby starts to coo, talk back as if you were carrying a conversation with real words. This will help improve your baby’s communication skills and help you master the art of cooing conversation.
Babbling
After cooing, your baby will move on to a more sophisticated baby jargon--babbling. These noises are different than cooing because it involves using the tongue and the front of the mouth to form sounds. Babbling is a critical first step for the development of early language and forming words.
Head control
Towards the end of the third month, your little one should be gaining neck strength and head control. Tummy time is not only necessary to promote motor skills, but it is also one of the most important ways your newborn can strengthen and improve head control. Your baby needs to spend time on his tummy to practice lifting his head against gravity and placing weight in his arms to eventually lead to crawling.
Every baby is different and grows and develops at different rates. Therefore, milestones happen at different times for each newborn. In fact, there is a wide range of what’s considered “normal” timing for every milestone. However, keep an eye out for these five baby milestones in your baby’s first three months, so you don’t miss the moments you’ll cherish the most.
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