Exploration
Before birth, your new baby has had to do noting much more than float around in a warm, dark world and grow its body. Once the new person has passed into this big world at birth, it must now learn how to work the new body it has.
During the first month your new baby will begin working the muscles by trying to lift and turn its head to follow sounds and what movements it sees before it. While it is learning to control its arm movements, it will make many jerky movements and react to loud noises. By the time your baby has been in the world two months, it will begin smiling, following objects with its eyes and beginning to try out various new sounds.
After three months of exercise, your new baby will be getting the hang of eye-hand coordination and will open and close them while grasping for objects around it. The neck muscles will be giving the newbie more control and it will be able to hold its head up. The legs are stronger and the baby will start pushing against objects with them. They will also be imitating a greater range of sounds it has heard.
The next two months begin the exploration phase. The baby will be able to grasp objects and test them, usually by placing them in its mouth to taste. It will be able to roll over and sit up with some support. The eyes have developed full tracking ability and it will be able to recognize things, from colorful toys to the parents that care for it. The experience of growing teeth will begin as well.
After a half a year spent on the basics, your child will be much more
able to interact with you. It will be able to sit up, react to spoon feeding, hold its bottle or sippy cup. Your baby will begin to hold foods and feed itself. The baby imitates more sounds and will recognize emotional voice tones. The basics are in place and ready to take on this big, new world.
