A Complete Guide to Take Care of Your Baby in the First Year

I am pretty sure that the moment you and your family have a baby, both of you are excited and happy. This is one of the most valuable times in our life when a baby was born. There is no doubt that the greatest feelings appear in your family, but you will also have to face some unexpected things when raising a baby such as baby sleep, breastfeeding, etc. Fortunately, you come to the right place to find out the useful information in our article.

Understand the first baby milestones (from the first month to the 12^th month)

The first and the second-month development stage

In the first days of your 1-month-old baby could be the story of feeding, changing diapers, helping her to get sleep, and dealing with her howls. She will begin to take more notice of your body languages such as your voice, your touch, and your face within a few weeks.

Please note that your baby cannot see farther than 12 inches, so you should consider the right distance for her to at your face. Furthermore, white-and-black patterns also attract her attention. Her hearing is completely developed and she ought to turn around with familiar sounds like your voice.

Additionally, she enables to lift her head and turn it to the side when she put her stomach on the surface. Her neck and head need to support when she wants to upright. Then, she probably takes her hands close to her mouth as well.

At these stages, you should try to learn your baby’s action to understand her by cuddling her, talking to her, recognizing some signals from her when she wants to sleep or she wants to feed. Be attentive, responsive and flexible as well!

When she has awaked, you should let her some tummy time because she may increase her muscles. Attract her to see and catch her toys. Also, be sure to help her as much outside time. Take her to the playground to help your baby recognizes the environment and her skin can soak up vitamin D through the sunlight. The best time to go around the city or the park is the early morning (between 7 am and 9 am).

Breastfeeding for your baby

Breastfeeding a baby is a great way to make a strong connection between a mother and a baby. In fact, all babies are different so your baby can feed more or less than others. An excellent guide is that your baby needs to feed about 8 times per day. If she is hungry, she will give you some signs such as sticking her tongue out; suck her hands, moving her head, etc. At night, your baby will want to feed.

Taking care of your baby

Taking care of the health and safety of your baby is an important part of being a parent. Whether your baby will have the first immunization jabs or the first tooth time, you will need to train your mind to deal with these issues. Consult your doctor if your baby has these signs:

She slowly feeds or she does not want feed
Her eyes do not focus on a fixed object
Her eyes do not react to the light
She cannot respond to loud sounds

The 3^rd and the 4^th development stage

At these periods of time, you can realize her smiles when she enjoys her playing time. Furthermore, she ought to babble and mimic the sounds like you. When you do your facial expressions, she loves this regaling time.

You do not need to support her head when she lies down on the surface. She is able to lift her head and chest by herself and she can do the mini-pushups which build the phase for rolling over.

On the one hand, she may open and close her hands, shake toys, take her hands to her moth, pushes down with legs if you keep her in an upright position. On the other hand, her hand-eye coordination is enhancing. Moreover, you will recognize that she can notice something that interests her and focusing on faces. He can identify you from farther distance in the room!

Breastfeeding is still the best sources for her during this phase.

Play with your baby

This is a great time to sing, talk, and read to your baby because she will love this type of interaction. Your baby is taking stronger and more interested in her surrounding environments. Although some babies still keep them the sleeping routine, most of them will not sleep as much as parents might suppose.

If your baby has the reflux state, she will not be happy choosing her tummies. Sitting in a baby chair and supported on your lap is a smart choice to begin.

In a few days, you could make the chair is lower or take your baby has a lower height. If this is the first time you try to lies her reflux baby on her tummies, you will need to roll up a towel and get it under her chest as well as her arms.

Try using your leg is another great idea to think of. Please note that you should adapt your activities to suit her at this phase because your baby is still a little person with her own personality. Avoid leave her alone to play on her tummy!

Prepare the sleeping time

According to the writes of Dr. James McKenna – Director of the Center for Behavioral Studies of Mother in Notre Dame University indicated that babies sleep next to her mother, she can receive warmth, breast milk, and protection. This is also a good way both mother and baby can have a deep sleep. Furthermore, she could be paid more attention when she is cold, hot or when she cries.

However, you should not take your baby to sleep with a parent when he or she:

Smoking
Having drunk alcohol
Having taken drugs that make he or she has a deep sleep
Having a sick that probably make she or he notice a baby
When your baby was born prematurely
When your baby has a high temperature

Between the 5^th and the 7^th development stage

At these stages, your baby can know your attention more closely than the earlier phases. She is learning the concept of gravity when you pick up her toys or other objects through her dropping. She ought to identify her name and turn her head towards you when you call her name.

She ought to engage with the world because she smiles, laughs, and she also has babbling conversations with you now. She is more sensitive to your voice and she might heed your warning when she knows that your “no” saying.

You may surprise that she can totally manage well without using toys at this period of time. Her hands become important toy so that he can suck her hands. Her hands will put in front of her face that she ignores they belong to her.

When she put the toy on her hands, she can throw it away and she has no idea about it! This is the reason you should give her soft toys on her hands. She discovers that her hands can help her to explore all objects around her.

In addition, she enables to try the solid food and begin with her language. Parents should help her to learn language by singing and talking with her more than the first weeks. Do not forget to take time to read some stories for her because this is also a good way to learn a language.

The sleeping time of her can change

The average number of sleeping hours of a baby will be 4 during the day and 10 at night. In other words, she will not sleep more during the day and increases the night sleeping time. However, she still keeps the sleep quota during the day.

Most babies at this stage will sleep when she feels tired. If she is not tired, you will not have the opportunity to make her fall asleep. On the other hand, if she is exhausted and she sleeps more hours, you will not wake her easily.

Please note that your baby has a regular routine, but you should arrange your time wisely. For example, you need to spend the time when baby has a nap, do your normal routine as much as you can. Put her into her bed while you are working other things.

Feeding your baby

At these phases, you can help her try to eat solid food. Solid food is assortments of purees for the first time. Of course, your baby still needs to have the breastfeeding or formula, but this is the great period of time for her to try some solid foods like rice cereal. Her digestive system can adapt some foods.

Baby’s food should be a puree even if she has a tooth or not because she cannot chew completely and she loves choking. Baby rice cereal can mix with breast milk or formula could be a good choice as the solid foods for your baby. Nonetheless, the main meals of her are breastfeeding or formula milk only. In other words, you can put the solid foods in some meals during the day.

The 8^th and the 9^th development stage

This is the time of teething for your baby. It is a little bit challenged when you have to face some reactions to the teething time like a fever. However, you will calm down if you know how to deal with this issue.

Moreover, a mother should use 24-hour-day routine precisely to look after her baby and do other things in her life like working, relaxing, etc. Being a mom is often one of the toughest jobs in the world, but this is also the most rewarding for her.

Baby’s development

As I mentioned above, this is the teething time of your baby. Some babies are born with teeth, but this is not often. Most babies will have their first teeth between the age of 4 and 13 period of time.

In general, the first front teeth happens in the middle developing time around 7 or 8th months. The two bottom teeth appear after. In the second birthday, she will have about 20 first teeth. You should figure out the normal sign that your baby is teething is grizzly and sore gums. Please keep in mind that teething time does not cause diarrhea, ear-ache, vomiting or other pains. If your baby has some symptoms, then you could help her to see the children doctor immediately.

Baby’s sleeping time

At these stages, it is a little hard to make she falls asleep because she is so excited to learn how to cowl and the uncomfortable time of teething. Thus, you should help her to return her normal routine by giving her two daily sleeping times as usual. Take her in a silent room or the silent space to create the opportunity for sleeping and read a short story for her.

From the 10^th to the 12^h development stage

She likes to improve her legs and she can try to stand up, catching anything nearby for supporting. She is practicing for the first step. At these stages, you should make some games for babies to enjoy and develop like dancing with your baby through a great music.

Also, please pay attention to her skin condition because it is quite soft and sensitive. Additionally, you should not feed cow milk for her as this product is not accessible for under-12-month babies.

Because your baby has soft skin, it is easily damaged by the outside environment. There are some tasks you can do for her to avoid some bad skin conditions.

Applying baby protective creams on a regular basis and do not take her out in the sun for long hours. In case your baby has eczema or rash skin condition, bring her to the children doctor promptly. Take rush with this point as her skin can be badly injured.

The bottom line

The moment of having a baby is wonderful with every family because she or he looks like a small angel. However, when you do not understand their development stage, you will get stuck something which is not comfortable to overcome. Therefore, understand all stages of the first year phase is extremely important for all parents.