Baby is a quarter of a year old! It’s not a milestone that’s generally agreed to be enough of a big deal to throw a party, but you could do it anyway, if you felt like it. In the next quarter of Baby’s first year, they are going to be able to start using the strength they have been building up for the last 3 months to sing songs (in their heart), run marathons (in their mind), and roll over from her tummy onto their back, and then back onto their tummy again.
After that, they might push themself up into crawling position, and maybe even do a little crawling. On the other hand, they might find a much stranger way to move around, like an army-creep, a barrel-roll, and crab-walk, or a baby-specific scoot.
As they work up to that kind of advanced motion, though, they are also going to have some smaller, but no less important, advances. Baby teeth, for example, are pretty small, but they’ll be very important when they grow out of the mushy slush that makes up the earliest baby food, and starts to look around for something more solid to sink those little chompers into. Teething usually doesn’t start until the 6-month mark or so, but for some babies, it can start far earlier.
They might get really attached to a certain stuffed toy or baby blanket, or they might be uninterested in every toy designed with a baby in mind that they are offered, and only really want to play with whatever it is you keep in your pockets, laptop bag, or purse. Baby’s options are endless, as the other three quarters of their first year stretches ahead of them. The only thing that’s certain is that it’s sure to be a wild ride.
Around this time, Baby continues to work on their communication skills and strength. You’ll probably hear them start to “talk” up a storm soon…if only those words meant anything! Make sure you engage Baby in this conversation often though, as it will help them learn the conventions of how people interact.
Baby is also getting stronger and stronger everyday, as they continue to develop through tummy time, and is getting closer to being able to sit up on their own – then it’s time to get moving!
Milestones
- Reaches for dangling objects: Just because they wants to grab an object, doesn’t mean they can, but around this time, Baby might start to grab for objects when held out in front of them. The coordination will come in the following weeks and months.
- Mimics facial expressions: Baby sure has been paying close attention to you, and around this time, they may be attempting to mimic facial expressions. They might do this with sounds, as well, which you should take as encouragement to keep Baby stimulated and engaged as much as possible!
