Your Baby’s Milestones: From First Kick To First Steps

There is nothing more beautiful for a first-time parent than the first time their baby does something, big or small! Whether that something involves kicking, crawling, walking, talking, smiling or laughing! Nothing is more important to parents than witnessing their baby’s first milestones!

We’ve compiled a list of the biggest baby milestones, along with when you can expect to experience them! Read on, and never miss your baby’s most important moments!

Your Baby’s Milestones: The First Trimester In The Womb

While your baby is growing inside you, there are so many milestones you may not be aware of! The 3 trimesters inside your womb are crucial for the development of your baby’s body and mind.

During the first 3 months your baby’s basic organ systems are busy developing! At 4 weeks your baby will only be the size of a poppy seed. In the 5^th week your baby’s heart begins to beat, and by the 6^th week facial features take shape and your baby’s arms & legs start to develop!

By the 10^th week, organs such as the kidneys, brain, and liver all begin functioning. In the 12^th week you’ll finally be able to hear the baby’s heartbeat at a prenatal check-up.

Your Baby’s Milestones: The Second Trimester In The Womb

During the second trimester parents can expect the following milestones:

• Your baby will start making facial expressions.
• Your baby’s gender will be detectable at your mid-pregnancy ultrasound.
• You’ll likely feel some kicks around this time and soon other people will also be able to feel your baby’s movements from outside your stomach.
• Your baby’s hearing, taste buds and sense of motion will develop & improve.
• Your baby’s brain and hair will be growing rapidly.
• Your baby’s lungs will develop, and your baby will inhale and exhale amniotic fluid.
• Your baby will have begun sleeping and waking at regular intervals.

Your Baby’s Milestones: The Third Trimester In The Womb

By the third and last trimester parents can expect the following milestones:

• Your baby begins blinking, coughing, hiccupping and dreaming!
• Your baby will have improved eyesight.
• Your baby will become more aware of sound, light, and touch.
• Your baby’s lungs and central nervous system continue developing.

Your Baby’s Milestones: 0 – 3 Months

Once your baby is born lots of exciting things happen, mainly your baby starts stealing your heart, with all its adorable early mannerisms and the way they experience their brand-new world.

In the first 3 months your baby will:

• Smile and react in response to different sounds and voices!
• Show interest in different faces and people.
• Make and maintain eye contact.
• Enjoy playful face-to-face interactions with people.
• Appreciate and take pleasure in bath time.
• Enjoy various playful movements & experiences like being bounced on knees.

Your Baby’s Milestones: 4 – 6 Months

During the 4^th to 6^th month of your baby’s journey, your baby will be more interactive, and a lot more talkative.

In these 3 months your baby will:

• Listen and respond when spoken to.
• Use babbling to get attention, starting to say things like “da, da, da”.
• Make different kinds of sounds and noises to express themselves.
• Show interest in different foods.
• Enjoy playful interactions with others, like playing peek-a-boo.
• Maintain eye contact with familiar people during playful interactions.

Your Baby’s Milestones: 7 – 9 Months

At this stage, you can expect some exciting milestones, your baby will start moving around and communicating!

Your baby will start:

• Picking up small objects.
• Moving and crawling around to explore the environment when placed on the floor.
• Exploring and examining objects using both hands and mouth.
• Turning pages of chunky (board) books.
• Using a variety of sounds and syllable combinations in their babbling.
• Looking at familiar objects and people when named.
• Recognising the sound of their name and participating in two-way communication.
• Following certain routine commands when paired with gestures.
• Showing recognition of commonly used words.
• Using simple gestures, like shaking their head for “no”.
• Holding and drinking from a bottle by themselves.
• Looking and reaching for objects, like food that is nearby.
• Showing strong reactions to new smells and tastes.
• Enjoying playing with musical toys.
• Raising hands towards adults to be picked up.
• Having an established and reliable sleeping schedule (thank goodness).

Your Baby’s Milestones: 10 – 12 Months

Coming up to your baby’s first year means your baby will be mastering movement and communication!

Your baby’s milestones in the last 3 months of its first year will include:

• Pulling itself up to stand and move along furniture.
• Standing alone and taking around several independent steps.
• Moving in and out of various positions to explore the environment and get desired toys.
• Clapping their hands in excitement.
• Enjoying listening to songs.
• Crawling to or away from objects that they see in the distance.
• Meaningfully using “mama” or “dada”.
• Responding to simple directions, like “come here”.
• Producing long strings of gibberish (jargoning) in social communication.
• Imitating speech and sounds.
• Paying attention to where you are looking and pointing.
• Responding to “no”.
• Beginning to use hand movements to communicate wants and needs.
• Becoming ready to start self-feeding with utensils.
• Enjoying a greater variety of smells and tastes.
• Turning their head in response to their name being called.
• Being able to pull itself up to stand.
• Crawling or walking to get objects it desires.
• Being able to throw balls and maintain balance.

Appreciating Your Baby’s Milestones

When you are waiting for your baby’s next milestone, it can be frustrating, but have patience! Every moment in your baby’s development is important and shouldn’t be overlooked. Your baby may develop faster or slower than the average baby, but remember to just appreciate that first step, first word and first laugh, because while there will be many more, you don’t want to miss their firsts! And once puberty starts, you may see less and less of those cute little moments, so treasure them while you can.

To read more interesting facts about conception and pregnancy, check out our latest blogs.