FOR THE 4 MONTH OLD
You’ve made it 4 months! You are probably super comfortable with being a Mommy or Daddy by now. This article will be a shorter one because not too much changes at this milestone.
Your baby is feeding every 3-4 hours and breastfeeding is probably taking about 10-15 minutes each time. Your baby is likely sleeping longer stretches overnight or even through the night and you are finally getting some real sleep.
At this stage, more tummy time is better. They should have good control of their neck and be able to push up with their arms from their tummy laying position. In addition, your baby should be starting to show signs of rolling over. To help them with this, you can put your baby on their belly and put toys all around them. Babies will typically roll from front (tummy) to back first, which is why putting them on their tummy is suggested. Don’t expect them to roll over back to front first, because that’s harder than rolling over front to back.
Placing toys away from them at arm’s length will help them reach for things and help with fine motor skill development. In addition, you’ll probably notice your baby will start holding toys between their hands and start putting things in their mouth. This is the time to be careful about what you place around them and make sure nothing can pose a choking or swallowing hazard. General rule of thumb, if an item can fit through a toilet paper tube, it is too small and poses a choking risk.
Your baby should also become more interactive at this milestone. They should be smiling, laughing, giggling, and looking to their parents. They should be making lots of noises with “Ooo” and “Ahh” sounds and enjoying their interaction with you. Enjoy this time with baby now, and stay tuned for my 6 month article next week when we deal with the idea of starting solid foods!
Dr. Kelly Chow 