Birth+: Your 3-month-old
This third month is a time of incredible growth and psychological development. She's probably not quite as fussy now that she’s learned to feel safe in this new environment.
Learning to trust
This is the month when babies learn the important developmental lesson of trust by realizing that their needs are consistently met. At the same time, they'll start to figure out that they can get their parents' attention. This feeling of confidence allows them to focus on learning other important developmental skills.
Your baby’s growth
At 3 months babies usually range from 22 inches long and 9.75 pounds (10th percentile) to 24.5 inches long and 14 pounds (90th percentile).
This month your baby may:
- bring her hands together and reach for nearby objects as her coordination skills develop
- consciously unfold her tight fists
- suck on her fingers as she continues to explore her environment with her mouth
- practice focusing her eyes by maintaining eye contact with you
- perceive color differences more clearly (she’ll prefer bright primary colors; similar color tones can be hard for newborns to distinguish)
- focus on very small objects
- begin to follow you with her eyes
- turn toward the sound of your familiar voice as her ability to locate and recognize sounds improves
What you can do
- Talk, sing, hum, play music, and read to your baby.
- Speak to your baby in what pediatricians and psychologists call "motherese"—happy-sounding high-pitched tones with lots of repetition.
- Avoid the distortion or mispronunciation of words ("Does ooka-wookums want a widdle ba-ba?") Instead encourage everyone, including big brothers and sisters, to pronounce words clearly, using short sentences and simple words.