What to Expect the First Year (80 page)

• Breastfeed your baby. Continuing to breastfeed for at least a year, if possible, will ensure that your infant will get all the nutrients she needs for the
first 6 months and most of what she needs for the first year—assuming you're getting all the nutrients you need (including folic acid and vitamin B
12
in a supplement) to produce high-quality breast milk. If you're not breastfeeding, be certain that the soy formula you choose is one recommended by your baby's doctor.

• Supplement. Check with your baby's doctor to see whether your baby should be getting any additional vitamin supplements above the ones recommended for all babies.

• Be selective. Serve only whole-grain cereals, breads, rice, and other grains once your baby has graduated to them. These provide more of the vitamins, minerals, and protein ordinarily obtained from animal products than their refined varieties do.

• Turn to tofu. Use tofu and other soy-based products to provide added protein when your baby moves on to solids. When the pediatrician gives the okay, brown rice or quinoa cooked until it is fairly soft, mashed chickpeas or other beans and peas, and high-protein or whole-grain pastas can also be added to the diet as sources of protein. And don't forget to bring on the edamame. Cooked until very soft and shelled, served pureed at first, mashed later, these soybeans are tasty and full of protein.

• Concentrate on calories. Growing babies need plenty of calories to grow on, and getting enough fuel is more difficult on a diet that's limited to plant food. Keep an eye on baby's weight gain to make sure she's taking enough calories. If it seems to be slacking, boost her breast milk intake and focus on higher-calorie plant foods, such as avocados.

• Don't forget the fat—the good fat, that is. Vegans who never eat animal products at all have to look elsewhere for good fats like omega-3 fatty acids—avocados, canola and flaxseed oil, and, when introduced, nut butters.

“Since I started my breastfed baby on solids last week, his poops have been more solid—which I would expect—but they are also darker and smellier. Is this normal?”

Sadly, the sweet-smelling poop party is over once you invite solids into your baby's diet. Party-pooping solids change a breastfed baby's stools from soft, mustardy, and mild to thick, dark, and smelly seemingly overnight—not necessarily a diaper change for the better, but a completely normal one. Expect your baby's stools to become increasingly adultlike as his diet does—though a breastfed baby's may remain somewhat softer than a bottle-fed's until weaning.

“I just gave my baby carrots for the first time, and her next bowel movement was bright orange.”

What goes in must come out. And in babies, with their immature digestive systems, it sometimes doesn't change very much in the process. Once they start solids, their stools seem to vary movement to movement, often reflecting the most recent meal in color or texture. Later, foods not chewed thoroughly—especially those that are harder to digest—may come out whole or nearly so. As long as bowel movements don't also contain mucus and aren't unusually loose, which might signal gastrointestinal irritation (and the need to withhold the offending food for a few weeks), you can continue her newly varied diet without concern.

“My daughter seems very frustrated that she can't get around yet. She's not content to lie in her crib or sit in her infant seat, but I can't carry her all day. Can I put her in a walker?”

Life can be frustrating when you're all revved up with no place to go (or at least no way to get there without a grown-up's help). These frustrations often peak when an eager-to-get-going baby's able to sit fairly well but unable to get around on her own (by crawling, creeping, cruising, or whatever method she's first able to come up with). The obvious solution used to be a walker—a seat set inside a table framework on four wheeled legs that allowed babies to zoom happily around the house long before they achieved independent mobility. But because walkers have been the cause of too many injuries requiring medical treatment (from head injuries caused by falls to burns that result from scooting over to an open oven door or to a toaster that can be pulled down by its cord), and many more that are kissed-and-made-better at home, they are no longer recommended, and in fact, the AAP has called for a ban on the manufacture and sale of all mobile walkers (they're already banned in Canada).

A somewhat satisfying, safer substitute for a walker is a stationary activity center (like the ExerSaucer), which allows baby some movement (a little one can bounce, rock, and swivel) without the risks of a mobile walker. They're also pretty entertaining, with most providing a bouncy seat that spins and a selection of toys to play with—often including light and sound features. Still, they don't come without a downside. First, a baby whose frustrations lie in not being able to get around without hitching a ride from mom or dad isn't likely to be any less frustrated in a walker that doesn't move. She might even become more frustrated once she realizes that the stationary variety moves only in circles (“I'm moving, but I'm not getting anywhere!”). What's more, research shows that babies who spend too much time in a stationary play center (as in a walker, infant seat, or swing) may be slower to sit, crawl, and walk, since they don't get as much opportunity to flex the muscles necessary to practice and master those skills. In fact, babies use a different set of muscles to stay upright in a stationary activity center than they do to stay upright for walking. And because they can't see their feet in an activity center, they're deprived of the visual clues that would help them figure out how their bodies walk through space (a key part of learning how to walk). Finally, they don't learn how to balance themselves, and how, when balance fails them, to fall and pick themselves back up—also vital steps in becoming a solo walker.

If you do choose to use an ExerSaucer or other stationary activity center, follow these tips for keeping baby both content and safe while she's in it:

Test-drive before you buy.
The best way to find out if your baby's ready for a stationary activity center is to let her try one out. If you don't have a friend whose baby has one, go to a store and let your baby try out a floor model. As long as she seems happy and doesn't slump, she's ready to take it for a spin (or a bounce).

Watch her “activity.”
Stationary activity centers aren't a substitute for supervision, any more than swings, jumpers, infant seats, or bouncers are. Leave your baby in her ExerSaucer only when
she can be watched—and don't place it anywhere near something she shouldn't touch or reach for (like the cord on a phone charger or a hot cup of coffee).

Limit her “activity.”
For most babies, 5 or 10 minutes in the activity center and they're more than ready for another activity—and clamoring to get out. A few will be happy to bounce, spin, and play for far longer, but it's best to limit even a completely content activity center activist to no more than 30 minutes per session. Every baby needs to spend some time on the floor, practicing skills—such as lifting her belly off the ground while on all fours—that will eventually help her to sit and crawl. She needs the opportunity to pull up on coffee tables and kitchen chairs in preparation for standing and, later, walking. She needs more chances to explore and handle safe objects in her environment than any confined seat (even a really fun one) allows. And, she needs the interaction with you and others that free play requires and allows.

Don't delay packing away.
The activity center, that is. As soon as your baby starts getting ready to start taking on crawling or cruising, pack away the ExerSaucer and let her practice her floor exercises—the ones that will eventually help her stand up and deliver those first steps, ending her frustrating era of immobility for good. Keeping her cooped up in an activity center not only won't help speed those steps, but its continued use may cause confusion, because standing in an activity center and standing and walking solo require different body movements.

“My baby's not walking yet, of course, but her outfits look so much cuter with shoes. Is there a certain kind I should look for?”

Socks, booties, or, weather permitting, bare feet are best for your baby at this stage of development—offering room to breathe, stretch, and flex. Still, there's nothing wrong with outfitting her tiny tootsies in something a little more styling on special occasions (or cold ones)—as long as it's the right kind of style. Since your baby's feet aren't made for walking (at least not yet), the shoes you buy shouldn't be, either. Shoes for infants should be lightweight and made of a breathable material (leather, cloth, or canvas—but not plastic), with soles so flexible that you can feel baby's toes through them (hard soles are a baby shoe must-not-do). For tips on choosing shoes once baby is walking,
click here
.

Already peekabooed and pat-a-caked out? Blown so many raspberries, your cheeks hurt? This little piggy has cried “wee, wee, wee” one too many times in your home? Then there's good news: Though these timeless newborn games will probably still get lots of play in the months to come, your older baby is game to take on a more sophisticated playlist—not to mention, take on more of the play.

No more lying back while you do all the work. Your baby is ready to be an active participant instead of a passive
audience—engaging, interacting, exploring, and learning by doing. Ready to coordinate senses that were once used one at a time—seeing what's being touched, looking for what's being heard, touching what's being tasted. Ready—and eager—for more challenges, more excitement, more stimulation.

Here's how you can help:

Large motor skills.
Physical skills take practice, practice, practice—which your baby can't get while cooped up in a stroller or a bouncer. So let your little one loose, and provide lots of opportunities that allow him or her to develop the large motor strength and coordination eventually needed for sitting, crawling, walking, climbing, throwing a ball, riding a scooter, and more. Change up baby's position often—from back to tummy, from propped-up to prone, from the crib to the floor—so he or she will have the chance to practice all kinds of physical feats. During tummy time, place an object just out of baby's reach to encourage him or her to stretch for it. Let baby lie on his or her back with those cute tootsies within kicking distance of an activity gym (a musical one that makes noise every time a kick makes contact provides even more satisfaction). Grab a stability or birthing ball and place baby on top—either sitting (with your hands firmly holding him or her) or lying tummy down (ditto) for balance practice. And then, as your baby seems ready (you won't know until you try), provide the opportunity to do the following:

• Pull to sitting