Read What to Expect the First Year Online
Authors: Heidi Murkoff
What to Expect the First Year (89 page)
Car safety.
Be certain that your baby not only becomes accustomed to being buckled into a car seat, but understands why it's essential: “You can get a bad boo-boo if you don't buckle up.” Also explain the other auto safety rules: why it's not safe to throw toys or play with door locks or window buttons.
Playground safety.
Teach swing safety: Never twist a swing, push an empty swing, or walk in front of or behind a moving one. Address slide safety, too: Never climb up the slide from the bottom or go down headfirst, always wait until the child ahead of you is off the slide before going down, and when you reach the bottom, move right out of the way. (Avoid going down a slide with your baby on your lap. Many babies are injured that way.)
Pet safety.
Teach your child how to interact safely with petsâand to keep away from other animals. Set an example by always asking the owner first before petting a dog or other animal. Practice safe petting on stuffed animals.
Even though most insect bites are harmless, the itching they can cause can definitely bug your baby, so it makes sense to protect against bugs and their bites. (For treating bites,
click here
.)
All insects.
Once your baby is over 2 months, you can use insect repellents (choose one made for children and wash it off once you're back indoors):
⢠Bug sprays with the chemical DEET offer the best defense. The AAP cautions against using any repellent with more than 30 percent DEET on kids. Your safest bet: Stick with 10 percent DEET. Apply after sunscreen.
⢠Repellants with citronella and cedar can help ward off bugs, but not as well as DEET. Reapply often because protection doesn't last long. Products containing oil of lemon eucalyptus should not be used on children under 3 years.
⢠Permethrin is a chemical that kills ticks and fleas (not mosquitoes) on contact, so it can protect against Lyme disease. It can only be applied to clothingânever to skin. Protection lasts for several washings.
⢠Picaridin reportedly lasts as long as 10 percent DEET, but the AAP has held back their stamp of approval pending long-term studies.
Bees.
Keep your baby out of flower beds, and avoid serving baby sticky, sweet snacks outside. When you do, wipe fingers and face promptly so bees aren't attracted to your sweet baby.
Mosquitoes.
Their bites are mostly just itchy, but occasionally mosquitos can spread infectious diseases. Protect your baby by staying indoors at dusk when mosquitoes are swarming, screening doors and windows, and covering the stroller with a net as needed.
Deer ticks.
Deer ticks can carry Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, so it's especially important to cover as much of your child's body as possible with clothing and apply an insect repellent when in areas where ticks are prevalent. Check your child for ticks nightly and remove ticks right away if you spot them (
click here
).
The Eighth Month
Seven- and eight-month-old babies are busy babies, and getting busier by the day. Busy practicing skills they've already mastered or are on the brink of mastering (like crawling) and skills they're eager to master (such as pulling up). Busy playingâwhich, with greater dexterity in those chubby little fingers and hands, is at least twice as much fun, and, with greater ability to focus, is at least twice as absorbing. Busy exploring, discovering, learning, and, as a budding sense of humor emerges, laughing out loud ⦠a lot. This month, baby continues to experiment with vowels and consonants and may even string together those combos you've been waiting for (“ma-ma” or “dada”) by month's end. Comprehension is still very limited, but baby's starting to pick up the meaning of a few wordsâfortunately, “no,” a word that will come in handy in the months to come, will be one of the first understood ⦠if not often complied with.
Sleeping.
Not much difference from last month when it comes to sleeping patterns. Your baby will probably be getting 9 to 11 hours of sleep each night and 3 to 4 hours of sleep during the day, broken up into two naps. That's a total of around 14 hours during each 24-hour day.
Eating.
Most of baby's nutrition still comes from those all-important liquids, breast milk and formulaâeven as greater quantities of solid foods are eaten.
⢠Breast milk. Your baby will nurse about 4 to 6 times a day (some babies will nurse more often). Baby will be drinking somewhere between 24 and 30 ounces of breast milk a day, though as more solids are added to the diet, baby will drink less.
⢠Formula. Your baby will probably down 3 to 4 bottles a day, filled with 7 to 8 ounces of formula, for a total of about 24 to 30 ounces per day (though some babies will continue to drink smaller bottles more often). As more solids are added to the diet, baby will drink less.
⢠Solids. As baby becomes a more experienced eater, expect anywhere from 4 to 9 tablespoons of cereal, fruit, and vegetables each per day, spread out over 2 to 3 meals (though some babies eat less than that, and that's nothing to worry aboutâjust let baby's appetite be your guide). As protein foods (like meat, chicken, fish, and tofu) are added, baby may eat anywhere from 1 to 6 tablespoons of these per day. Whole-milk yogurt and cheese provide protein, too, and are baby faves.
Playing.
Your baby's really starting to get a move on, so choose toys that get him or her moving (toys on wheels that your baby can push across the room while crawling or scooting, balls that baby can roll, musical toys that get baby rocking and rolling). Toys that encourage your little one to pull up to standing (such as an activity table or a sturdy push toy that won't roll away) are always well received, as are sorting and building toys, toys with buttons, levers, and dials (like busy boards, activity cubes, and bead mazes), toys that make sounds when pulled, squeezed, shaken, or bopped, blocks and stacking toys, and of course stuffed animals. Don't forget that regular household items can also stand in as toys: plastic containers, wooden spoons, and plastic measuring cups can keep your cutie just as entertained ⦠sometimes more!
Though at this point your cutie is likely quite content with the breast or bottle (or a combo), now is a great time to get cracking on the cup, too. An early start on sipping means your little one will be a cup pro when weaning rolls around (of course breastfeeding can continue as long as both of you like, but experts recommend you break any bottle habit at 12 months). In the meantime, a cup can be a fun and convenient (if initially messy) source of fluids for your baby.
Here's how you can make the introduction to the cup successful:
⢠Let your baby sit pretty. It's definitely easier to sip if you can sitâand your baby will be less likely to gag on those sips if he or she is able to sit well ⦠all alone or propped up.
⢠Protect all concerned. Teaching your baby to drink from a cup won't be neatâyou can expect more to drip down the chin than into the mouth. So until your little sipper picks up some skills, keep him or her covered with a large bib during drinking lessons.
⢠Consider timing. Babies are more open to just about every new experience when they're in a jolly mood, have had a recent nap, and aren't cranky from hunger. Try offering sips at a time your little one isn't used to having a breast or bottleâsay, as a side with solids.
⢠Choose right. Certain features will make those first sipping experiences easier and less messy for everyone. Look for a cup that's sturdy, spillproof (so you'll be in the clear when it's tossed off the high chairâand it will be), weighted on the bottom (so it won't tip over), and easy to grab (try a small baby-size cup). Most babies like cups with handles, but experiment until you find the right match. If you opt for a plastic cup, choose one that's BPA-free (current FDA regulations don't allow children's drinking cups to contain BPA, but one that's a hand-me-down might). Of course, if your little one tries to grab your glass of water at dinner, there's no harm in letting him or her take a supervised swig (you hold it, your little one sips it). Baby will learn to drink from a variety of cups faster if he or she tries several sooner.
A cup with a spouted lid (known in baby and toddler circles as a “sippy cup”) offers a nice transition from sucking to sipping, though babies who've taken a bottle may take to a sippy cup more easily than those accustomed to a human nipple. There will be less spillage to worry about with a sippy than with a regular cup, too (and none at all with a spillproof variety, a definite perk). Still, there are benefits to switching off between a sippy cup and a regular cupâand to eventually swapping out the sippy for a straw cup (see
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).
⢠Fill it with the familiar. Your baby might take to the cup more readily if it's filled with a familiar fluid, like breast milk or formula. Or your little one may balk at an old favorite coming from a strange new source. In that case, move on to water. If water's not winning, switch to diluted fruit juice (which you can introduce after 6 months).
⢠Go slow. For someone who's been suckling from a breast or sucking from a bottle his or her whole life, sipping from a cup is a whole new experience. So let your baby take some time getting acclimated to the cup (touch it, inspect it, even play with it). Then try holding the cup to baby's mouth, tipping it a little, and letting a few drops trickle in. Remember to pause for a swallow before offering moreâotherwise your newbie cup drinker might gag (he or she may also be too surprised at first to swallowâwhich means that the fluid may trickle right back out of baby's mouth). Your baby doesn't seem to get it? Hold the cup near your mouth and pretend to take a drink (“Mmm! That tastes good!”).
⢠Invite participation. He reaches out for the cup? Let him grab hold while you help him guide it. She wants to hold it herself? Let herâeven if she can't quite figure out what she's supposed to do with it.
⢠Take no for an answer. If your little one turns away, that's the signal that enough is enough (even if it hasn't been any at all). All systems “no”? Put the cup away until the next meal or, if your baby is really resistant, until another day.
Who doesn't love a sippy cup? They're practically spillproof and unbreakable, so there's no crying over spilled milk (or juice), fewer cleanups, and less laundry. Plus they're portable. Unlike other cups and glasses, they can be used in the car, at play, in the stroller, andâhere's the biggie for busy parentsâwithout supervision.
But research has pointed to some potential pitfalls in sippy cup use, tooâespecially for older babies. Because they're more like a bottle than a cup in the way liquid is extracted from them (it's a slower process, allowing the liquid to spend more time pooling in the mouth and on teeth), extended, frequent use can lead to tooth decay ⦠at least, once teeth have arrived. This is especially true if the sippy cup is used (as it so often is) between meals, and even more likely a risk if it's carried around all day by an older baby for round-the-clock nipping (the way a bottle might be). Another problem when they're carried around all day is that they become a breeding ground for bacteria (particularly if the cup gets dumped in a toy pile one day and retrieved and drunk from again the next day). What's more, a baby drinking all day from a sippy cup full (or a bottle full) of juice may drown his or her appetite for food and/or take in too many mostly empty calories (or even suffer from chronic diarrhea). As if that's not enough, some experts suggest that exclusive sippy cup use may slow speech development. The theory goes that the sippy method of drinkingâunlike drinking from a regular cup or with a strawâdoesn't give the mouth muscles the workout they need.
Still, sippy cups offer a terrific transition from breast or bottle to traditional cups, minimize mess, and are an undeniable convenience on the road. To eliminate the potential risks that go along with those benefits:
⢠Don't be exclusive with a sippy. Make sure your baby also has the opportunity to learn the fine art of sipping from a spoutless cupâand then use both, rather than going fullon sippy. Once baby gets a bit older (beginning at about 8 to 9 months old), introduce a cup with a straw. Not only does sucking from a straw require complex movements of the mouth and jaw, giving them the workout they need to develop well, but straws send the liquid on a fast track to being swallowed instead of letting it pool in the mouth. Win-win for speech and teeth.
⢠Limit sippy sipping to meal and snack times. Don't let your baby crawl around with the sippy cup, and don't always use a sippy to soothe your baby in the car or stroller. Limits help protect teeth and speech, prevent overdosing on juice, and keep sippy use from slipping into sippy abuse.
⢠Fill it with water. If the sippy becomes a comfort object (much as a bottle can), don't deny the comfort, but fill it with water, which won't harm those teethâand if it's fluoridated, will help protect them.
⢠Know when to stop. Once your little sipper can drink easily from a regular cup or a straw cup, ditch the sippy.