Wondering what to expect in those first few months? Babies change, grow, and learn fast, and while we wish they could just slow down, the best thing we can do is to prepare for these developments! We are listing off baby’s biggest milestones month-by-month. When do they speak their first words? When do they begin to crawl? These questions and many more will be answered! It is shocking how much a   can learn in the first two years of his or her life.

Photo courtesy of Daniel Reche

After just two months, you can expect the sweetest milestone… smiles! That is right, according to a WebMD article titled, “Baby Milestones: Your Child’s First Year of Development” by Amita Shroff, little ones will start to hold grins in response to hearing your voice or seeing your face. Exciting stuff, huh?

In addition to smiles, you can look forward to your baby calming down after being picked up (that is certainly a relief!), as well as looking you in the face, according to the CDC.

Photo courtesy of Ivone De Melo

This next milestone is a big one! Parents, get excited… baby will start to be able to sleep through the night between four and six months, according to Shroff. No pressure, though—this will happen on their own time. However, it is good to know that there is some reprieve after many sleepless nights!

Another exciting milestone that happens between four and seven months is teething! Most likely the most painful milestone that a child will go through, teeth coming in can also happen later, around seven to nine months.

Additionally at four months, according to the CDC, parents will hear   coo and receive a response when they speak to their little ones. At six months, baby will recognize familiar faces, laugh, and start to sit up on his or her own. They will still be a tiny bit wobbly with sitting and need support. Babies will start to fully sit up on their own between seven and nine months.

At around eight months, Shroff mentions your little one will start to get super active! Crawling is their new favorite pastime. However, not all   are crawlers. Some like to creep, scoot, or wriggle… all of which are fine!

In addition to sitting up on their own, babies reach all sorts of milestones at nine months, according to the CDC.  They will respond when their names are called, make new sounds as they get closer to speaking their first words, and they enjoy a solid game of peek-a-boo by smiling and laughing. Babies also learn to wave goodbye, connecting the action of the wave with the act of leaving, according to Shroff.

Photo courtesy of Yan Krukov

Around this same time and all the way through 12 months, babies start to try their hands at feeding themselves! While it is an exciting time in tasting all the finger foods, it is also a stint where you will need to pay extra-special attention to what   is putting in his or her mouth. As Shroff states, babies love exploring both taste and texture at this age. Ensuring that any small objects stay out of reach is the best way to keep your little one safe from their own curiosity!

At the one-year mark, your child’s personality really starts to shine through. They may have a distinct nickname for parents (i.e., “mama” and “dada”), they can understand when they are being told “no,” and they can pull themselves up to standing, cites the CDC. From standing, they can further walk around the house by holding onto pieces of furniture. Your active baby is only getting more mobile! This act of walking with the assistance of holding onto certain objects is called “cruising,” says Shroff. She cites that babies will spend hours doing this in preparation for taking their first steps!

Photo courtesy of Tatiana Syrikova

Of course, one of the biggest milestones that baby reaches is his or her first steps. While on average, your little one will take at least a few steps by 13 months, the range for learning to walk can be anywhere from nine to 15 months. Around this time, according to the CDC, babies may clap when they are excited and generally show more affection. They will love giving hugs and kisses, as well as cuddling with a stuffed animal or doll. Additionally, your little one will be more attentive when you ask them to do something. They overall have a better understanding of listening and communicating. For example, they may point at something when they want it, or respond to a hand gesture.

With that said, as briefly mentioned earlier, another huge milestone that happens around the one-year mark is baby’s first words! “Mama” and “dada” may come first, and then shortly after, you may start to hear your little one add three words or more into their small, but mighty vocabulary. This building of the vocabulary typically happens around the 18-month mark. Additional milestones at 18 months include learning to scribble, learning to use a spoon, and climbing on and off a couch, cites the CDC.

Photo courtesy of Sklei

Finally, at two years old, your little one may climb up the stairs, run, or kick a ball. He or she may start to put words together, getting closer and closer to forming their own sentences! At this point, they are walking, talking, and eating on their own. In fact, they can even use a cup without a lid… although spills will most certainly happen from time to time.

As the CDC states, children will go through these milestones at their own pace, but if you are worried about your baby’s development, the best thing to do is seek professional help by scheduling an appointment with your child’s pediatrician.

Can you believe your little one goes through all these changes in just two years? It is truly remarkable how fast children grow up. From not being able to sleep through the night to walking on their own, those first two years are monumental in your child’s development! We hope this post helped in getting an idea of what to expect during the first 24 months of your little one’s life. We wish you the best of luck in navigating through it all!