Week 12

Days 78 to 84 · 11 weeks 0 days to 11 weeks 6 days old · almost 3 months This week a typical baby measures about 60 cm (23.6 in) and weighs about 5.8 kg (12.8 lb). Babies vary widely, and a baby who is steadily following their own growth curve is doing well, whatever the number. Your baby's arms are becoming more purposeful: many swipe and bat at objects this week, even if they cannot grab them yet. Head control on the tummy is getting stronger, and your baby is starting to remember and expect the shape of their day. For you, the fog of the early weeks may be lifting, and outings and trips feel more possible. This week looks at reaching and batting, screens, night sleep, pets, travelling with a baby, how your baby learns routines, and tummy time progress.

Day 78 · 11 weeks 0 days old

Your baby is starting to swipe and bat

Watch your baby under a play gym this week and you may see something new. Instead of waving their arms at random, they swing a hand towards a dangling toy, and sometimes hit it. The toy moves, your baby startles or grins, and they try again.

This batting is the first step towards reaching and grasping. It takes a lot of coordination: your baby has to see the object clearly, judge where it is, and send their arm in roughly the right direction. At first, contact is mostly luck. With practice, their aim improves, and over the next couple of months it turns into accurate reaching and grabbing, usually somewhere between 3 and 5 months.

You can help by giving your baby things worth aiming at. Hang a soft toy or rattle within arm's reach above them, or hold one just in front of their hands when they are lying on their back or sitting supported in your lap. Toys that make a sound or move when touched reward each swipe.

Babies who were born early may start batting later, closer to their corrected age, and that is expected. Every baby builds this skill at their own pace. Try this: Hold a light rattle about 20 cm (8 in) above your baby's chest and wait to see whether they swipe at it before you shake it.

Day 79 · 11 weeks 1 day old

Screens can wait

Phones, tablets and television are part of nearly every home, so it is worth knowing what experts advise for babies. The broad consensus is that babies should have no screen time before about 18 months, with one exception: video calls with family and friends.

The reason is not that screens are poisonous. It is that babies learn best from real people and real objects. They need faces that respond to them, voices that answer their coos, and things they can touch, mouth and drop. A screen cannot respond to your baby, and time in front of one replaces some of the interaction and movement that builds their brain and body. Bright screens close to bedtime can also make it harder for babies to settle.

Background television counts too. When it is on, adults tend to talk to babies less, and babies are distracted from play.

Video calls are different because the person on the other end can respond. A grandparent who sings and waves on a call is still having a conversation with your baby.

Your own phone is worth a gentle thought as well. Scrolling during a long night feed is completely understandable. Just try to put it down for some of the times your baby is awake and looking for you.

Try this: Turn off any background television today for the times your baby is awake and see how it changes the feel of the room.

Day 80 · 11 weeks 2 days old

Longer stretches at night may begin

Somewhere around this age, many babies start to sleep a little longer at night. Their stomachs hold more milk, they are more alert by day, and their body clock is maturing, so more of their sleep shifts into the dark hours. Some babies sleep for five or six hours in one stretch now. Many do not, and that is normal too.

There is no age at which babies should be sleeping through the night. Most babies still wake to feed at least once or twice at night around 3 months, and breastfed babies often wake more often than formula-fed babies. Night waking at this age is a normal part of how babies feed and grow, not a sign that something is wrong.

You can support the shift by keeping days and nights different: bright light, noise and play by day; dim light, quiet voices and calm feeds at night. A short, predictable bedtime routine, which you may have started around 2 months, helps your baby know what comes next.

If your baby does start sleeping longer, there is no need to wake a healthy, well-growing baby for night feeds unless your baby's doctor or nurse has advised it. If you are breastfeeding, your breasts may feel very full in the morning for a while as your supply adjusts.

Try this: Keep a simple note of your baby's longest night stretch for three nights, so you can see the trend instead of judging each night on its own.

Day 81 · 11 weeks 3 days old

Babies and pets can share a home safely

Dogs and cats often take a while to accept a new baby. A few months in, you may be learning what your pet will and will not tolerate.

The single most important rule is never to leave a baby alone with any pet, however gentle it has always been. Even a calm dog can snap if startled, and babies cannot move away or show they are uncomfortable. Watch your pet's body language: a stiff body, lip licking, yawning, turning away or growling all mean "give me space".

Keep pets out of your baby's sleep space. Close the bedroom door or use a gate, and do not let a cat curl up in the crib or bassinet. Keep pet food, litter boxes and water bowls out of reach before your baby starts moving. Help your pet adjust too. Keep their walks and feeding times as regular as you can, give them attention when the baby is around so they link the baby with good things, and give them a quiet place of their own to retreat to. Wash your hands after handling pets, their bowls or their waste. Reptiles, amphibians and backyard poultry can carry salmonella, which can make babies very ill, so keep them and their enclosures well away from your baby. Try this: Look at where your pet sleeps and rests, and make sure it cannot get into your baby's sleep space tonight.

Day 82 · 11 weeks 4 days old

Travelling with a baby takes planning, not courage

Young babies are often easier travellers than toddlers. They sleep a lot and are content as long as they are fed, warm and close to you. With some preparation, trips by car, train or plane are very possible.

For long car journeys, plan to stop every couple of hours so your baby can come out of the car seat, feed and stretch. Never feed or take a baby out of their seat while the car is moving. If you are renting a car or borrowing a seat, check it fits your baby and is installed correctly.

For flights, check the airline's rules for babies, including whether you need to book a seat or bring an approved car seat. Your baby will need their own passport or travel documents for international trips, and these can take weeks to arrive. Feeding or offering a dummy or pacifier during takeoff and landing can help with ear pressure.

Pack more diapers, spare clothes and feeding supplies than you think you need, in your hand luggage. If you are formula feeding, ask about bringing water and formula through security.

Think about safe sleep at your destination. Book a crib or bring a travel cot. Check travel insurance and whether your baby is up to date on vaccines for where you are going.

Try this: If a trip is coming up, start a packing list today and check whether your baby needs a passport.

Day 83 · 11 weeks 5 days old

Your baby is learning what comes next

Watch your baby's face as you pick up the bath towel or settle into your usual feeding chair. You may see them quiet down, kick with excitement or turn towards the breast or bottle before it appears. Your baby has started to recognize patterns and anticipate what usually happens next.

This is early memory at work. Over the past weeks, your baby has experienced the same sequences many times: a song before sleep, a certain voice before a feed, the sound of the zip on the sleep sack. Their brain has linked these signals together. Expecting what comes next helps babies feel safe and calmer, because the world is becoming more predictable. You can see it in social games too. If you play the same gentle game every day, like a slow "I'm going to get your tummy", your baby may start to smile or wriggle before the tickle arrives.

This is one reason simple routines help at this age. They do not need to run to a clock. A loose order of events, such as feed, play, then sleep, or bath, book, feed and bed, gives your baby cues to hold on to.

It also means your baby is learning who you are. Your smell, voice and way of holding them now mean comfort.

Try this: Pick one short song or phrase to use every time you lay your baby down to sleep, and keep using it for the coming weeks.

Day 84 · 11 weeks 6 days old

Tummy time is getting easier

If tummy time was a struggle at first, you may notice a change now. Many babies near 3 months can lift their head to about 45 degrees on their tummy, and some push up onto their forearms and hold their chest off the floor for short spells.

The neck, back and arm strength built this way is the base for rolling, sitting and later crawling. Tummy time also helps prevent a flat spot on the back of the head, as you read around 2 months. The general aim is to build up to a total of about 30 minutes or more over the day, in short sessions, by the time your baby is around 3 to 4 months. Babies who protest can still get there a few minutes at a time.

Make it interesting. Get down face to face with your baby, place a mirror or toy in front of them, or roll a small towel under their chest. Lying on your chest counts too. Always stay with your baby during tummy time, and put them on their back to sleep.

Call your baby's doctor if your baby cannot lift their head at all when on their tummy by around 3 months, seems very stiff or very floppy, or always turns their head to the same side.

Try this: Do three short tummy time sessions today, one after each of three diaper changes, when your baby is already awake and on a flat surface.