Sofie At Two Weeks (Courtesy Baby Center)
Limbs are still curled
Your newborn baby will probably look "scrunched up," with his arms and legs not fully extended. This is normal, and his limbs will uncurl as he gets used to being outside your uterus. If he appears bowlegged, don't worry. It's part of the stretching-out process and will most likely take care of itself by the time he's 5 or 6 months old.
By the end of his first month, your baby may lift his head briefly when he's lying on his stomach and may also be able to turn it from side to side. Jerky, spastic movements give way to more fluid ones as his nervous system and muscle control mature. Still, your baby's primitive reflexes, such as sucking and chewing on his hands, remain dominant.
Newborns are adjusting to a new world very different from the warm, safe confines of the womb, which is why so many infants take to swaddling � being wrapped securely in a blanket.
Ruled by his hunger
Food is the most important thing in your newborn's life, with sleep running a close second. Most newborns will eat every two to three hours around the clock. Sleeping schedules are equally intermittent. Most newborns sleep for a total of 16 to 17 hours in a 24-hour period, but that's usually broken up into eight or so naps. By the end of the first month your baby may have developed something of an eating and sleeping pattern, but you may not notice real regularity for months.
Crying is the main form of communication
Your baby doesn't have much of a personality now � or at least what you might recognize as personality. But he's busy expressing himself the only way he knows how: crying. He spends his time moving in and out of several different states of sleepiness, quiet alertness, and active alertness.
Having undergone the trauma of birth, he's now trying to deal with an onrush of stimulation. At one month your baby becomes quiet and calm when you speak to him gently and hold him upright. He may even make an "ah" sound when he hears your voice and sees your face. Most babies love to be held, caressed, kissed, stroked, massaged, and carried. Touch is an important means of communicating with your baby.
He only has eyes for you
Your baby's vision is still pretty fuzzy. Your face is the most interesting thing to him right now, followed by high-contrast items such as a checkerboard. In fact, a newborn's range of vision is only 12 inches or so. In other words, a baby can clearly see the face of the person holding him but not much beyond that. Studies show that babies prefer human faces to all other patterns or colors. So keep your face close to your newborn's so he can study your features, and talk to him.
Learning begins immediately
You may notice short periods of time when your newborn is quiet and alert. This is primetime for learning. Use these periods to get better acquainted with your child--talk to him, sing to him, give him a tour of the pictures on the walls of your house. But if you try to interact with him and he doesn't seem receptive, he may have gotten sleepy or moved into a state of active alertness(when he's working on new physical tricks).
Even this early, babies can recognize faces and gestures intuitively � and sometimes even imitate them. Give your newborn a chance to imitate your facial expressions by putting your face close to his and sticking out your tongue or raising your eyebrows a few times. Repeat it. Then give him some time to mimic your gesture. He may not do anything yet, but he's definitely watching you.
Playing with your newborn
Mobiles with high-contrast patterns and books with photos of babies' faces will captivate your newborn. So will his own reflection. You can amuse your newborn by propping up an unbreakable baby mirror at cribside for him to focus on. A play gym with plenty of compelling things to watch, swipe at, and listen to allows your baby to practice his arm, hand, and finger coordination skills � and lying down becomes less boring. In the first few months, he won't move his arms purposefully to really try and reach particular objects � this sort of movement comes later, in month four or five.
Remember, your baby is an individual
Each baby is unique and meets physical milestones at his own pace. Developmental guidelines are just yardsticks of what your baby has the potential to accomplish--if not right now, then soon.
And babies born prematurely almost always need time before they can do the same things as other children their chronological age. That's why most preemies are given two ages by their pediatricians: their chronological age (calculated from their birthday) and their adjusted age (calculated from their due date). Doctors generally assess a preterm child's development from the time he should have been born and evaluate his skills accordingly.