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Seeing your baby right when he was born, and comparing it to the 10 week old version of him, will be quite a far cry from what he was earlier. With increased movements, all those loud sounds, a curiosity that knows no bounds, your child at 10 weeks old is a bundle of energy and experimentation all wrapped together in the most adorable form.
10 Week Old Baby Development
By the time the age is 10 week old, the baby’s weight will have gone up considerably and you might have even opted to purchase his clothes at a size more than usual.
After an entire phase of extended wakefulness, around this age, you might notice that your loved one seems to spend comparatively longer times in napping or sleeping deeply. These could even be as long as 4-5 hours at a time, making you sigh with a relief. Since they are getting quite some rest, it is even more important to ensure that the supervised tummy times are longer and are done diligently to ensure continued development of the upper body strength. If he gets bored, you can lie down too and bring your head to the same level as his. This will make him interested in trying to move closer to you. At times, when they try really hard to keep themselves up, babies might get tired and end up with their face down in the bed. Do make sure you help him roll over and lie on his back.
Ten Week Old Baby Milestones
As the supervised tummy time develops, it is essential that you take note of how the strength of his arms and his chest starts developing as well. If your baby can already hold their head pretty good, you can slightly push their legs as well, so as to nudge them for a crawl. They will not be able to crawl right at this stage but the nudge will unconsciously trigger them to remember how to do it. A few minutes of such exercises every day should be gradually ramped up to a cumulative time of around half an hour throughout the entire day.
Along with the upper body strength, it is necessary to note and check if their legs are getting strong, too. Since most of their time is either lying on their back or on their tummy, the legs do not get a chance to bear their weight. By the age of around 10 weeks, the legs have started garnering a good amount of strength. You can gently hold your baby by his body and see if he can hold some weight on his legs. It could even get the baby excited as well and he will start hammering away his feet on the bed. Do try this out only if your baby is in a good mood since the entire act can easily get quite taxing on the little one.
Feeding
Given the increased weight and appetite of your child, you might be fluctuating between breastfeeding and bottle feeding, if the breastfeeding does not suffice. A lot of time is invested in ensuring that your baby is well-fed and satisfied. If you’d like to start returning back to your normal life, it is great if you can learn to breastfeed your baby anywhere at any point in time. It sure can get awkward for a few mothers but it is important to break away from that mentality if you are to start living your life again. Majorly, once you have the confidence of feeding well and have mastered a position and the tact of feeding quickly, this shouldn’t be a problem. Even if not, it is best to keep trying so that it benefits both you and the baby.
Sleeping
For a 10 week old baby, the sleep patterns and sleeping styles now tend to fall into the realm of predictability. A slight schedule begins to emerge as your child will now fall asleep at those specific times without fail. If your baby tends to wake up early in the night or mornings, the first feed of the day could make him fall asleep almost immediately after the feeding is complete. At other times, the first feed and a nice bath could energise the baby and keep him happy and excited in the mornings. One of the key problems faced by nearly all mothers is putting their babies to sleep during the afternoons. Desperate to catch a small nap themselves, mothers have tried all techniques to induce sleep in their children. At times, your child may fall asleep but only after you have cuddled him, or walked around with him, or played for some time and then he gets bored.
Behaviour
The energy and excitement of your baby are even more than before when he is awake. Reaching for everything that he can, making a lot of sounds, being able to keep his head upright when on the tummy, makes him realize too that he is growing up. By trying to help them bear their weight on the legs, this could further get them happy and look at it as another fun-filled game. If their legs are strong, you can simply hold their hands and let them balance on them for a moment or two, before they fall down on their soft bed.
Along with making cooing sounds and grunting with you, your baby will start using his saliva in funny ways. Blowing raspberries starts becoming a natural activity that keeps your baby occupied by himself. An increased visibility of drool and saliva might make you wonder if the teeth are about to erupt. However, that isn’t the case and your baby is simply having the most fun that he can have.
Crying
Crying, yes. Crying can get out of hand at this age since it will come in all sorts of varieties. After putting your little one to sleep, you might hear small little cries that are signs of him failing to sleep deeply. If he wakes up in the middle of the night with an empty stomach, the wail that ensues can wake up every person in your household. If you are done playing with your child and leave him alone by himself for a moment, he will cry out differently to get your attention and make you come back to him. All these cries are different and can be recognized over time.
With any kind of cry, it is important to respond to it as soon as possible or risk letting it build up to a longer crying routine. After all, crying is the only way your child can successfully communicate his needs to you.
10 Week Old Baby Care Tips
- Appropriate feeding at the right times in the right amounts.
- Taking note of the different styles of crying and making sure they are attended to as fast as possible.
- Keeping a track of your baby’s schedule and understanding what he might need before he asks for it.
- Playing with your baby and taking him outside to a park or a nearby garden for some calm time..
Tests And Vaccinations
If all the important vaccines of the 8th week such as PCV, rotavirus, and others have been administered successfully, then there are no vaccinations to be undertaken at this stage.
Games And Activities
At 10 weeks, your baby has grown some strength within himself and has begun to understand 3D space and movement around him. You can take advantage of this and help him fly in the air in the most exciting manner possible. Lie down on the floor and hold your baby firmly in your hands. Use your thighs as a support for your baby as he lies down on them. Then, with your hands along his side to keep him steady, gently raise your legs in the air and make your baby fly. Make exciting sounds and look at him with excitement. Chances are your baby will love it and begin giggling. Certain babies can get extremely scared and start crying. And that’s really unfortunate because this activity is a lot of fun and an exercise for you, too.
Since their eyesight has gotten better too, you can make use of a powerful torch or a shiny piece against sunlight, to cast a reflection on the wall before them. If your baby is lying down, use it to make a reflection on the ceiling and make surprised sounds. Let it appear and disappear occasionally and watch your baby glee in delight.
Consult A Doctor If
Increased interaction with other people might make your baby susceptible to picking up an infection from others. The common ones are cold and cough. In case those happen, try using home remedies to clear the nose. Else, contact the doctor to know if any medication should be administered.
If the infection worsens and your baby seems to be trying to itch his ears, suffering from constipation and has a slight fever, then this could be a sign of something even more severe and requires immediate medical attention.
This entire bundle of joy at a mere 10 weeks old is a sight to behold. The non-stop entertainment combined with an awe of seeing your baby grow from a tiny little newborn child to more than 2 months old can be quite reassuring. Take good care and split activities between your spouse so that you can start making your return to the normal life as well.
