Physical Development

There's no avoiding the fact that some babies are spitters. It may help the situation if you change formulas (your pediatrician can suggest alternatives), give smaller, more frequent meals, and burp your little one more often--or it may not. Most moms who've dealt with spitters agree that the best solution is simply to wear old clothes--and plan on doing extra laundry. The good news is that most spitting is normal and passes by the time baby can sit up. However, if your baby vomits so persistently that she doesn't seem to get enough to eat, check with your doctor.

Social Development

As your baby's stomach capacity increases, she'll have less of a need for nighttime feedings. However, this doesn't mean she'll stop waking up. Your increasingly social child has discovered a new reason to cry in the night--it brings a sleepy but loving parent to her side. When you do feed her, she'll be more easily distracted, frequently stopping to play or smile at you. To encourage her back to the task at hand, feed her in a quiet, softly lit spot. Don't sing or talk to her, and put her down as soon as she finishes eating; she'll eventually get the hint that nighttime is not playtime.

Intellectual Development

Many of the reflexes your child exhibited at birth are now becoming voluntary actions. For instance, sucking has become a conscious activity with a variety of goals. Babies suck to soothe themselves, to learn about the objects they place in their mouths, and for pure pleasure. Favorite sucking toys include pacifiers, fingers, and thumbs.

Some parents watch their babies suck and envision them as teenagers, or even adults, still dependent on a pacifier or thumb. Relax! This phenomenon is rarer than snowballs in July. Nearly half of all children continue to suck their fingers or thumbs past infancy, but more than 95 percent have given it up by age 6. So let your little one suck as long as she needs to.

Note: The information above offers general guidelines, but all babies develop differently, and few hit their milestones precisely when the conventional wisdom says they should. If your child was born prematurely, you may want to use your due date as a baseline for following baby's development.