Your Newborn's Second Month: It's nappy-changing time!

Your Newborn's Second Month of Language Development

Say Cheese! The Family Photo Show-and-Tell

In the second month, continue fostering your newborn's language development by maintaining an ongoing dialogue. Always remember that your constant and repetitive communication is critical to their language acquisition journey. Keep your language simple, repetitive, and engaging. An enriching activity for this month could be introducing your baby to your family and friends. Collect a few photographs of your loved ones and take the time to show them to your baby. As you present each photo, describe who the person is, for example, "This is Uncle Ben!". Share details about their appearance, like "He has dark hair and is smiling in this picture!". You could also include fun facts or anecdotes about each person, such as "Uncle Ben lives in a big house!". This activity not only enhances your baby's understanding of the world around them but also provides you with a valuable tool to stimulate their language development.

It's nappy-changing time!

Oh, the tales I could tell about nappy-changing time with my little Lou. You see, I have this habit of providing a play-by-play of our diaper changing routine. It's kind of like I'm a sports commentator, but for baby hygiene. I'll be there, guiding Lou through every step: "Now, Lou, we're taking off your dirty diaper and putting it right over here," "Next up, it's sponge time! We're going to gently clean that cute little bottom of yours," "How's that feeling, darling?", "And voila, mission accomplished, diaper change complete!"

But it's not all business, diaper changing time also doubles up as our mini gym session. I'd delicately move Lou's little legs up and down while crooning our signature song, "Lou's legs go up, up, up, and then they go down, down, down." Then, in the most gentle manner, I'd bend her knees towards her tiny chest. This action not only aids in releasing gas from her tummy, but also encourages muscle development. By repeating this leg movement ten times, I can create another engaging language touchpoint by counting aloud to ten.

And here comes the fun part! At some point, my smarty pants Lou realized she had the power to control the situation. So, she put me to the test. She'd stubbornly straighten her legs and I couldn't bend them at all. Oh, it was a sight to see! My tiny tot, all focused and determined, putting all her might into keeping her little legs straight to thwart her gym session. It was a power move, a tiny display of rebellion, and it was absolutely adorable! I can tell you, not many things are funnier than a baby trying to outsmart her mom during a diaper change!