Are you ready to learn all about the needs and development of your 4-month-old baby?! You have come to the right place. I have written an extensive guide for you including what to expect when it comes to developmental milestones, sleep, breastfeeding, and even how to best play with your 4-month-old baby to encourage brain development and growth! My guide is backed not only by experience but also by research!
This post contains affiliate links, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Important Note: I do extensive research when writing these posts. I synthesize my research using many academic and reliable sources as well as my own personal experience. I fact check using the CDC, and the American Academy of Pediatrics (APA). I also consult the following reference books both for making decisions on raising my daughter and writing these posts:
- Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Dr. Marc Weissbluth (Hands down best sleep training book I’ve read!)
- The Complete and Authoritative Guide: Caring for Your Baby and Young Child–Birth to Age 5 from the American Academy of Pediatrics
- What to Expect: The First Year (3rd Edition) by Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel
If you are interested in researching and learning, in depth, about your 4-month-old baby I highly recommend buying the above books or checking them out from your local library! They will be a must-have resource for the coming months!
4-Month-Old Milestones
- Lift head 90 degrees when on tummy
- Lift head when in your arms
- Laugh out loud
- Follow an object that is 6 inches above face as it moves from side to side
- Smile spontaneously
- Like to play
- Babble
- Clearly show happiness and sadness
- Recognize familiar people at a distance
- Use eyes and hands together
Sleep Milestones for a 4-Month-Old
Sleep Basics
- Total sleep in 24 hour period: 14-16 hours
- Nighttime sleep: 9-10 hrs
- Daytime sleep: 2-3 naps
*These are averages. Remember your baby might sleep a little more or a little less. You should always talk to your pediatrician if you are concerned.
Because your little one can hold more food in their growing belly chances are they can sleep for longer periods of time. You are looking at 6-7 hours of uninterrupted nighttime sleep at a time!
However, before you get too excited your little one should be going to bed around 7 pm each night! That means with 7 hours of nighttime sleep will have your baby waking you up around 2 am.
Don’t worry too much though! Nurse your baby when they wake up and put them directly back to bed. After that, your baby should sleep through till the morning!
This is how a nighttime schedule could look for you.
6:30 pm Bathtime, books
6:45 pm breastfeed or bottle
7:00 pm Put baby to bed
2-3am middle of the night feed (don’t wake
7 am Morning Wake up
Don’t forget! Babies should always be placed on their back to sleep. Remember “Back is Best” Placing your baby to sleep on their back reduces the risk of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) tremendously.
Since your baby will soon be able to roll over while sleeping it is time to start transitioning away from swaddling your little one! You want him to be able to move around freely. I love sleep sacks for this purpose. For those of you that don’t know a sleep sack is basically a wearable sleeping bag! So cozy! I really liked this transitional sleep sack swaddle for when I was transitioning my daughter away from being swaddled. After she got used to the sleep sack I moved to this one and also this one!
A note on napping: Around 4 months you might be wondering why your child won’t sleep longer than 45 minutes during the day. Read this post by The Practically Perfect Baby to get your baby napping longer. I started using their method and never looked back. (Not sponsored or an affiliate, just obsessed)
Breastfeeding a 4-month-old
Your baby will probably want to eat every 6-8 times over a 24 hour period. This could be every 3-4 hours. Most babies will consume around 5-6 oz per feeding for a total of 24-36 oz.
A sample breastfeeding schedule could look like this:
7 am: Wake up and Nurse
9 am: Nurse and nap
10:30 am Wake up from Nap
11:00 am Nurse
1:00 am Nurse and Nap
2:30 am Wake up
4:00 am Nurse/ Bottle
6:45 am Nurse
7:00 am Bedtime
2 am/3 am: Middle of the night Nurse
Doctor’s Visit:
If you are following the traditional vaccination schedule for the United States your child is likely to receive the following vaccines at his or her 4th-month checkup:
- 2nd Dose of Rotavirus
- 2nd Dose of Tdap (Diphtheria, tetanus & pertussis)
- 2nd Dose of Hib (Haemophilus influenza type b)
- 2nd Dose of PCV13 (pneumococcal conjugate
- 2nd Dose of Inactivated Polio Virus
How to Play with your 4-month-old
- Talk to your baby all day long! This starts developing their language skills
- Sing and Dance
- Read books
- Mimic sounds back to her to show the process of talking
- Hug and snuggle often to show your baby affection and to build a sense of security!
- Tummy time! You should continue doing tummy time!
- Play with baby blocks and soft toys to stimulate hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills
- She will love looking at the “other baby” in a small unbreakable baby mirror
- Be sure to spend time playing on the floor with your baby every day!
Appropriate Toys for your 4-Month-Old
- Around this time your baby will start grasping toys for a few seconds and should be reaching out for them. Provide soft crinkly toys that are easy to grab such as this fish or this cute butterfly.
- A set of easily
grippable rattles and teethers will also be really beneficial in the coming months. - These freezable teethers will be a lifesaver! Teething can start as early as 3 months so you might want to have those on hand!
- Teething necklaces: These are so great, once your little one starts teething you are going to want something that they can hang on and gnaw on! I have teething necklaces in every color!
- Soft easily
grippable blocks or rubber blocks are great! - Toys with Finger
holes - Textured toys that make sounds or play music
Helpful Tips for Baby’s 4th Month
Guess what?!?! You can start doing gentle sleep training!!! This is an exciting milestone to reach! Read to see how you can establish a rock solid bedtime ritual and survive sleep training!
If you are headed back to work after your maternity leave check out my tips and tricks for returning to work after maternity leave.
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