Crying babies are the toughest things for parents to deal with. However, in most cases, crying is your two months old baby's way of communicating with you, and it really is the most effective way for them to communicate with you. When babies are tired, sleepy, hungry, have a dirty diaper, bored, or lonely, they cry to let you know. For most infants, once these needs are met and satisfied, they stop crying.
In some cases, some babies will cry for hours on end for no particular reason, and this is known as colic. Colic babies tend to begin around two to three weeks, peaks around the 8 week period, and can last until 3 or 4 months old. Parents will get overwhelmed by how much a colic baby cries, and will have a hard time understanding why their infant can cry for hours when they've tried everything to calm the child. Feeding, diaper changes, cuddling, none of it work, and sometimes, it takes a drive around the neighborhood to put a crying baby to sleep. Luckily, this type of crying usually stops round 3 to 4 months.
Other than the crying that all parents need to deal with, your two months old baby will have grown much during this time. First and foremost is of course their size difference at 8 weeks old compared to when they were just born. Your baby is plumpy and very cuddly! Below are what you can expect see during this time.
Physical Growth
- When lying on tummy, a 8 weeks old baby can lift head about 45 degrees for a short period of time
- Baby's hands starts to unfold, and when given the chance, will reach up to grab an object
- Baby's eyes move in unison, and is now able to track moving objects
- A two months old may be able to roll over to one side or the other
- Baby's muscles are more relaxed, and also twitch less
2 Months Old Language
- Around this time, your baby may discover his or her voice, and can some times be even surprised by this discovery
- Your baby will coo and make gurgle sounds more frequently at this point
- He or she will respond to voices, and especially to voices that he or she recognizes, such as daddy's or mommy's voices
- When you talk to your baby, he or she will know you're talking, and will look at you as you speak
- They will also smile back at you when you smile
Social and Emotional Development
- By the time your baby is eight weeks old, he or she is able to communicate their mood by simple means such as crying, making different cooing and gurgling sounds, and through some simple facial expressions. These are the subtle things that parents will be most aware of.
- Your baby likes to look at faces, especially daddy's and mommy's face, and he or she will take a long time to study the faces
- Your eight week old baby will respond to smiles and loving attention
- Your baby's personality also becomes a bit more apparent at 2 months
Your infant at this time will be a handful, but if you have a nice routine setup with your child, it will make things much easier for your entire family. With a regular feeding, sleeping, awake, and napping schedule, both you and your baby will know what to expect, and having a nice daily routine is healthy for your baby's development.
Watch a 2 year old toddler read, and see how this child's reading skill develops at 3 and 4 years old.