Celebrating Baby’s First Milestones
Kids grow up faster than we expect. One day your child will say or do something that seems very adult and you’ll wonder where and how they learned it. This is especially true for the first year of your baby’s life. The milestones will come and go, one right after another. It will be a flurry of excitement and wonder. You owe it to yourself and your baby to celebrate each milestone.
1. Snap some photos!
It seems obvious, but years later some parents wish they had captured those first moments on camera. Photos are easy to snap these days. Arm yourself with a smartphone or tablet and keep it nearby when your little one is about to do something cute and new. Since we don’t have to develop film anymore, there’s no reason not to take a hundred photos.
2. Share across social media.
Some parents are tenuous about sharing their kids’ lives on Facebook and all that, but I don’t understand that. I want my family to share in my child’s achievements as well, especially for those who don’t get to come around as often. Don’t be afraid to upload all those fun pictures.
3. Start your own blog.
You don’t have to tackle big topics, debate hot parenting issues, or keep a rigid schedule. You don’t even need your own web space and trendy website. Use a free blogging platform, ask your family and friends to sign up, then write whenever you feel like it.
4. Write baby a letter.
A fun way to commemorate all the milestones is to write your child a letter after each one. When your baby starts to crawl, cruise, walk, feed herself, talk, and anything else, pen your thoughts on paper, sign Mom or Dad and put it somewhere safe. You can continue this trend as long as you like, into your child’s teen years if you’re committed. One day, bestow a folder full of letters and watch your grown son or daughter tear up!
5. Don’t forget the important moments.
Here’s a list of all the important moments you shouldn’t forget to celebrate.
- First smile
- Rolling over
- First tummy time
- Sitting up
- Babbling (get a video)
- Crawling
- Pulling up
- Cruising
- Walking
- First bath
- Favorite book
- First full-night sleep
- First solid foods
- First car ride
- First grab
- First hug
6. Praise heavily.
The best way to celebrate your baby’s achievements are to load on the praise and admiration. You want to provide a positive, comforting, supporting environment so your child knows that you’re proud. Encourage new behaviors with lots of smiles, hugs, and cuddles.
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Written by Stephanie Parker from Sleepingbaby.com, inventor of the Zipadee-Zip
The motto for Sleeping Baby, makers of the Zipadee-Zip, is: "Inspiring Dreams One Night at A time," and that, in a nutshell, is how it all started…with one little dream that has since become the Parker family's reality. When Brett and Stephanie Parker's daughter, Charlotte, was born, the feeling that welled up inside of them was indescribable; they never realized until first looking into those baby blues of hers that they were even capable of that kind of love.
When it was time to transition baby from swaddling, the Parkers tried every sleep sack on the market and every swaddle weaning trick they could find for nearly two weeks and nothing worked to get baby Charlotte to fall and stay asleep.
Stephanie became determined to restore sleep and sanity to their household and set out to find a solution that would soothe Charlotte's startle reflex and provide her the cozy womb-like environment she loved so much but still give her the freedom to roll over and wiggle around in her crib safely. Out of sheer desperation and exhaustion, the Zipadee-Zip was born. The first Zipadee-Zip(R) Stephanie put together on her little sewing machine worked like magic!
To date tens of thousands of Zipadee-Zips have been sold and all from word-of-mouth marketing. It is so rewarding for the Parkers to see other parents and babies getting the sleep they both need and deserve!
For more information, visit sleepingbaby.com.
Interested in writing a guest blog for Sleeping Baby? Send your topic idea to pr@sleepingbaby.com.
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