Baby: 5 Month Milestones

You’ve made it to five months with your little one. You are out of the newborn trenches and being able to see your baby’s personality, or temperament start to shine and develop. At five months eating and sleeping should be more on a schedule now then it has been. You should be able to start to see trends and patterns of your baby’s eating habits and sleep/awake windows. Even if they aren’t exactly the same time every day the duration between each feed, or nap is starting to be consistent.

Your baby may be sleeping about 14.5 hours per 24 hour period. This may look like 11-12 hours of sleep at night, with 2.5-3.5 hours of naps sporadically throughout the day. Around the 4-5 month range your child will most likely have doubled their birth weight. From 5 to 6 months you can expect your little one to gain about 1-1.25 pounds this month and grow .5-1 inch. Not all children grow at the same rate so just check with your doctor if you don’t believe your child is growing appropriately.

There are lots of firsts that start to happen around the 5 month mark. Every child develops at their own pace. Developmental milestones are in place so a doctor can gauge if a baby is developing as expected to the average normal. Don’t get too caught up in when your baby is hitting certain milestones, just that they are continuing to learn and do new things in a timely manner as they grow.

One of the many new things your baby will most likely start doing at 5 months is rolling over. They will master rolling from their back to their tummy. Some babies will pick up rolling from their tummies to their backs as well. If your baby can only roll back to the tummy, don’t worry this is the first step in them learning how to get moving. Some children who can only roll from back to tummy will become frustrated and cry, they may feel as though they are stuck if they don’t know how to roll back over. Your baby will also start wiggling and kicking with a purpose, your child may get close to a heavy object and try to push with their legs off to help them scoot across the floor. They will also grab and swat at toys. Grabbing and bringing things to their mouth will also start to happen. This can be done with a toy, or even your finger. Regardless of what they get a hand on it will more than likely be headed for their mouth.

Your child’s head control will be much better. At five months it is unlikely for your baby to be sitting on their own completely for long periods of time. They may however be able to sit with some support. Either pillows propped around them, on your lap, or between your legs. Some babies will be able to hold themselves up with their hands as they balance. This helps your child develop the muscle strength in their core, neck, and head for when they are ready to sit on their own.

Interacting with your child will become more exciting. They will start to smile and giggle when you talk to them. They will start having good eye contact. Some babies at 5 months will respond to their name. Tracking voices, and objects will start to get better. Your baby will be able to babble, start saying different sounds, and express feelings with different sounding cries. Five month old babies will also start responding to games like peek-a-boo, and pat-a-cake with smiles and giggles. Your child will also start to distinguish between family members and strangers.

Between months 4-6 is when some people start introducing foods to their baby. Purees, and baby cereal or oatmeal is not to replace your child’s nutrients or calories. Their main source of calories and nutrients will still be from breastmilk or formula. This is more about introducing your child to different textures and flavors. You can start them on infant oatmeal or cereal, or go for pureed vegetables and fruits. It is recommended to try a new food every 3-5 days just so you can watch for reactions or allergies. Most babies will not be ready for solid foods until closer to 6 months, just because of choking.

All children develop at different paces. There is a time when you should be concerned if your child isn’t meeting certain developmental milestones in a certain time frame. If your child doesn’t master one skill off the five month milestone chart by 6 months your doctor may not be concerned. It is however important to talk with your doctor about milestones that aren’t met so they can keep track in case it would become a concern. Things that could be concerning are your baby has tight muscles, your baby still seems very floppy, there is no improvement in head control, your baby doesn’t attempt to roll over, your baby isn’t reaching or grabbing items, your baby isn’t bringing their hands or objects to their mouth, your baby can’t sit with support, or your baby doesn’t respond to facial expressions or tries to smile. After speaking with your doctor depending on the area of concern your doctor may suggest you meet with a specialist such as a physical therapist, or speech therapist if your child isn’t meeting certain milestones.

You can help your baby meet their milestones. One thing that can really help your baby is to get enough floor play. Get down on the floor with your baby, encourage them to wiggle and roll, practice sitting them up. Hold their hands and help them crunch into a sitting position. Make sure they are getting enough time during the day to practice all the new motor skills they are learning. If they don’t get enough play time during the day they may start practicing at night, which can lead to interrupted night time sleep.

Talk, sing, narrate what is going on to your baby. Read books to your baby that are sensory books, touch and feel, or have bright beautiful colors. Play games like pat-a-cake or peek-a-boo with your little one. Give them toys such as rattles, mirrors, or things that are easy for them to grab, hold, and chew. Give them all the kisses, cuddles, snuggles that you can. They are only ever this tiny once.