WHAT SHOULD SHE EAT?

If your baby has not started eating finger foods, this is a good time to start. Finger foods are small, bit-sized pieces of food, like cheese strips, well cooked grains of rice, pieces of toast or rusk, well boiled macaroni, boiled potato fingers, etc. Because she cannot use a spoon yet, giving her finger foods allows her to practice.

Until she is 1 year old and more, she will not have the teeth to chew foods adequately, so you have to be careful and give it some thought as to what to give her. Combination foods are a safe bet, oatmeal cereal pieces, small slices of soft bread, well-cooked vegetables, etc.

WHAT WILL SHE DO AT THIS TIME?

She is better equipped to take charge of her visual world now, as her sense of perception gets sharpened, and more developed. She also understands how objects appear larger or smaller in relation to how close they are to her.

She also has a better understanding of up and down. When she is seated high in her chair, she will be afraid to get out of it, because she knows she is seated at a height. When she places her sippy cup or her toy upright, she is showing you that she knows it should be placed that way.

WHAT YOU COULD HELP HER DO!
Give your baby plenty of time and the opportunities to practice walking. Let her hold on to both  your hands as she walks in front of you. Do not strain her arms. Letting her practice builds her confidence. Ad it will not be long before she is taking her first few steps herself!

Hers senses and reflexes too are developing this week, as she begins to approach small objects with her fingers and thumbs. She also starts getting bored with repetition, and needs new things to interest her every day. She can evaluate the moods of people around her, and can sense it when you are upset or tense. She will also tend to cling to one or two objects, becoming more attached to her toy, or pacifier or even a favorite napkin!

WHAT ABOUT HER SLEEP?

At this stage, it is very important for your baby to fall asleep and stay sleeping through the night without calling out for you, or waking you up in the middle of the night. She will have to learn to slip into sleep on her own. If she depends too much on being held, or comforted, or rocked, or even breastfed to fall asleep, she will have trouble falling asleep again and will probably cry out loud as she wakes up in the night. So it is important that she learns to fall asleep on her own.

WHAT SHE WILL WEIGH

As she enters her 38th week, she will be weighing anywhere between 8 and 11 kgs. Each baby grows at her own pace, so do not get unduly alarmed if she is not as chubby as the neighbor’s infant next door! Your little cherub is unique, and her progress is priceless!