The CDC milestone checklists describe what most babies, meaning 75 percent or more, can do by a certain age. By 2 months, most babies calm down when spoken to or picked up, look at your face, seem happy to see you when you walk up, and smile when you talk to them or smile at them. [1]
That last one is the famous social smile. During the second month, the early grins and grimaces you saw as practice runs begin to turn into genuine signals of pleasure and friendliness. [2] It tends to land at the exact moment tired parents need it most.
There is more happening under the surface. By 2 months, most babies also make sounds other than crying and react to loud sounds. They watch you as you move and can look at a toy for several seconds. On the movement side, most hold their head up during tummy time, move both arms and both legs, and open their hands briefly. [1]
Tummy time is how that head control gets built. Keep placing your awake, supervised baby on their tummy 2 to 3 times each day. The AAP suggests working up to a total of 15 to 30 minutes of tummy time a day by around 7 weeks, and back sleeping remains the rule for every sleep. [3]
If the crying feels like it has been building, your calendar is right. Daily fussing typically peaks at about 3 hours a day by 6 weeks of age, then declines to 1 or 2 hours a day by 3 to 4 months. Colicky crying can also look intense at this age, and it usually resolves on its own in the same window. [6]
When nothing works and you are running on empty, it is safe to place your baby in a bare crib or playpen and leave the room for 10 to 15 minutes while you calm yourself. Never shake a baby: violent shaking can injure the brain and can be deadly. [7]
This month usually includes a pediatrician visit with the first big round of immunizations. At the 2 month checkup, most babies are immunized against seven or eight diseases. Typical vaccines include hepatitis B, rotavirus, DTaP (diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis), Hib, pneumococcal conjugate, and inactivated polio, and your pediatrician can combine some shots so there is less pricking. The visit also includes a growth check and a few questions about how you are feeling, because postpartum anxiety and sadness are things your baby's doctor wants to know about and can help with. [4]
Afterward, minor side effects are common and expected: a sore spot where the shot was given, a low-grade fever, fussiness, or sleepiness that goes away within a few days. [5] The red flags section below covers the rare signs that deserve a call.
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Open the week calculatorBabies this age sleep about 16 to 17 hours per day, but often only 1 or 2 hours at a time. [8] Day and night still blur together at 2 months, and some babies sleep much more than others, some in long stretches and some in short bursts. [9]
You can keep teaching the difference. The AAP advises making daytime playtime, which helps babies sleep for longer periods at night, and staying calm and quiet at night, without stimulating or waking your baby more than needed during feeds and changes. [8] The NHS gives the same advice: open the curtains and play during the day, keep the lights low and your voice quiet at night, and your baby will gradually learn that night is for sleeping. Patterns vary widely from baby to baby, so comparing totals with other families tells you very little. [9]
The safe sleep rules have not changed. Back sleeping for every sleep, a firm and flat sleep surface, and nothing soft in the sleep space. [10] The NHS also advises keeping your baby in the same room as you for sleep, day and night, for at least the first 6 months, which can reduce the risk of SIDS. [9]
Breast milk and formula both support healthy growth, and many families use a mix. Here are both rhythms, with data.
Most exclusively breastfed babies feed every 2 to 4 hours, about 8 to 12 times in 24 hours. Some feed as often as every hour at times, which is called cluster feeding, and some sleep a longer stretch of 4 to 5 hours between feeds now and then. Babies generally take what they need and stop when full, and a content, drowsy baby after a feed is a good sign they got enough. [11]
Most formula-fed babies feed about every 3 to 4 hours at this age, and the time between feedings keeps stretching as your baby's stomach grows. Some sessions run long and others short, which is fine. [12]
Keep the vitamin D going. Babies under 12 months need 400 IU of vitamin D each day. Babies who get only breast milk, or breast milk plus formula, need a daily 400 IU vitamin D supplement, because breast milk usually does not provide enough on its own. Babies fed only formula can skip the supplement once they drink 32 ounces a day, since formula is fortified with vitamin D. [13]
Most of what you see at 2 months is normal. A few signs deserve a call, so you never have to wonder.
A temperature of 100.4 F (38 C) or higher in a baby younger than 3 months (12 weeks): call your doctor right away. At this age, fever alone is enough reason to call. [14]
Breathing difficulty, an unexplained rash, or repeated vomiting or diarrhea alongside illness: call your doctor. If your baby is struggling to breathe or it feels like an emergency, call 911. [14]
After shots, serious reactions are rare but defined: nonstop crying for 3 hours or more, a fever over 105 F, or a seizure after DTaP vaccination happens much less often than the minor effects. [5] A fever that high, or any seizure, means call your child's doctor right away. [14]
A baby who is too sleepy to feed or keeps skipping feeds: babies this age still need to eat every few hours to grow, so talk with their doctor or nurse if you cannot wake yours to feed. [11]
Milestone concerns count too. If your baby is not meeting one or more 2 month milestones, does not react to loud sounds, or has lost skills they once had, the CDC's advice is direct: do not wait. Talk with your child's doctor and ask about developmental screening. [1]
Crying that intensifies and lasts through the day or night, or inconsolable crying that is new for your baby: colicky behavior can also signal a medical problem such as a hernia or an illness, so it is worth a call to be checked. [6]
LEELALU is education, not medical care. Nothing here is a diagnosis. For anything on this list, or any symptom that worries you, contact your provider. If it feels like an emergency, call 911.
The crying curve keeps bending in your favor. After the peak around 6 weeks, daily fussing declines to 1 or 2 hours a day by 3 to 4 months, and colic typically resolves in the same window. [6]
The next CDC checklist milestone stop is 4 months. By then, most babies chuckle when you try to make them laugh, make cooing sounds like oooo and aahh, hold their head steady without support when you hold them, and push up onto their elbows or forearms during tummy time. The CDC's free Milestone Tracker app can carry your notes from this month straight into the 4 month checkup. [15]
Babies this age sleep about 16 to 17 hours per day, but often only 1 or 2 hours at a time. [8] The total is still spread across day and night, and patterns vary a lot from baby to baby, so a schedule that looks nothing like your friend's baby is normal. [9]
At the 2 month checkup, most babies are immunized against seven or eight diseases. Typical vaccines include hepatitis B, rotavirus, DTaP (diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis), Hib, pneumococcal conjugate, and inactivated polio. Some are combined into fewer injections. [4] Side effects are mostly minor, such as a sore spot or a low-grade fever, and go away within a few days. [5]
By 2 months, most babies smile when you talk to them or smile at them. [1] During the second month, early grins turn into genuine signals of pleasure and friendliness. [2]
LEELALU is education, not medicine. This page cannot diagnose or treat anything, and it never replaces your clinician. For anything on the "call your doctor" list, or anything that worries you, contact your provider. Found an error? Write to hello@leelalu.com and a person will read it. Our method: Editorial Standards.