Studies have shown that even newborns, with their eyesight limited to about 12 inches, prefer to look at familiar faces — especially yours. Months 2 to 4: Your baby will start to recognize her primary caregivers' faces, and by the 4-month mark, she'll recognize familiar faces and objects from a distance.
Based primarily on voice recognition, some researchers believe newborns can recognize their mothers almost immediately after birth. And of course, breastfed newborns quickly become familiar with their mother's unique scent. True visual recognition probably takes a few weeks.
Most infants are ready to bond immediately. Parents, on the other hand, may have a mixture of feelings about it. Some parents feel an intense attachment within the first minutes or days after their baby's birth. For others, it may take a bit longer.
When can a baby recognize their parent's faces? There is some evidence that suggests babies already start preferring their mom's faces within hours of being born. “Babies are born with fuzzy vision, and can see things clearly only when they are very close to them,” Diamond explains.
Perhaps the most significant one a baby hears in utero is his mother's voice. Around the seventh and eighth month, a fetus's heart rate slows down slightly whenever his mother is speaking, indicating that mom's voice has a calming effect. By the time they're born, babies can actually recognize their mother's voice.
Your baby's not going to forget you. You should realize, though, that she will—and should—bond with other people. Look for a daycare center where there's one primary caregiver rather than a rotating staff, suggests Lawrence Cohen, PhD, author of Playful Parenting.
Your baby finds comfort in your arms
When an infant can be soothed by your voice or physical comfort, this is another way she shows she trusts you. Infants identify caretakers by sight, smell, and sound, and when any of these provide a level of comfort to a baby it is evidence of an established bond.
1-3 Months
The first three months with your baby often seem the hardest. Sleep-deprived parents can feel overwhelmed, but that is normal and you will quickly learn how to read your baby's cues and personality. Don't worry about “spoiling” your baby at this stage.
While your baby was in utero, they were able to recognize your voice and even differentiate it amongst other noises and sounds. As your baby gets older, they will be able to recognize the mother's face as well. All of that to say, your baby can sense Mom in the room.
Do Babies Feel Love? In short, yes: Babies do feel love. Even though it will be quite a while before they're able to verbalize their feelings, they can and do understand emotional attachment. Affection, for example can be felt.
Emotionally absent or cold mothers can be unresponsive to their children's needs. They may act distracted and uninterested during interactions, or they could actively reject any attempts of the child to get close. They may continue acting this way with adult children.
Newborns only worry whether someone is meeting their needs, and it doesn't matter who that is. It isn't until they're between five and eight months old that they begin to miss you.
Most babies naturally prefer the parent who's their primary caregiver, the person they count on to meet their most basic and essential needs. This is especially true after 6 months when separation anxiety starts to set in.
As early as three months, babies learn to recognize their parents or primary caregivers. And there staring is their way to communicate. Babies can't quite interact yet for the first few months, so their staring is their way of communicating with you.
Babytalk | A baby's bond with its mother may start with the sense of smell. One of my favorite things to do is show mothers how their baby can smell them from as far away as 1 to 2 feet.
Studies have shown that infants as young as one month-old sense when a parent is depressed or angry and are affected by the parent's mood. Understanding that even infants are affected by adult emotions can help parents do their best in supporting their child's healthy development.
Overall, babies simply find it easier to fall and stay asleep next to mom than they do dad. Mothers are also the source of breastfeeding which makes it much more natural to continue the night when milk is available.
Baby may start to know when their father is touching mom's belly. Babies can sense touch from anyone, but they can also sense when touch (and voice) is familiar. And by 24 weeks into pregnancy, dad can usually feel baby kick – but the exact time varies.
General satisfaction with life increased in the first months after birth and peaked when the child reached 6 months old.
Older parents are generally less at risk for depression than younger ones. Parents still in their early 20s appear to have the hardest time because they are struggling with their own move from adolescence to adulthood while at the same time learning to be parents.
However, many babies tend to get "easier" around 3 to 4 months old. Around this age, infants may begin to sleep longer stretches and feed on a more predictable schedule. You may also start to adjust to your new set of responsibilities as a parent. This being said, every baby is different, as is every family.
By two months, most babies will look happy to see you, and they'll smile when you talk to them. For many parents, those smiles are a heartwarming first glimpse of true affection. By four months, your baby will be smiling unprompted, hoping to catch your attention with a little “I love you” from across the room.
Rapid Eye Movement (REM) or Active Sleep
The vast majority of newborns' smiles during sleep appear to occur when the eyes are moving rapidly, as they would during a dream. Studies suggest that adults smile in response to positive dream imagery.
Grabbing and squeezing everything is simply a natural response that 2 year olds display towards whatever catches their attention. For some reason, your daughter has latched onto squeezing your face as a particular way of "connecting" with you.