Yes your baby has it! Even if he doesn’t show it yet, your baby will have his own unique personality that will start appearing within the first few months of life. Once your baby is past the first few weeks when all he is doing is eating and sleeping it seems, his personality will start to peak through. By watching his early signs, you will be able to get a sneak peak at the personality that will develop.

The biggest part of a person’s personality is whether they are introverted or extroverted. A baby will often show a strong sense of this aspect of their personality from very early on. Does your baby seem to like the attention he gets from the outside world and people outside of your immediate family? Does he light up when people try to talk to him, or does he try to hide his head and start to cry when out of your arms or someone other than those living in the house try to hold him?

Some babies will take the opportunity to smile and laugh with every stranger that looks their way, while others are content to just look at mom and dad, while ignoring everyone else around them. If your baby is an extrovert he will thrive on attention from all sources, and if he is an introvert he will be happy just being left alone.

Some babies are high maintenance, wanting to constantly be held, played with, and given attention. As soon as their diaper is wet or full, they HAVE to be changed or they scream. Others are content to sit by themselves and wait for you to come to them, or patient enough to give you time to discover on your own that they need a diaper change and change it. This part of their personality probably won’t change much as they get older and will give you an insight of how your child will be as he grows.

Is your baby a ham? Does he grin his biggest whenever you pull out the camera or is getting a smile like pulling a tooth? Some babies love being the center of attention and laugh on cue. Your baby may try to make you laugh, especially as he gets older. He may put pots and pans on his head or start trying to pose for pictures, even before he is a year old. If this is the case your baby may very well turn out to be the class clown in school!

Some babies will not need a lot of interaction, or will quickly become over stimulated when given too much interaction. If this happens your baby may become fussy quickly, becoming happy again once he is left to himself, or given his favorite toy to play with. If this sounds like your baby be sure to give him his alone time when he seems to need it and be around to play when he is ready. 

It doesn’t matter if your baby is quiet and sits around waiting for you to notice him, or is active and rambunctious making sure EVERYONE notices him. Your baby will continue to develop his personality during the first few years and during his adolescence. It is important that you support and encourage him, no matter what personality traits he begins to display, as the reaction your baby gets is what will help him form into the person he will become.

By Elizabeth Pantley, Author of No Cry Sleep Solution

The environment that your baby enjoyed for nine long months in the womb was not one of absolute quiet. There was a constant symphony of sound — your heartbeat and fluids rushing in and out of the placenta. (Remember those sounds from when you listened to your baby’s heartbeat with the Doppler stethoscope?) Research indicates that “white noise” sounds or soft bedtime music helps many babies to relax and fall asleep more easily. This is most certainly because these sounds create an environment more familiar to your baby than a very quiet room.

Many people enjoy using soothing music as their baby’s sleep sound. If you do, choose bedtime music carefully. Some music (including jazz and much classical music) is too complex and stimulating. For music to be soothing to your baby, pick simple, repetitive, predictable music, like traditional lullabies. Tapes created especially for putting babies to sleep are great choices. Pick something that you will enjoy listening to night after night, too. (Using a tape player with an automatic repeat function is helpful for keeping the music going as long as you need it to play.)

There are widely available, and very lovely, “nature sounds” tapes that work nicely, too, as well those small sound-generating or white-noise devices and clocks you may have seen in stores. The sounds on these — raindrops, a bubbling brook or running water — often are similar to those sounds your baby heard in utero. A ticking clock or a bubbling fish tank also make wonderful white-noise options.

“I went out today and bought a small aquarium and the humming noise does seem to relax Chloe and help her to sleep. I didn’t buy any fish though. Who has time to take care of fish when you’re half asleep all day?” Tanya, mother of 13-month-old Chloe.

You can find some suitable tapes and CDs made especially for babies or those made for adults to listen to when they want to relax. Whatever you choose, listen to it first and ask yourself: Does this relax me? Would it make me feel sleepy if I listened to it in bed?

If you must put your baby to sleep in a noisy, active house full of people, keeping the tape running (auto rewind) will help mask baby-waking noises like dishes clanking, people talking, siblings giggling, TV, dogs barking, etc. This can also help transition your sleeping baby from a noisy daytime house to which he’s become accustomed subconsciously to one of absolute nighttime quiet.

Once your baby is familiar with his calming noise, or music, you can use these to help your baby fall back to sleep when he wakes up in the middle of the night. Simply sooth him by playing the music (very quietly) during the calming and falling-asleep time. If he wakes and cries, repeat this process.

If your baby gets used to his sleep time sounds you can take advantage of this and take the tape with you if you will be away from home for naptime or bedtime. The familiarity of these sounds will help your baby sleep in an unfamiliar environment.

Eventually your baby will rely on this technique less and less to fall and stay asleep. Don’t feel you must rush the process; there is no harm in your baby falling asleep to these gentle sounds. When you are ready to wean him of these you can help this process along by reducing the volume by a small amount every night until you finally don’t turn the music or sounds on at all.

Babies enjoy these peaceful sounds, and they are just one more piece in the puzzle that helps you to help your baby sleep – gently, without any crying at all.

About the Author:
Elizabeth Pantley is the author of several books, including Gentle Baby Care : No-cry, No-fuss, No-worry — Essential Tips for Raising Your Baby, The No-Cry Sleep Solution: Gentle Ways to Help Your Baby Sleep Through the Night, Kid Cooperation (with an introduction by William Sears, MD), Perfect Parenting, as well as her latest The No-Cry Sleep Solution for Toddlers and Preschoolers and is also president of Better Beginnings, Inc. She is a popular speaker on family issues, and her newsletter, Parent Tips, is seen in schools nationwide. She appears as a regular radio show guest, and has been quoted in Parents, Parenting, Redbook, Good Housekeeping, American Baby, Working Mother, and Woman’s Day magazines. Visit Elizabeth’s web site http://www.pantley.com/elizabeth.

With the actual dictionary definition of ‘The reflex response of an infant in which the limb and neck muscles contract when the infant is allowed to drop a short distance or is startled by a sudden noise or jolt’ one might wonder if the startle reflex is dangerous for their infant. The answer is no.

Infants are born with this primitive reflex, also called the moro reflex, that helps them adapt and adjust to situations. You will often see a newborn jump when laid on a bed, even softly, showing that their muscles and reflexes are working properly. More common is having your baby startle when you start the vacuum cleaner in the room they are in, however not wake up. This is a good sign that your babies hearing is working up to par.

There are several things that may set your babies startle reflex off. They include but are definitely not limited too:

• Running the vacuum
• A telephone ringing
• Being in car seat when it is places on the floor
• Being touched while asleep
• Other children screaming
• Loud crowds
• TV/Radio turning on/off

If you aren’t sure when your newborn is demonstrating the startle reflex, look for him to quickly extend his arms and legs, and lift his neck when asleep. This may or may not also be followed by a short cry, before he is quickly quiet and back to sleep.

Generally this reflex will be apparent at birth and will generally disappear by the time your newborn is 6 months old. It can often be seen in premature babies born after week 28, as one of their first infantile reflexes.

As always, if you are concerned about any movements your baby is making, go see your pediatrician. Likewise, if you are unsure that your baby has the startle reflex, as the pediatrician at your next visit.