How to Bond with Your Newborn

As a newborn, your baby will gaze at faces, especially at the eyes and mouth. In fact, she will gaze at faces longer than at anything else! She can see clearly eight to 12 inches away, about the space between her face and yours while feeding. Human faces, after all, are full of motion and sound. Stick out your tongue, and your baby just might stick hers out, too! Position yourself close to your baby when singing or talking to her. She'll get to know your face very quickly. It will seem like she is examining every part of your face—every nook and cranny! And that is exactly what she is doing. Repetition will make Baby remember who Mommy is and that she is the sure thing in her life. (Most infants prefer female faces to male faces due to this "mommy connection.") This security enables her to soon move on, in baby steps, to the next milestones. It is also an early intellectual development—college, here she comes! Imagine her studying a chemistry book as deeply as she is studying your face!