The Wonder of Baby with SMA® Nutrition

Paid partnership with SMA® Nutrition

Even before having my own children I have been fascinated by the world of babies. How these beautiful tiny bundles, that rely on us as parents for absolutely everything, grow into walking, talking little people in just a space of a few years. Babies grow 25cm in just the first year alone*. Isn't that incredible?

Lilah is my third baby and although I've seen this amazing journey twice before, it is still so special to watch and experience. Born with 300 bones** and 10,000 tastebuds***, a baby’s rate of development is pretty extraordinary, and even at 10 months Lilah had changed SO much already.

The six month milestone felt huge every time for me too. Those hazy newborn days of constant feeding, changing and sleeping are mostly forgotten (unless you have a little sleep thief like my second baby Parker). At six months, a whole new world is opened up to you and baby, with the wonders of weaning, moving and even more growing!

Lilah started moving properly around six months, and I remember watching the won-der in her little face as she was able to reach new areas around the house (or toys she knew she shouldn't have). Now she is crawling incredibly fast, cruising and we're very close to the exciting walking milestone too. I find it amazing that just a few months ago she was simply fascinated by her feet, and now she's up on them moving around.

Despite Lilah being my third baby, it hasn't been the easiest journey. Advice and guidelines are constantly changing, and with every baby’s wants and needs being completely different, making decisions in the early stages of development can be confusing and overwhelming. I've found that things which previously worked when Indiana and Parker were babies, simply haven't worked for Lilah. It's for reasons like this that SMA® Nutrition have their own SMA Careline®, which has been supporting parents like you and me for 20 years.

Run by a dedicated team of expert parents, with first-hand experience in everything related to babies, you can call upon the free SMA Careline® team 24hrs a day, 7 days a week if you have any worries or are in need of advice on anything related to preg-nancy, babies or toddlers. The SMA Careline® is available to absolutely anybody, an-ywhere via Live Chat and Facebook messenger, and can offer tips and advice on any-thing from weaning, to breastfeeding and beyond!

Weaning has always been one of the biggest milestones for me. Despite eating a varied diet (a lot of food) Lilah still drank three bottles of follow-on milk a day - SMA® Nutrition have been leading baby nutrition research for over 100 years, gathering all the nutritional know-how on how little ones grow and develop. As she is now 12 months old, we’re switching her on to SMA® PRO Growing Up Milk, a fortified milk drink for young children from 12 months and contains vitamin D and calcium to sup-port the normal growth and development of bones

 

I have loved watching Lilah grow and change over the last 12 months, and I am even more excited to see what her next milestones are going to be. We still have so many to come, and they will be even more special this time, as not just Jack and I get to ex-perience these, but so do her big brother and sister! I am going to be sharing more about life with three little ones in one of my future posts. As I've mentioned before, every baby is so different, and the experience of watching Lilah grow with two older siblings has been so special.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: SMA® PRO Follow-on Milk is only suitable for babies over 6 months as part of a mixed diet. It should not be used as a substitute for breast milk during the first 6 months. SMA® PRO Growing Up Milk is suitable for young children from 1-3 years, as part of a healthy balanced diet and it is not a breast milk substitute.

What have you found most fascinating about your baby’s development? Comment below! 

References:

* - Johnson CP and Blasco PA. Infant Growth and Development. Pediatrics in Review (1997), vol 18, no.7 , 224-242).

** - Peate I, Gormley-Fleming E., eds (2015). Fundamentals of Children's Anatomy and Physioogy: A Textbook for Nursing and Healthcare Students, page 404. UK, Wiley Blackwell

*** Montague S et al., eds(2005). Physiology for nursing practice. 3rd Edition. Edinburgh. Elsevier.