Your baby has been able to recognize you since he or she was just a few days old, but now it's becoming obvious. About half of babies this age begin to exhibit recognition of their parents.

Your baby will probably continue to smile at strangers, especially when they look your baby straight in the eye and coo or talk to him or her. But your baby is starting to sort out who's who in his or her life, and will definitely prefer you, your partner, and perhaps a few others.

Your baby may quiet down and make eye contact with you or search for you in a room, moving his or her arms in excitement or smiling when you've been found. Your baby may even find your scent calming and comforting.

Early language development

Research shows that babies whose parents speak to them extensively have significantly higher IQs and bigger vocabularies when they get older, so interaction is especially important right now. Set a solid foundation by exposing your baby to a variety of words.

Talk about your surroundings when you take your baby for a walk, and point to and identify objects as you roam the grocery store aisles. Your baby can't repeat these words yet, of course, but he or she is storing all the information in a rapidly developing memory.

If your home is bilingual, your baby will benefit from hearing both languages spoken regularly.

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