🍼 Age-based baby guide

Week 4: Many babies are more awake and stretchy now, with little “quiet alert” moments where they study your face, practise stronger arm and leg kicks, and may even flash the odd sleepy grin as you both reach the end of the very first month together.

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By around four weeks, many babies have short windows in the day when they are calm and alert, looking at faces or lights and moving their arms and legs with a bit more control than in the first days.
Feeding can still feel like a full-time job, but some parents notice feeds becoming a little more efficient, with the baby staying more focused and sometimes taking a brief pause to gaze up at them.
Sleep is often still very broken, yet a few babies begin to have one slightly longer stretch in each 24 hours, while the rest of their sleep comes in short naps scattered between many feeds.
Nappies usually show regular wees and soft poos by this point, and many parents become faster at handling the constant change-wash-repeat rhythm of daily baby care.
Your baby is already learning that your voice, smell, and favourite holding positions mean comfort; repeating little rituals, like a song before sleep or a cuddle after a bath, can start to feel surprisingly special.
If anything about feeding, nappies, breathing, skin colour, or your baby’s behaviour worries you, you are always encouraged to contact your midwife, health visitor, paediatrician or local emergency service.

Feeding

Guide

At week 4 many babies still feed very frequently, but some parents notice a gentle rhythm appearing, such as clusters of feeds at certain times of day and slightly calmer gaps in between.
Responsive feeding – offering the breast or bottle when your baby stirs, roots, nuzzles at your chest, or opens their mouth, rather than watching the clock – continues to be a common approach at this age.
You may see your baby pause during a feed to look up at you or relax their hands and body; many parents enjoy these tiny “milk-drunk” moments as a sign that baby is feeling full and settled after taking in milk.

Sleep

Guide

Around four weeks, nights are usually still broken by feeds and cuddles, and it is common for babies to mix day and night, with some lively stretches in the small hours and sleepy spells in the daytime.
Parents are often advised to keep baby on their back in a clear, flat sleep space in the same room as an adult, and to use simple calming habits at night, such as low lights, soft voices, and gentle handling.
Some families find it helpful to build a loose evening wind-down, like a short wash, clean nappy, feed, and cuddle in dim light, without expecting a strict bedtime or long stretch of sleep yet at this stage.

Pee and Pooping

Guide

By week 4, many babies have a steady pattern of wet nappies and soft poos, which might be mustard yellow, brown, or slightly green, and they often arrive with noisy squirts that can surprise everyone nearby.
Parents often get used to checking nappies during awake times, noticing not only how often baby wees and poos but also whether their skin looks comfortable or needs extra care for any redness.
If nappies suddenly become very rare, if poos are very pale, contain blood, or your baby seems unwell or unusually sleepy, you are encouraged to contact your midwife, health visitor, paediatrician or local emergency service.

Learning

Guide

By the end of the first month, many babies can focus on a face or simple object held about the length of your forearm away, and they may look very serious, as if they are carefully “studying” you.
A few times a day, during short calm spells, you might chat to your baby, copy their little sounds, or slowly move your head from side to side so they can practise tracking you with their eyes, stopping when they turn away or fuss.
Many parents also keep offering tiny bits of tummy time when baby is awake and watched – on your chest, across your lap, or on a firm surface – which helps them strengthen neck and shoulder muscles for future rolling and sitting.

Sources

This content is general information only and is not medical advice. If you are worried about your baby, contact your midwife, health visitor, paediatrician, or local emergency service.