Your baby's hands have been busy, long before they arrived!

You'll see your baby making movements like putting their hands by their face – especially when you are trying to feed them! You might be observing these actions for the first time, but they're not new to your busy baby.  

It is common knowledge that your baby makes movements while in the womb – everyone who has been woken up by a kick to the ribs at 3am will know that! A lot of the movements that you are seeing your newborn do are ones that they have been practising for some time now. Researchers have observed babies in the womb carrying out what they call "intentional” movements with their hands before birth. There have even been observations of babies using their hands in the womb to manipulate body parts and their environment, such as the umbilical cord.^[1]  

References 

[1] Joyce W Sparling Fetal and Neonatal Hand Movement Physical Therapy, Volume 79, Issue 1, 1 January 1999, Pages 24–39, https://doi.org/10.1093/ptj/79.1.24