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Baby month 11 for dads: first words and last-call deadlines

Some babies already have a special name for you by now, and many wave bye-bye. Month 11 is the last call for first-year leave and the month to book the 1 year vaccines. Your jobs: book it, use it, and keep talking.

How to read this

Month 11 means the baby is between 10 and 11 months old. Everything below is a typical range, not a test: babies get there at different times. If your baby was born early, ask your health visitor or pediatrician how to count. Anything that worries you goes to your GP, health visitor or pediatrician, or NHS 111 / 911 when it is urgent.

▸What is typical for the baby this month

Development: close to the 1 year checklist

By 1 year, most babies call a parent mama, dada or another special name, wave bye-bye, understand no, and play games like pat-a-cake. Month 11 is often when these appear. [CDC]

Feeding: the cows' milk switch is next month

Whole cows' milk can become the main drink from 1 year, not before. In the UK, all children aged 1 to 4 should have a daily vitamin supplement with vitamins A, C and D. [NHS · CDC]

Vaccines at 1 year

UK: the 1 year vaccines are MMRV (first dose for babies born on or after 1 January 2025), the second pneumococcal dose and the third MenB dose. Your GP surgery will usually contact you. [NHS · NHS]

US: the CDC parent schedule lists MMR, chickenpox, a Hib dose and a pneumococcal dose at 12 to 15 months, and hepatitis A (2 doses, 6 months apart) from 12 months. Follow your pediatrician's dates. [CDC]

▸Your jobs this month

  1. Book the 1 year vaccine appointment now, and put it in both calendars.
  2. Use any leave you have left. UK Paternity Leave, Shared Parental Leave and US FMLA bonding leave all have to be used in the first year.
  3. Respond every time the baby points or waves. Name what they point at.
  4. Plan the first birthday small: the baby will not remember the party, but you will remember who did the planning.

▸Her recovery, your head, and the two of you

Ask how she is, properly, one to one. Symptoms of postnatal depression can still start this late, up to a year after the birth.

Postnatal depression signs the NHS lists include low mood, finding it hard to enjoy anything, feeling hopeless or unable to cope, feeling guilty or like a bad parent, constant worry, irritability, trouble sleeping even when there is a chance to rest, trouble concentrating, difficulty bonding with the baby, and thoughts of suicide or of harming herself or the baby. Symptoms can start any time up to a year after the birth. [NHS]

It is not only her. NHS Best Start in Life says up to 1 in 5 women and 1 in 10 men develop a mental health problem such as depression or anxiety in pregnancy or the first year after the birth, and the NHS says fathers and partners can also get depression after a baby. [NHS Best Start in Life · NHS]

Where to get help

UK: talk to your GP, midwife or health visitor. In England, adults can also refer themselves to NHS talking therapies. PANDAS runs support groups, a text line and a callback service, and Samaritans answer on 116 123. In an emergency call 999. [NHS · PANDAS]

US: talk to her OB or your own doctor. The Postpartum Support International HelpLine is 1-800-944-4773 (call or text; it takes a message and a trained volunteer gets back to you), and PSI runs a support group for dads. For a crisis, call or text 988, any time. In an emergency call 911. [PSI · PSI · 988]

▸Money and paperwork around now

UK: Paternity Leave must end within 52 weeks of the birth, and Shared Parental Leave must be used in the first year. [GOV.UK · GOV.UK]

US: FMLA bonding leave must be used within 12 months of the birth. New Jersey Family Leave Insurance must be used before the child's first birthday. [U.S. Department of Labor · New Jersey Department of Labor]

Get every first-year deadline as a date → · Vaccination schedule (UK and US) →

▸Common questions

When do babies say dada?

CDC lists calling a parent mama, dada or another special name among the things most babies do by 1 year. Babies vary; if you are worried, ask your health visitor or pediatrician.

What vaccines are at 1 year in the UK?

The NHS schedule lists MMRV (first dose for children born on or after 1 January 2025), the second pneumococcal dose and the third MenB dose at 1 year.

▸The whole first year

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Not medical advice

This is general information for expectant fathers, not clinical guidance. Anything about symptoms, pain, or bleeding goes to your midwife, doctor, or emergency service, not to an app.

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Your first year, dated from the birthday.

In the DAD-OS app, enter the birth date once and get this month's guide, the vaccine visits and every paperwork deadline as real dates, with a calendar export.

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▸Sources

Checked against these pages. Where guidance differs by country, follow your own GP, health visitor or pediatrician.