From the start of pregnancy through age two, your baby's brain forms more than 1,000,000 new connections every second. Each stage shapes a different part of the brain and needs different nutrients to do its work.

Your baby's spinal cord finishes forming by Day 28 before most women know they're pregnant. That's why the 90 days before you become pregnant matter. Your body is already building the reserves your baby will draw from first: methylfolate, choline, DHA.

All those kicks and flutters? Inside, something bigger is happening. Your baby's brain is forming its basic structure - the part that will one day help them feel a hug, know their body, and make sense of the world. Neurons are finding their places. The outer brain is folding to fit more power into less space.

Every time your baby hears your voice, follows your face across the room, or reaches for a toy, their brain is building new pathways. The temporal lobe is the part of the brain that helps with language and memory. And inside it sits the hippocampus, the brain's memory center, and it's growing faster right now than it ever will again. Every lullaby, silly face, and every time they hear their name is wiring the brain for what comes next.

First words turn into sentences. A toddler starts figuring out how to wait, share, and calm down. That's the prefrontal cortex still being built. The brain is also pruning: keeping the pathways your child uses most, trimming the ones they don't. Every new word, every tested "no," every bedtime routine shapes how this part of the brain takes form.

From wobbly first steps to running and holding a crayon, the cerebellum keeps growing well past the second birthday. A layer called myelin is wrapping around the neural wiring laid down during the First 1000 Days, helping signals travel faster and more clearly. Every dance, every tumble, every scribble is built on the foundation you already gave them.