Activities With Baby

[bendherova]

I had a flexible, soft sided mirror that DS1 could look into during tummy time. It played music too.

Really, though, when DS1 was this age, I essentially narrated my day to him. And we read sooo many books.


I hope you feel better soon and don't need any sort of additional procedure.

[billyhorrible]

To echo pps, you're doing great, and a ton. In terms of development, interaction is most important at this age. The sound of your voice, eye contact, etc. You'll find it easier to come up with activities when your babe becomes more interactive. They naturally start grabbing and focusing on things.

LBB had a set of art cards he liked to look at at this age, I'll have to see if I can dig those up. We also played "baby gym" where I would bounce him on my knees, do chest presses using him as a weight (airplane!), and giving him fingers so he could pull up to sitting.

[sabrinaml]

I downloaded the baby sparks app on my phone. It gives me different activities to do with him each day. They are all geared toward his age and help with different development areas.
They have a free version where you don't get as many activities but I paid 7.99 for the full version. It gives me around 12 activities daily from birth to 12 months

[carolyngrace]

I feel like after nursing and changing him there's barely any time until the next nap! I usually lay with him during his most alert time and talk, sing, show him toys. I also flip him into his tummy during this time. Then, when he's restless I either walk around and talk about random stuff or wear him and do chores. Then it's nap time again!

If he has a long awake time I almost always leave the house because I go stir crazy.

[dogmama22]

billyhorrible I was just joking the other day that we were doing B90X (Baby90X) the other day since he does push ups during tummy time. We also have activities we're supposed to do that they gave us during CST so I consider that part of his B90X too.
To answer OP - we do a lot of activities to encourage him to move his head and mouth around and lay on his tummy. We play mouth games where I rub his gums in different places and he follows with his tongue - he actually loves it and makes funny faces.
To entertain myself around the house, I do excessive amounts of laundry, make freezer meals and take way too many pictures of LO and organize them obsessively on the computer (fun right?!)

[erbear]

We sing and talk and smile at each other. LO did love her kick and play gym when I could get on the floor. She started showing some interest in her Sophie the giraffe and toys like rattles. She actually loves watching this stupid stacking hamburger toy that mil actually bought for her for Christmas - she almost laughs at it, it's adorable. We try to stretch her out and massage her legs/bicycle them. She loves to go outside and we smell flowers and touch leaves. She also just got interested in the mobile on her crib so we try to let her play in there a bit.

[txngrl31]

We have a little play time routine:

In the morning, we sit outside on the porch and do a feeding. We sit there for awhile too. She loves hearing all the noises and seeing all the sights.

Lunchtime activity: we first play on the activity mat and do some tummy time And leg exercises. Then I put her on the Boppy lounger in front of the tv (gasp, already letting my baby watch tv!), and I play one episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse . She loves it! She moves her arms and legs and talks to the tv. She really becomes mesmerized by all the bright colors. When it's time for the Hot Dog Dance, I pick her up and we dance around. After that, I end it with a book. By then, she is on sensory overload and goes down for a nap.

In the afternoon, we sing a bunch of songs that are interactive (Itsy Bitsy Spider, Hokey Pokey) and sit out on the porch again to talk about all of the noises and sights. We also go for a walk.

I have incorporated the jumpy exersaucer, but only for a couple of minutes. We just bought her a swing so I'm sure I'll add that to the rotation. My mom bought a mobile to hook on her RnP...it's amazing and she loves to stare and smile at it. 

I try to move her around different rooms in the house when we do these activites so that she is not stuck in one room.

[ladysif]

Not much to add to the others but I like the Wee Gallery black and white flash cards, he loves them and I prop them up everywhere. I also have a little puffy kid's book that you can put your own photos in and we look at that so he is seeing all the family faces regularly. I have a couple puppets I use too, the black and white cow is particularly fascinating to him. You're doing more than you realize simply because these things don't take a lot of effort on your part.

[sidneyvicious]

I had the same question today and started googling stimulating activities/toys for infants. I ended up falling victim to parental paranoia and ordering a bunch of "genius baby toys" off of Amazon.

[sidneyvicious]

Aug 2, 2015 21:23:11 GMT -5 ladysif said:

Not much to add to the others but I like the Wee Gallery black and white flash cards, he loves them and I prop them up everywhere. I also have a little puffy kid's book that you can put your own photos in and we look at that so he is seeing all the family faces regularly. I have a couple puppets I use too, the black and white cow is particularly fascinating to him. You're doing more than you realize simply because these things don't take a lot of effort on your part.

I love the puffy photo book idea -- do you know where yours came from?

[ladysif]

Aug 3, 2015 0:40:04 GMT -5 sidneyvicious said:

I love the puffy photo book idea -- do you know where yours came from?

I randomly found mine new when thrifting, but they're available several places. The brand is Sassy and the book called" Who Loves Baby". Amazon, Target, BBB, Toys r Us all carry it.

[Widget123]

txngrl31 be careful with the exersaucer; 2 months old is still on the young side for something like that.

[txngrl31]

Aug 3, 2015 5:08:54 GMT -5 Widget123 said:

txngrl31 be careful with the exersaucer; 2 months old is still on the young side for something like that.

Thanks for your concern.

BUT....I talked to my pedi about it. No problem with putting her in it for less than five minutes with supervision. She is already holding her head up...something a four month old does. I'll listen to her.

[Widget123]

Aug 3, 2015 7:52:38 GMT -5 txngrl31 said:

Aug 3, 2015 5:08:54 GMT -5 Widget123 said:

txngrl31 be careful with the exersaucer; 2 months old is still on the young side for something like that.

Thanks for your concern.

BUT....I talked to my pedi about it. No problem with putting her in it for less than five minutes with supervision. She is already holding her head up...something a four month old does. I'll listen to her.

Ok that's good.  I just didn't want a bunch of other people reading it and then thinking that because you were doing it with your LO they should start doing it too, but maybe their LO isn't as ready.

[txngrl31]

Aug 3, 2015 9:55:52 GMT -5 Widget123 said:

Aug 3, 2015 7:52:38 GMT -5 txngrl31 said:

Thanks for your concern.

BUT....I talked to my pedi about it. No problem with putting her in it for less than five minutes with supervision. She is already holding her head up...something a four month old does. I'll listen to her.

Ok that's good.  I just didn't want a bunch of other people reading it and then thinking that because you were doing it with your LO they should start doing it too, but maybe their LO isn't as ready.

I guess I should be more careful about what I post? Many STMs have called me out for things that have been cleared and talked about with my pedi. Everyone is different and everyone's babies are different. 

[txngrl31]

Aug 3, 2015 10:58:11 GMT -5 txngrl31 said:

Aug 3, 2015 9:55:52 GMT -5 Widget123 said:

Ok that's good.  I just didn't want a bunch of other people reading it and then thinking that because you were doing it with your LO they should start doing it too, but maybe their LO isn't as ready.

I guess I should be more careful about what I post? Many STMs have called me out for things that have been cleared and talked about with my pedi. Everyone is different and everyone's babies are different. If a mom wants to do something that another disagrees with, so what. There has been a lot of unsolicited advice recently.

[sidneyvicious]

I was googling exersaucers the other day, and I get the feeling it's kind of a hot topic -- some people love them, while some people claim they are bad for babies.

[txngrl31]

Aug 3, 2015 11:35:02 GMT -5 @freckleface said:

Aug 3, 2015 11:19:15 GMT -5 sidneyvicious said:

I was googling exersaucers the other day, and I get the feeling it's kind of a hot topic -- some people love them, while some people claim they are bad for babies.

Kind of like the bumbo. Some moms love them & others won't use them because there's been research linking them to back and spine issues. I'm leery of anything that puts the baby in a forced sitting position but if my pediatrician recommended it, I probably wouldn't second guess it.

I say you do what you feel is right for your baby and others should do what they feel is right, whether it be exersaucers, bumbos, formula feeding, swaddling, etc. I'm learning there is a lot of self righteousness, judgements and tons of opinions in the mommy world.

[erbear]

Amen, txngrl31. I basically got called a shitty mom by following my pedi's advice to put karo syrup in my daughter's bottle.

[billyhorrible]

Aug 3, 2015 10:58:11 GMT -5 txngrl31 said:

Aug 3, 2015 9:55:52 GMT -5 Widget123 said:

Ok that's good.  I just didn't want a bunch of other people reading it and then thinking that because you were doing it with your LO they should start doing it too, but maybe their LO isn't as ready.

I guess I should be more careful about what I post? Many STMs have called me out for things that have been cleared and talked about with my pedi. Everyone is different and everyone's babies are different. 

 I think it's important to remember that not all doctors are created equal or are up to date on their information.  Let's not forget how many OB/GYNs were still recommending the 120 heartrate restriction during pregnancy even though that's out of date information.  And a ton of pediatricians of women on this board have totally screwed them over with regards to breastfeeding information.

But also, I've worked with doctors who were involved in coming up with medical standards (in my case it was cardiology, but this holds true for the whole medical profession).  The "standards and guidelines" are majority rule.  The committee who writes them all get together and quite literally "take a vote" about practices.  So not every doctor is going to agree with them or follow them.  (Like the use of Cytotec for inductions)  And that in itself isn't bad, but it's important to know what and why. 

Whenever I have a question about things, I go to Pub Med, which is a data base of published medical studies, articles and reviews.  I have full access, but even if you don't, a lot of the studies have free pdfs, or at least abstracts.    For instance, when I was looking into the swaddle issue this week, I found all the recommendations by various agencies, as well as a 2014 study published in the Journal of Pediatrics which reviewed every death of a swaddled infant from 2004 to 2014 to assess the risks of swaddling.  Looking at exersaucers found a study which found a significantly statistical correlation between high equipment use  and low scores on infant motor development.  There was another study in Pediatrics which felt they might be the cause of femoral fractures. 

I personally don't care what other people do with their children, but I do advocate not following any advice blindly without doing your own research so you can make an informed decision.

[dogmama22]

Totally agree billyhorrible! My ped told me I was feeding LO too much and that was the cause of his vomiting - terrible advice during the 3 week growth spurt! It's really important that we do our own research and I personally don't mind S+TMs offering advice. I haven't come across many posts that seem "preachy," but I guess tone can be open for interpretation in writing.

[txngrl31]

dogmama22, billyhorrible, I'm not saying to not do your own research or question your pedi. What I am saying is that yes, some come off as very self righteous and preachy on hereA. But like you said, that could be open to intepretation. It's the readers decision to heed the advice or not. It's just a bit "eye rolling" to put something out there, only to have STM comment, question or make an uninformed judgement. Basically, give unsolicited advice and point what they feel you are doing wrong. I do value STM knowledge - just when I put forth a question or seek out advice.

Hope this makes sense- I'm in the middle of a feeding typing with one hand.

[txngrl31]

@babybean9, my comments on this topic have not said anything about not doing your research and making educated decisions. The jest of what I'm saying is- - it's very overwhelming fora FTM with all the info and just trying to making it. It's even more difficult to have an anonymous stranger point out what they feel you are doing wrong.

I seriously doubt your co worker felt like you knew more because you don't give your baby a paci. I give mine one- I own it and don't really care if someone doesn't use it because of their own research. I just don't want to hear a long explanation from a mom on why I shouldn't use one....and vice versa...on why I should.

In regards to the exersaucer...I have looked at research. My baby sits in it with a pillow on her back and below on her feet for all of 2-3 minutes while I point out the bright animals and noises about once a week. My pedi said it was completely fine. I find no issue with , when she gets older and can sit up on her own, to let her play in it for 15 minutes once a day ( supervised) or to stand on the outside of it. It's something different and the bright colors and different dials are entertaining. I dont care if someone agrees or disagrees with my deciosion- just don't point out that I need to be careful with what I'm doing.

Again, I hope my argument is clear right now with it being 3 am haha.

[leenziepops]

OP all those activities sound great for a newborn. I do the same. I try to sing songs that also involve moving LO. For example, "if you're happy and you know it clap your hands" song. I also observed that simple toys are very interesting to LO. I'll probably be one of those crunchy mums that just fill up a plastic bottle with pasta for him to play with.

[billyhorrible]

Aug 4, 2015 7:28:16 GMT -5 leenziepops said:

OP all those activities sound great for a newborn. I do the same. I try to sing songs that also involve moving LO. For example, "if you're happy and you know it clap your hands" song. I also observed that simple toys are very interesting to LO. I'll probably be one of those crunchy mums that just fill up a plastic bottle with pasta for him to play with.

Don't waste perfectly good pasta! Water, food coloring and oil in a bottle is hours of entertainment!

[sabrinaml]

Does anyone have any experience with these:


I'm anti bumbo chairs and am not sure if this is along the same lines or not.

[shahoi]

sabrinaml We received one as a gift, but haven't used it yet, of course, because O is too small. I haven't done any research, but from looking at it, I think it's very similar to a bumbo. I could be wrong though...