Tummy time. Oh the
dreaded tummy time.
I have felt this way. Have you?
It actually seems pretty common among moms, new and experienced, to hate tummy time. I've heard parents say they were excited if their child spent ten seconds on his tummy, because all their baby did was scream during tummy time. Yikes!
Other parents get nervous, especially with
smaller infants, because baby might not be able to lift his head yet. Therefore, baby has his face smooshed or buried in whatever surface he's lying on.
In general, tummy time seems to make a lot of parents uneasy.
My daughter has always been pretty easy during tummy time. Definitely easier than the ten second tummy time screamers. She would contentedly lie for 5 to 10 minutes on her tummy. Plus, she's had great head control since a young age.
However, I still don't
like tummy time. Probably because whenever I think of tummy time I feel guilty for not promoting it more often. Oops!
Here are a few easy ways to promote a little bit of tummy time everyday. Remember, little bits of time add up!
1. Changing Time
One of the greatest tummy time suggestions I've ever heard right here! Every time you change your
baby's diaper, flip him over for 30 seconds on his tummy after he's in that clean diaper. This is so simple and so obvious, I can't believe I never thought of it. I think this is especially great for the parents of anti-tummy-time babies.
2. Get Down There Too
Take a minute or so to get down on the floor with your baby. Lie on your tummy and interact with your sweetie. See the world from their level. It's a great way for you to spend a minute or so with your baby. It's also a nice way for you to take a quick break from the hectic demands of everyday life.
3. Set Goals
It's easy to lose track of something as simple as giving your baby a few minutes of tummy time each day. It's not intentional. We're busy. Parents have so many things to think about. Something as simple as setting daily or weekly goals for baby's tummy time and tracking progress can remind you to give baby some tummy time.
4. Tummy to Tummy
When you think of tummy time, you might be thinking of lying your baby on the floor on a blanket or play gym. However, moms and dads alike can lie on their backs with their baby on their belly; belly to belly with baby. This is a great time for some skin to skin contact with baby and cuddling, too, in addition to tummy time.
5. Use Your Arms
This is another one you might not normally think of counting, but when baby is still pretty small it's a great way to get tummy time. When baby is small enough to fit on your forearm, you can cradle baby with her belly against your forearm.
6. There's an App for That
Of course, there is an app for everything these days! Find
Tummy Time Helper in the iTunes store. I haven't been able to find something similar for Android, but if anyone knows of one, please let me know!
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