TIPS FOR HAPPY TUMMY TIME

Getting a baby to spend 50% of the time she is awake on her tummy is a daunting task for any parent or caretaker.  It's especially difficult when your baby despises being on her stomach.  Here's a couple of tips to help make tummy time more productive!

• Try doing tummy time on the dining room table or bed for easier face to face time.  It's boring to always look down at the floor. On a higher surface, there are so many interesting things for the baby to see.  Put a yoga mat or a towel down first to make the surface comfortable and supervise at all times! 

• Clothes hamper natural body movement and make tummy time more cumbersome for the baby.  Get your baby down to just her diaper or no diaper on a waterproof mat and see how much more mobile she is. 

SITTING UP BABY

It was very exciting for me when Emily was first able to sit independently at 5 months.  I had been propping her up against the couch for a while.  I was glad because she was spending much more time off her back and I thought this would help her crawl and be more comfortable on her stomach.  I could not have been more wrong!  My baby still hated tummy time and now wanted to sit slouching back all the time.

Sitting babies up prematurely prevents them from rolling, scooting and crawling because it does not help their muscle development.  Therefore, limit sitting as much as you can and let the baby spend more time on her tummy to help develop those neck and back muscles.

If your baby does love to sit, make sure she sits on her sit bones not back on her spine.  Proper early posture is essential for strong muscle development.  It is common for babies to develop poor posture if they have learned to sit slouching back early on.  Encourage your baby to come up onto her sitting bones by reaching up or out with both hands for any object or toy while sitting.