Here are some of the things that Husband and I currently do with Bella:
- Read books about 3 times a day (maybe 10-15 board books a day?)
- Play with her toys, both independently and together
- "Sensory Walk" around the house - the window feels cold, the cat feels soft, the cinnamon smells spicy, etc.
- Baby exercises - 20 minutes in her jumperoo, stretches, Baby Yoga (haven't gone in a while due to the crawling classes not working with our schedule), will sign up for swimming class that starts in March
- Sing songs - Itsy, Bitsy Spider, Row Your Boat, etc.
- Dance to music (check out the toddler station on Pandora.com)
- Practice crawling, assisted standing, assisted walking
- Leave the house almost daily (Library, Grocery store, Target, Conservatory, etc.)
- Hang out in front of the mirrored closet doors admiring the pretty baby we see
- Chill out and snuggle
- Be silly - throwing her pants up in the air is a special favorite, make faces, funny noises, etc.
- Observe Mama Time - Bella chills in the Ergo carrier while I cook and clean
Now won't you be a lovely and post something in the comments about what you do with your baby during playtime? Or what your baby does at daycare? It's for the good of the future. Think of the children!
We pretty much do the exact same things you do (but with less cleaning, ha) My kid starts daycare soon, so I will let you know what he does all day- I'm expecting much of the same but who knows?! I know some daycare babies do crafty stuff at this age...like hold a paintbrush to paper and make a "painting." Sounds messy though! Mine is loving rattles right now, or anything that shakes. I can't really think of anything else...
ReplyDeleteLet me assure you that I have a loooong way to go on the cleaning front. I'm thinking of setting up a schedule for myself or something. Bah.
ReplyDeleteAlong the lines of rattles - we sometimes spend time crinkling up paper, esp from magazines. I suppose that would fit into the sensory category.
And yes - report back once your baby is in daycare!
It sounds like you are a doing a TON of great stuff with Bella! We don't do that much, but I think Ava sleeps a lot more than Bella does, honestly. She probably sleeps 3-4 hours during the day and 12-ish at night. You coudl try taking her out in the stroller??? Our pediatrician told us that in Finland, they set their babies outside for naps, down to 0 degrees, which kind of revolutionized my idea of cold and babies. Although, I remember you wrote about that condition you have. Cold tourettes, I believe it was....:0)
ReplyDeleteTotally recommend Bright From The Start by Jill Stamm... lots of great ideas in there.
ReplyDeleteSome things we do that have not been mentioned include: "swimming" in the bathtub - we fill it up and just play around - don't necessarily worry about getting all soaped up, just lots of spashing and pouring water out of cups and a watering can we have, etc. We also let Charlie play with safe household things that are not his typical toys - like measuring cups and spoons, empty oatmeal containers (think drumming), or containers we fill with different things (like a jar with lentils inside or something). Charlie also loves to look at pictures of himself and of other people he recognizes (mostly mom, dad, and grandparents) - so we have some pictures that we let him look through (they get a little gummy and gross, so make sure to use duplicates). Also out of sheer desparation we have started to go on what I call "indoor walks". I put Charlie in the Maya Wrap and we walk around the house taking the time to stop and look at new things and talk about what we are seeing, "Look at the pot and pan rack!" and "Wow! The freezer is cold inside!" or "Look at the mirror in the bathroom." This is a bit lame - but in the summer we would take several walks a day and Charlie seems to like the sling no matter where we are going. When all else fails - I just start jumping, clapping and making animal noises - it gets him everytime!
ReplyDeletethankfully when my December baby was born we were living in Indiana which is not nearly as cold. We went on A LOT of walks. I just bundled him up and off we would go. Then we were busy moving, and lived with my parents for a month which gave him lots of new stuff to do and look at.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if you have family in town, but changes of scenery were great for him. I would bring him to my moms or in laws or friends houses...not necessarily leave but just let him get to know other people and environments. Or I would have friends over to my house. We NEVER had trouble with separation anxiety with that kid, he practically pushed us out the door. We also left him in the church nursery 2 times a week. Once again, new environment, new people to love him.
Of course you will never ask this question once you have baby #2- you will just be dragging that one along to all of Bella's activities!
Ally - What a fabulous napper! And while I would take Bella out on a decent-ish day (like over 25 degrees), the pavement around our townhome and all the nearby city sidewalks are a mess from the thaw/freeze cycles. WOE. I long for spring. At least we have a couple trips coming up to speed up time.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous - Added the book to my library list - Thanks!
Katie - Yes - we jsut started to use household stuff as toys and she loves it. In fact, an old breadcrumb container is one of her favorite toys. I'm going to put together a picture book for her - I a small plastic photo album that would be perfect for that.
3 22nds - I know I'll have no trouble filling babies 2+s' days..Bella can entertain them! My sister-in-law is in town and we see her & our nephew regularly. Also do play dates on a regular basis -maybe I should step those up cause Bella loves people.
Keep the ideas coming - these are great!
You should check and see if Kindermusik classes are available in your area. They offer music "classes" for newborn to 7 years old. We took Wyatt to some group classes at a local college when he was little - he LOVED it. I believe you can buy an "at home" program as well, but it might be beneficial to check out a class or two first (google Kindermusik, you'll find some info).
ReplyDeleteAlso, I take the kids to "storytime" at the local library as well on my days off (I have only been working part time the last 4 years - back to full time as of Jan 1st - great timing with another one on the way, whoops) They usually have storytimes for infant to 6 months, 6mo-12 mo, and on up. If nothing else, it's nice to get out of the house and have some time with other moms and kids! I get kind of stir crazy in the house so I'm always looking for things areound the community to take the kids to!
Oh yeah, I also did an ABC album of household items that the kids see all the time. Like a scrapbook of sorts - (A is for apple, alligator toy, B is for bath, book, etc) i put a few forms of each letter along with pics I've taken of those items on each page. They get a kick out of pictures that are of their favorite things, even if they see them every day!
Lisa - Great ideas! I was going to make an ABC book wih relatives holding up objects that correspond to the letter of the alphabet, but that will take time and work. You idea can be done much sooner!
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