This question made us laugh our loud so we decided to include this for the week.
Q: How the heck do you do tummy/floor time for a baby with a toddler running around with toys all over the floor trying to "help" the baby roll.
A: A very good question, and this seemingly simple task often ends up as par for the course in Baby Bunching. We remember our toddlers running over baby with a push toy or just literally running over baby if we looked away for half a second. For some (like Linda), it was hard because her second was actually happy to "hang" on the floor unlike her first. So her toddler made this enjoyable activity a constant battle.
No, you probably can't put baby on his tummy and get dinner on the table unless your toddler is strapped into the high chair. And that's exactly what you could do! Baby Bunching is part ingenuity and part sweat. You make it through the process better with a smile and some creativity. Or like many of us, Baby #2 might just forgo tummy time and start crawling before you realize it.
So here are a few ideas:
--Put toddler in the high chair for snack and put baby on the floor for tummy time. Bring in a few foam mats to the kitchen if you need to. In fact, bring everything into your kitchen (if it's big enough) because you're living there anyway!
--Try tummy time in the crib. Go into baby's room and put baby on tummy awake in the crib while you and toddler keep busy nearby doing whatever chores/play that give baby some time to pull up his head and chest.
--Provide tummy time for baby while toddler is otherwise engaged--bathtime (yes, bring some foam interlocking mats into the bathroom or a boppy on a bath mat), reading time or while toddler is napping.
--Realize this is only the first of many times Baby #2 will have to get used to toys and an older sibling making things a bit challenging. And Baby #1 will have to learn that walking on the baby and throwing toys is not OK with a younger sibling.
This was perfect timing! I have been struggling with this so much with my 3 month old (today!) and my 19 month old. I'm pretty sure the baby is going to end up stunted due to all his time in a bouncy seat up on the counter!
Posted by: Kristen | Oct 07, 2010 at 01:56 PM
My daughter got most of her traditional tummy time while her big brother was sleeping. But I can't say she got a lot of tummy time (she's now 9 mo and primarily cruising). My video of her rolling over shows her just lying there for a minute or so until her brother comes over, climbs all over her talking gibberish, and then gets up, allowing her to roll over. She's motivated to get away!
Babywearing is great in this case because baby gets the practice time to use the neck and back muscles for upward support without being on the floor. When they get tired, they just put head down on mom for some cuddles. Everybody wins!
Posted by: Janice | Oct 07, 2010 at 11:33 PM