Three Tips for Tummy Time

Whenever someone would ask how much tummy time Navy would get, I would lie (just a little!). I mean, the poor girl hated it! Within two seconds of placing her on her belly, she would scream like crazy. It wasn't fun for her or for me. But yes I know, it is extremely important. Recently she started doing a lot better with it. I'm not sure if it's because she's a bit older (16 weeks), or because of the tips I share below. Either way, I'm very glad she no longer notifies our entire apartment building of her dislike for tummy time with the sound of her screams (jk..but not really).

- Practice tummy time right after her naps before her feeds.  I follow the following schedule: feed, awake time, nap and repeat. Up until recently, I assumed tummy time should fall within the awake category. So I would feed her, burp her, place her on the mat, play with her for a bit and then put her on her tummy. If I was lucky and made it a minute on her tummy, she would always end up puking. So I decided that right after she wakes up from her nap, we would do tummy time. After 5 minutes or so I feed her (if you're giving a bottle make sure it's ready because she gets a bit fussy at this point). But she seems so much more comfortable doing tummy time this way.

- Place the baby on the mat and then roll them over, rather than placing them directly on their belly.  I learned this tip in my mommy and me class and it's really helped. I say to her "Navy, I'm going to roll you on to your belly" and then do it gently. Another tip I learned in the class is to gently push down on their bum with your hand, which helps them to lift their head higher.

- Get a toy that distracts them.  This bee makes all of the difference. The sounds, the lights and the movement totally distract Navy so she doesn't even realize she's on her belly. She follows it with her eyes and could stay in the position so much longer than she used to without it.