A handful of babies

Older Babies and Floor Time Fun

 

Wiggle Time!

 All babies need wiggle time.  When they are really small, you can get away with letting them kick and squirm on a bed with you right there all the time to make sure they don't fall off. As they get bigger, you will need to find a way for them to have floor time.

The two babies in the picture, are four months apart and so were in need of floor time pretty much at the same time.

My biggest concern at the time, was them getting injured by the wheels of my chair. Like me, you will need to be super aware of where you are rolling and where baby is at all times, from here on out. If you can, get down on the floor with them. After all if you are, where they are, not only is it fun to interact with them, you won't have to worry about them getting hurt. A baby can become suddenly mobile in the blink of an eye, although most will scootch inchworm style before taking off for places unknown.

If you can't get on the floor, now is the time to do whatever it takes to get some help, even if it is only for a couple of hours a day to supervise baby's wiggle time. I can't tell you how important it is for baby to have this time to work on his or her's growing muscles, needed for sitting up, crawling and eventually, walking.

Because there are tons of sites, dedicated to the development of babies, I am only touching on a few of the issues that relate to being a physically impaired parent. If you find yourself with a specific problem, by all means do not hesitate to contact me I will do my best to help you find a solution and share that with others.

Some things you can do with baby: Simple games like patty cake, this little piggy and eye blinker, nose smeller. Sing songs and read short books and my favorite... Neck meat munch!

Helpful Equipment

 You will find that the sling that I recommended for newborns, is also handy to use when you are transporting an older baby on your lap. Do not trust them to sit still. If you find that the sling is not working for you, see about having a lap belt installed on your chair, making sure it is long enough to go around both you and baby and remembering that babies grow alarmingly fast.

I have found that a jumper at this stage is very handy. Baby can play and watch you do other things and you don't have to worry about where they are. The only drawback is that it is not easy to move around. It pretty much stays wherever it is put. When you choose a jumper, make sure it is not too far of a reach to take baby in and out. This is a case of the least amount of toys attached to the thing, the better. Walmart's cheapest is actually the one that I used the most.

Some folks don't like the walker, but I found it to be pretty handy. The wheels on the thing make it easy to move from room to room with the baby in it and gives baby a chance to feel her feet on the floor. Just keep a good eye out for things that could make the thing tip over, ie; stairs, sills ect. The rule of thumb being, if it causes your chair trouble, it will cause the walker trouble.



floor time with baby

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