What does your playtime consist of?

[pradabooties]

Hi ladies

My bub is 7 weeks old and after a few weeks of having big troubles getting her to have good daytime naps she finally is sleeping more! This has also helped her be more inquisitive / active in her short awake time instead of grumpy and overtired.

Right now our awake time goes something like change nappy, feed, play, sometimes another nappy change, cuddle, feed (she's a BIG eater, I feel like a milk factory!) then rocked to sleep. This process used to sometimes take hours repeated til she stayed asleep for more than 10 minutes but now it's all done within about 1 - 2 hours.

My question is - in that short playtime, what do you like to do with your LO? We've done some reading (which she seems to like but just coos over me the whole time lol), played in her bouncer or playmat and she loves it when I count her fingers and toes. Any other ideas for what your bub loves? It's such a small window of time but I want to make sure she's having quality play for her enjoyment and development xx

 

[Calitwins]

Our boys loved reading, looking at the animals that hang down in the activity gym, petting the dog, and listening to music. There is a really cool lullaby version of Aerosmith that's fun to put on for them.

 

[SarahBear]

I don't know. I didn't think too hard about it and I can't think back on specifics. I wouldn't worry about trying to cram in activities though, particularly with a 7 week old. At that age just taking them with you someplace is plenty of stimulation. And don't devalue letting her follow her own lead. If she is content and you're not actively engaged with her, let her explore independently. This might not look like much, but she likely has a lot going on in her head and is learning and growing in ways that are different from when she is actively engaged with you. Some general activity ideas though: going for a walk, going to a library, going grocery shopping, belly raspberries, stack blocks for her to whack over (or at least once she's reaching for toys...), bath time, peek-a-boo, et cetera. When babies are too young to really do much, just talking to them and having them with you while you do what you want to do is engaging enough.

 

[MindUtopia]

We didn't do "playtime" specifically, but I just involved her in things I was doing around the house. So if I had to make lunch or do the dishes or do the wash, etc. I'd put her in the wrap and take her with me to watch and talk about (basically, narrate) what I was doing. It's mostly just good for them to be close to you and hearing your voice. I also read to her a lot. I actually read a whole adult novel (like, not an adult novel, hehe, if you know what I mean), but like a full 300 page novel that wasn't a children's book to her during our maternity leave. I'd hold her and read it aloud a little bit each day. It meant I got to actually read a book! And it was good exposure to language. She's 3 now and has really advanced language skills, so I can't help but think it did something. As she got older, we did more sensory type play and outdoor play (once she could sit up well, 7 months+), but at that age, it was mostly just cuddles and talking to her and taking her about on my day doing things I needed to do and reading to her. We didn't really "play" as in like with toys yet.

 

[Willow82]

I don't do a huge amount of entertaining my 11 week old DD. She's quite fussy after feeds due to silent reflux and will only be happy in the sling where she invariably falls asleep. In her happier awake moments, I show her a couple of baby books with black and white pictures in and she really likes Sophie the giraffe. I sometimes put her on her playmat as well depending on the reflux. One of her favourite activities though is smiling at our black and white light on the ceiling!

 

[Rainbow82]

We didn't do an awful lot at seven weeks but some of the things we did do were tummy time on a mat with different textures, activity mat and bar, looking in mirrors, showing him pictures of babies, using a rainmaker from different places around his head so he would turn his head to look for it. DS liked putting his bare feet in a basket of that crinkly material stuff too. The children's centre did a baby group and had a little wooden tree like thing with chimes and mirrors hanging off it, it was about 7 inches tall and DS liked to lie on his back and bat it with his fingers. DS also liked looking at picture books and nursery rhymes at that age too, we would sing row row your boat while rocking or twinkle twinkle, play patty cake with his hands etc.

 

[kdmalk]

I downloaded an app on my phone called babysparks. It offers 10-12 different activities each day (some rotate every other day) based on baby's age.

Right now we do tummy time, following objects with the eyes, singing and moving to the beat of music, moving his arms in all directions, kicking his legs like a bicycle, encouraging him to kick on his own, and telling him about different body parts and showing him things in the house and telling him what they are. There are some other things too.

Oh, and we read to him frequently. He only looks at the pictures on occasion, but he hears my voice and it is good exposure to language.

We don't do everything every day. Sometimes we go for days and only have tummy time and some music, but it's nice to have new activities suggested each month as he grows. It has really helped me learn to "play" with him in the early weeks.

 

[jessmke]

We do tummy time, dancing to music, read stories, go for a walk in the stroller (I try to go when she just wakes up from a nap so she is awake during most of the walk), she likes to sit in her bumbo and chew/mouth some toys. Sometimes I will lay her down in her crib so she can watch her mobile. What she seems to like best is to lay in my lap while I make faces, talk to her, tickle her, etc.

 

[lau86]

She sits in her bumbo for a short amount of time just watching her brothers, or I read to her. She gets very overstimulated then it's hard for her to sleep. She's a people watcher though and doesn't like it if no one is around. Tbh her favourite is just being with me

 

[star25]

My LG is 11 weeks but for a couple of weeks now she really enjoys children's music on YouTube where I sing and do the actions
Eg) one where you have to touch your head, nose etc so I do it to her and she loves it and sure she recognises one as her favourite!
Other things she likes is her playmat or just interacting with myself or dh
When other children /toddlers are about she likes to watch them play
We also go to baby massage once a week followed by baby play for an hour where they have different sensory mats out and toys

 

[KBCupcake]

Mine likes baby yoga and I'll have her dance and I'll sing to her while my music plays. She loves it!