Tummy Time - Perry, MI

My husband and I had our third little girl on September 28, 2007 and the only way we can get her to do tummy time is by letting her lay on our chest. She is finally getting to where she likes it now that she can hold her head up better and she is able to reach for her toys. By being on our chest it encoureged her to lift her head up to see our faces when we talked to her. I have three girls and quite honestly none of them liked tummy time. When I had my oldest (7 years) tummy time didn't seem so important so I did not do to much of it and she did perfectly fine. I have not had much luck with it, but our third baby seems to be doing better now that we started her the way we did. Best of Luck! C.

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My youngest had that problem. I laid on my back on the floor or couch & laid her on top of me on her tummy. When we were face to face, she liked it. She also enjoyed tummy time on one of those large inexpensive balls you can find at WalMart, etc. She just loved to bounce & rock on it. Both of these became fun games we played together. After some time she transitioned to laying on the floor on her tummy, enticed by favorite toys or an interactive blanket/playmat to lay on.

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Just do a couple of minutes at a time and put toys in front of her so she can reach for them or the best way to do tummy time is you can lay down on the couch or floor and put her on your tummy on her tummy so she can see you and just talk to her. She may like that better than the toys.

Good luck

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I don't know if it is possible to make tummy time fun. My son, and my niece, both hated it as well. Maybe you could try a play mat that has water and lights for your daughter to look at and play with while on her tummy.

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I had the same problem with my daughter. Whenever I'd put her on her stomach, she'd cry. She could roll onto her side from day 1 and that's exactly what she'd do. This went on from NB until about 3 months. We bought her a playgym with a little pillow to go under her arms when on her tummy. That helped keep her head up and she seemed to like that a lot better. She's 7 months now and I can barely get her to lay on her back long enough to change her diaper. She even rolls over to sleep on her stomach now. Hopefully it will work out the same for you and your son.

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The only time that my daughter would tolerate tummy time is when I used the nursing pillow. It put her at a slight angle so she could see better, and she was able to play with her toys that were in front of her better. Plus, it was great for helping her to sit up.

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All of these are great suggestions. Just try to do it several times a day, even if it only lasts a few seconds. No need to make her lay there and cry. Just a few seconds several times a day will eventually turn into a few minutes several times a day and eventually she'll be a pro at it.

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Hi S.! I hear you! My son HATED tummy time! HATED it! Wouldn't tolerate it at all..... would either scream the whole time or just roll over. Just keep at it!

I found the very best thing was bringing the long mirror from my bedroom and laying it down long-ways across the baseboard in my living room...... As long as he was staring at himself he could stay on his stomach all day long! I only wish I would have started that sooner! Good luck!

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My daughter didn't like it very much at first either. Just do it every now and then. She will eventually like it more when she can really hold her head up better. Good luck.

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Short spurts several times a day. Also, don't put her on her tummy right after she eats, that tends to be uncomfortable for the little belly. Tummy time is a great daddy daughter activity too. Let her lay down on his chest instead of yours. If you lay her down on a blanket, put just two or three toys in front of her to look at. Until she can raise her head up by herself, she probably won't like it much bit she will get used to it as she gets older. Mine didn't like it at first either.

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Many babies don't enjoy tummy time at first. What worked for my little girl was laying her on my belly so we were face to face. I could then hold her feet as she would try to push up with arms and legs. I think she preferred seeing me instead of battling the hard floor alone.

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I would suggest laying her down on your belly and having her tummy time belly to belly. It also helps to try tummy time when she is not sleepy. I used to get down on the floor on my tummy facing my little one so they can see you doing it with them. Good luck:)

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My daughter hated tummy time too! We tried everything from mirrors, to toys, to lights, to you name it we tried it. I talked to the doctor, and she said not to worry about it so much. In time she'd take to it better. We'd do just a few minutes each day, and I'd lay on the floor with her so she could see me, and little by little she got better about it. Now she's almost 6 months and LOVES being on the floor since she can roll everywhere she wants to get too!
Don't stress to much, just take it slow!

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We had the same problems and she screamed the whole time. I would make her do it for 1 minute every day, but that was it. Putting her on the Boppy didn't help either because she would just push off her toes and do a header to the other side. :) The one thing that we tried that seemed to work pretty well was something we learned in a Gymboree class. Take a 12"-16" beach ball and let a little air out so it's not super tight and lay her on top of it in front of a mirror. She can sort of curl around the ball so it's not as hard as the floor or the Boppy and she can rest her head on it and be entertained by the mirror. She didn't love it, but she didn't scream either. We were gradually able to build up a little time that way. Then once she learned to roll over, she actually wanted to be on her tummy, ironically. If she never gets to where she likes it, don't worry, she'll eventually be able to roll over and it won't be an issue anymore. Good luck!

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Hi S.
my husband and i just had our first daughter in july. she hated tummy time up until she was about 4 months old. every time i would put her on her tummy, she would cry and scream. she eventually just started rolling over on her own in her bed and after that, she liked tummy time. sometimes i think they have to do it in their own time. but in the meantime try using a lot of bright and/or noisy toys in front of her to keep her attention. even just keeping her on her tummy for a few minutes is better than nothing. good luck!

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I work at Gymboree Play and Music, in Webster Groves, and for their infant class, they put a mirror under the baby's face. Try that :)

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I would lay my boys on a soft blanket and then lay down on my side so they could see me. I would show them different toys and tried to keep it interesting. I would also put one of those over the baby style toy holders in front of them and they could try to look up at the dangling toys. I always made sure at least one toy was within reach.

My husband always laid the boys across his chest and talked to them, made silly faces and lifted them up in the air. They loved that and often fell asleep on him.

There were times the boys simply did not want to lay on their tummies, so we didn't force the issue. Other times it was too close to their feeding and we picked them burped them and then they were ready to go.

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Not much you can do! I had the same problem with my daughter, at that age it is just too frustrating for them!! I just laid next to my daughter and talked to her and she just stared at me sucking on her hand!! it will get better and soon will be so much fun

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My daughter liked it best if she was on my chest. I would either sit in a reclining position or lie on my back....much more fun to look at mom!

My daughter hates tummy time too. One thing that helps with us, if you have a Boppy, put her on her tummy with the Boppy, propped under her chest. Then you can put something interesting under her face and, as she develops neck strength, out in front of her.

Hope that helps!

Just keep doing it a couple of times a day for as long as she is happy with it. I lay on the floor next to my baby and encourage him in a happy/excited voice. As she gets a little older, (within a month or so) she'll play longer on her tummy.