Great big baby steps

[caffeine_girl]

Since the doctor made her offhand comment about night-time feedings, I have noticed that Isabel is consistently feeding to sleep. Gah! The only exception is if I am wearing her in a wrap, in which case she will fall asleep from being walked around. But normally if she is sleepy, she tells me she wants some food, then she just eats for a minute

Comments

Could you go for a walk?

[bilal]

If you don't already. Maybe she'll get distracted by the world and forget to cry! ;-)

Re: Could you go for a walk?

[caffeine_girl]

Ha ha! She just falls asleep. It's great for me, though!

[discordian75]

Isabel will get more interested in things!

When Malcolm was little, Karen & I felt bad about just watching TV with him, but with so little motor control & eyesight that's still developing (focus only in 8 - 12 inches or something for the first while), we found there wasn't all that much else to do. At least he was getting stimulation from the sounds, and still taking in everything around him.

He would sometimes like to be read to ... a couple of times I just read aloud the book that I was reading at the time.

As Isabel gets older (and it happens fast!), she will start grabbing at things, will like to lay down and amuse herself, looking at toys, grabbing toys, etc. (not necessarily for all that long at a time, Karen could speak better to that) ... but until then ... I wouldn't fret too much about just enjoying yourself with TV, music, a book, with Isabel just along for the ride.

Look at you, giving parenting advice!

[caffeine_girl]

That's a relief. If Malcolm is there aleady, it's just a few more months...

[hcbubbles]

Well said

What is this Early Years Centre?

[caffeine_girl]

It's true, I do feel bad for just carting her around with me. I think I should be making home-made flash cards to stimulate her intelligence or something. But sometimes it's just easier to watch DaVinci's Inquest with her asleep on my lap than to engage in the endless struggle to get her to sleep in the crib. I feel exactly the same way!

The EASY acronym isn't working for me, either. I thought it would help Isabel learn to fall asleep without feeding first, but I am dubious that we will ever get there! Then again, even if we don't I can live with that. As long as I'm not damaging her health by overfeeding her.

Re: What is this Early Years Centre?

[hcbubbles]

You CANNOT overfeed her - not at this age. Don't listen to anyone who says that you can. She will eat until she doesn't want to eat anymore and whatever she eats is what she needs. Feel good that she's gaining weight so well!

Oh yeah, re: stimulating baby - maybe it will help you to remember that baby needs downtime just like we do (perhaps even more so). AND that just watching things happen around her is stimulation enough. Now that I have Malcolm figured out a bit more, I can tell that even walking him around the mall in the stroller stimulates him and tires him out.

It sounds like you are doing perfectly!

Re: What is this Early Years Centre?

[hcbubbles]

Oh, and:

http://www.ontarioearlyyears.ca/

I'm not positive, but I think this was one of Bob Rae's incredible ideas!