Playtime

From day one babies crave your presence and attention.

Skin-to-skin from birth for attachment, bonding, transition, social interaction and development.
This is however, the beginning of playtime for a newborn. It engages these sense while they look up at you, hear you voice (talking or singing) while feeling the warmth of you.At first it may seem like all the do is sleep, feed and poop.  But soon you will notice some intentional head turning to your voice, eyes following you while move around them while preparing to feed or change them.

Try sticking your tongue out at your baby when you are face to face with them, what do they do?

Babies learn from your voice - the influxes, the tone, the rate.

• sing a song (they love your voice)
• read a book
• talk to them, about your day, your plans, the future

Babies learn from and are soothed from your touch.

• the warmth while skin-to-skin
• counting the fingers and toes, "This little piggy"
• massage for comfort, for tension, for gas, etc

Baby’s vision development starts up close and personal

• try alternating feeding positions
• “FaceTime” with your baby 8-12 inches away
• bold pattern toys, black & white with primary colours, in front of them

But babies, like us parents, need a balance of stimulation and quiet time for processing.  If your baby stops engaging with you or starts fussing or crying, they may be overstimulated now and need quiet time and comfort as their playtime is over.

You know your baby best,

• learn with your baby as you are both learning
• play with your baby, we all need time to play
• cuddle with your baby, we all need - time for comfort, time to rest and time to process