What to do with 5 month old?

[mommysammi]

My DS will be 5-month old in three days. Now that he is awake longer during the day, I don't know what to do with him. I take walks with him in the stroller but that's about an hour's worth of time. I don't want him to watch TV so I try to read to him but he doesn't like to sit still. We have a swing but I only put him in there when I need to do chores. What do mommies do all day with their babies at this age? Please advise. Thank you.

[IVFMiracle05]

Hi there!
Here is what I do with my 5 month old- Hope this helps!

In the morning while I get my breakfast, she's in her swing watching baby mozart (this is after she has her bottle) After that I hold her in my lap and "chat" with her and play with her (she loves doing "airplane" (I say "3-2-1- FLY!" and lift her over my head. She laughs and gets a total kick out of it. She usually goes in her exersaucer at some point throughout the day and I either get chores done or sit with her and help her explore it. Sometimes we take walks and other times we sit out on the patio and she looks at all the new things around her. She also has a "fisher price Jumparoo" which she is crazy about... She could jump in that thing for hours if I let her. She just squeals with happiness as she jumps. Also, I sit on the floor and make my legs in a "V" shape and prop her up between my legs and put toys in front of her and she reaches for them and plays with them. Mostly they just go right in her mouth... LOL... If it's bath day then I wash her and then let her play in her tub as well. SHe loves to kick her legs and splash the water. I've also put her on the floor on a blanket and just let her roll around or play with her toes. That's all I can think of right now, but I hope I helped you somewhat.
Tamara :)

[mommysammi]

Thank you for your input. What is baby mozart? Is that musical cartoon? Your daughter is only five months old and she can sit up already? That's awesome. I will definitely look into some of the things you mentioned, especially the exersaucer. Thanks!

[IVFMiracle05]

Hi,
Glad I was able to help you a little. Baby mozart is a video/DVD- I got it as a baby shower gift. My husband and I watched it before we had her and thought "What the heck is this?" but once she really started watching it, it held her attention. It's hard to describe but basically it just flashes pictures of certain things on the screen, some of the things move (one is a train set up and the train goes around the track)Other things they show are different animals, and a couple fruits. In the backround the music they play is Mozart. They have them for different age groups. The one we have is for birth + and is called "Music Festival" I'm pretty sure they have them at Target/Walmart.
She's not quite sitting up totally on her own, I still have to prop her up and support her somewhat. We practice with her a lot though.
I also forgot to mention that we give her tummy time during the day too. She hates it after a few minutes, I think she gets frustrated that she can't flip over quite yet or see what she wants, but they say it's necessary. So maybe that's another idea for you if you don't do it already!
Nice chatting with you. Let me know if you have any other questions!
Tamara :)

[autumngrrl]

Hi,
My little guy will be 5 months old in three days. I work F/T, but spend mornings, evenings and weekends with him. The previous poster had some great suggestions, and I guess I'll just add that sometimes we put DS in his crib to watch and listen to his mobile; other times we put him in the swing with "baby's first notebook" or another toy that makes crunchy noise, rattles, etc. We have him spend a lot of time under the Gymini, or on his tummy staring at himself in a mirror (another toy). Or when I need to shower, I put him in the bouncy seat and he watches Raffi (a throwback to the '90s, a VHS tape w/ a guy singing). He loves Raffi, and smiles whenever it comes on. Or we read books to him, the kind that make noise usually (again, like you're crinkling plastic).

We love taking walks in the stroller too, so weather-permitting, he gets a lot of time to watch NYC go by.

Would love to hear other people's replies, as I often wonder what ELSE we should be doing to entertain him.

[mommysammi]

Thanks for sharing. Right now, I'm a stay-at-home mommy but am planning on going back to work. My biggest concern is putting my son's life in the hands of a stranger. Do you have a nanny or do you have a relative helping out? In the meantime, I find myself holding him a lot. He doesn't like to lie down or sit up. He loves to stand up but can only do so with my help. I think we spoiled him, well, all his relatives did from the day he was born. We do take walks and he loves them. He doesn't like to entertain himself but I have yet tried educational videos. Will try them once we are back home. Visiting family in CA right now. Thanks again.

[mommysammi]

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[mommysammi]

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[autumngrrl]

Funny you should ask about a nanny, because we've had 3 in the past 3 months and have not been thrilled with any of them. Regarding my DS's personality, he's very independent. We had an incredible baby nurse for the first month and she taught us invaluable lessons, including letting DS just BE... chilling in the bouncy seat, on the gymini, in his crib, etc. We don't hold him 100% of the time, don't rock him to sleep (he went into the crib awake and learned to put himself to sleep), etc, and as a result, I think he's become good at entertaining himself for part of his waking hrs. It doesn't hurt that he's super-easy and very good natured. I know we're lucky, and just pray he always is! ;-)

Randi

[boygirl3]

I'm a stay at home mom and LOVE it. I do all the things mentioned above (as noted below) as well as a few others (as noted below):

*Exersaucer - lets me take a shower, do chores, etc. Be sure to talk to your little one - let him/her know what you are doing/why
*Swing (though my guy has outgrown it because he can reach the legs and stop himself)
*Sit on the floor (v-shaped legs) with toys
*Activity gym - either back or tummy - he love playing with toys that hang down, make noise, etc
*Read
*Go for walks - outside, at the mall (loves to people watch), at the zoo
*Crib - loves to watch his Tiny Love mobile and hit the Fisher Price piano
*Bed - lay next to him on my side and chat with him...help him roll...sing to him
*High chair - I think this is one of my FAVORITES. I have a fisher price high chair that has 4 wheels...I put him in it...put toys on the tray and roll him with me wherever I have to go in the house to do chores. He loves to sit up straight, to see (so high-as good as being held) and watch what I'm doing plus it allows him to play!

I'd also suggest play groups (MOPS - Mothers of Preschoolers, other friends, etc).

I don't let my little guy watch any TV at this point (he is 5 1/2 months).....later (he'll have his whole life). I have a Baby Einstein video...perhaps when he is closer to a year.

Hope this helps.

[mommysammi]

I'm so sorry you had so much trouble finding a reliable nanny. I just watched Dr. Phil today about how parents put their children in the care of horrible nannies. One baby passed away and another was abused so badly that he was paralyzed. One set of parents used nanny cams and saw how horribly the nanny abused their child. That nanny was put away. Unfortunately, the mother had to quit her job because she felt very guilty and couldn't trust another stranger with her baby. Dr. Phil did say that not all nannies are unreliable but this episode surely made me rethink about hiring a nanny. The only reason I thought about getting a part-time nanny was so I can go back into the real world and have some sort of interaction with others besides my baby. I guess it's a privilege to be able to stay at home and not have to work. We are truly very blessed. You, too, are very blessed to have such a wonderful baby. Good luck with your nanny.

[mommysammi]

I was checking off the things we already have while reading your posting. We have everything but the exersaucer. Am truly considering getting one? Which one did you go with?

I'm very reluctant to let my baby watch TV too but seems like many mommies like the Baby Einstein videos. I am definitely considering getting one once we get back home.

Thanks for your response.