Baby's First Year

I feel like a terrible mother for asking (and even thinking!) this...BUT...when will my baby get more fun???  He is almost 6 weeks old and so far all I do is feed, diaper and soothe him.  I have tried playing with him on his playmat but he just cries.  He does sometimes look at the toys on his swing but is mostly uninterested.  I am anxious to be able to play and interact with him a bit more and really look forward the reward of some smiles.  Do I have much longer to wait?  Any ideas of how I can encourage him to "play" without upsetting him?

Proud mommy to Oliver <3  

you're not a terrible mother! we're all excited to interact with our babies :) but at 6 weeks, your baby is very very young (still considered by some in his 4th trimester). it's absolutely normal to feed, diaper and soothe him and i hate to say it but this will be the routine for a while.

when your baby reaches closer to 3-4mos, you'll begin to see him smile and he'll be more alert to things around him. grabbing or holding things on his own won't happen until he's much older but as they say: enjoy these times when he's so little because before you know it, he'll be walking and running and won't want to cuddle because he'll be too busy exploring the world around him.

btw, people used to tell me the same thing and i did feel tired of doing the same thing day after day but now that kayla is 15mos and running around, i look at pics of when she was 6wks and miss those times when she would just lie on my chest and let me snuggle her. now i practically have to beg her to cuddle or give me kisses because she'd rather play and run around! :D

hang in there, you're doing great!

3-4 months is a pretty normal time for them to start smiling and giggling and kicking and batting at toys alot more often. Dont rush things, one day you'll look back on these first few weeks and miss them terribly.

You can try playing peek a boo with him, or sing songs, hold toys out for him to try and bat, but it'll take time. You might feel silly singing to yourself for awhile, but one day he'll give you a big gummy grin and it'll all be worth it.

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it is very frustrating when you get caught in the eat/sleep/poop cycle. he will ge there very soon. it will fly by, i promise!! :) Piper is almost 5 months now and is just now really getting fun. but at maybe 2 1/2 -3 1/2 months i really remember the smiles and she would be very very interested in what i was saying or doing.

so maybe get some bright colored fun books? she loved looking at the pages and listning to me talk from very early on. "hello calico" is a huge hit in this house. it has a really good rythem to the story that she likes listening to.

i also find i narrate my day to her ( and sound a bit like a crazy person i guess! lol) but she pays attention and smiles as "mommy is going to pull alllllllll of your clothes out of the dryer now... then i am going to fold them and put them away..." etc.

this "play" isn't the super fun kind of play, but once you see some reactions from him, it will be the most fun ever!

have fun!!

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