Do you find yourself wondering what to do with your baby while you pump? You can make the most of this time together by promoting your baby’s development during your pumping sessions. In this post, we’ll walk you through some important and impactful activities that help promote your baby’s healthy development.
Promoting development while you pump helps to further foster your bond with your baby and keep this time productive, all while they learn and grow. Your partner and other family members can learn from you and interact with your baby during this time as well.
Cautions and Precautions
The Right Activity at the Right Time
It can be tempting to put your baby in a chair, bouncer, or walker to keep them safe, contained, and engaged while you pump. However, using these aids before your baby is physically developed enough can have a negative impact. Babies are born with very immature hips that need to be supported. The pressure these aids put on your baby’s hips can be detrimental. Their spines and neck are also weaker and for the first six months need supported. Speak to your child’s pediatrician to learn when your little one is ready for these and for how long. Generally they tend to say about fifteen minutes twice a day is a safe time period.
You Don’t Have to Break the Bank
There are a plethora of toys, aids, and activity centers being marketed to parents right now. You can spend a little, or a lot. And the more you spend doesn’t actually mean that you are getting a better product or that it will have a more profound effect for your child. You might be surprised at the impact the simple things around your house can have on your child. You can buy socks with bells or rattles, but sometimes all you need is a sock. If you don’t have a huge budget, don’t feel pressured to carve out a big chunk for toys.
You can find many of these items second hand, at donations centers, or via Facebook Marketplace. Before bringing something into your home for your baby it can be a good idea to check for any safety recalls on the item and make sure it’s clean, with no loose or broken pieces.
Healthy Development
Tummy Time
A clean safe place on the floor or safe surface is all you really need to start doing tummy time with your baby. Baby mats, play gyms, and other aids are all great as long as they are sturdy, age appropriate, and you monitor your baby while in use. Tummy time helps babies develop neck and core strength, learn to hold themselves up with their arms and shoulders, as well as track movements needed to roll over and eventually crawl.
Assisted Sitting
You don’t need fancy gear to help your baby learn to sit up, develop their core, and hips. Simply by holding them and allowing their little bodies to explore and move improve their strength and promote healthy development. If you want to use a baby chair, look for one where the seat is elevated rather than below the leg holes for a healthy rotation of their pelvis. Larger leg holes also are a plus as they allow babies to move and learn while sitting safely. The Up Seat meets all of this criteria.
Activity Centers and Toys
Dangling toys and talking with your baby helps them learn how to move their bodies and engage with the world around them. Developmentally appropriate activity centers can help make this time truly hands free for you while you pump. However, even with these centers, your baby still needs your voice, touch, and care for healthy development.
Simple toys like socks with pompoms can help your baby learn to grab their feet and move them to their mouths. Soft plush toys like stuffed animals that a baby can chew on, snuggle, and play with are great too. Teether toys that they can grip and hold make great options as well.
Talking and Reading
Whether you are holding your baby, they are laying on the bed or floor, or in their high chair, there is no substitute for talking to your baby and reading to them. Even though they can’t comprehend the story, the sound of your voice, hearing words and phrases repeated, all help you bond with your baby while they learn to engage with their world as they learn how to communicate.
Pumping might leave you feeling trapped and unproductive, or even wondering what to do with your baby during that time. But with the tips in this post, you and your baby can learn and grow together, making the very most of each pump session. Add a BeauGen Breast Pump Cushion to make each pump even better.