My daughter will be 6 months in a couple weeks, and I have yet to get her interested in a single toy. I feel like a mild failure. My baby shower registry and Christmas wish list were chock full of gorgeous swings, bouncers, walkers, floor gyms, boppy pillows, musical mobiles, stuffed animals… I mean, the whole nine yards. She is not interested in them at all! Her favorite toy is me, and I’m EXHAUSTED!
Is this common? I’ve been going by the books and the labels on the toys and the informational web sites, but according to them, my daughter should have been loving her swing at 3 months, and ecstatic about her bouncer at 4 months! This is just not the case
An example: The other day I tried to have her in her bouncer in the kitchen while I was attempting to wash some dishes. As I lowered her into the seat, her eyes lit up, looking at all the colorful butterflies and floating fish. The noise-makers rattled as she got situated in her padded seat and her eyes were focused on the bouncing frog directly in front of her. I think, “YES!!! I have about 25 minutes or so to get this kitchen clean!” I walk to sink and start to run the water and all of a sudden there is a scream – not a whine or a fuss – but a sudden, sharp scream. I look at my daughter, and she is looking at me as if I’ve just handed her over to the lions. She is jerking and screaming, real tears rolling down her cheeks, and she’s thrusting forward, trying to get away from that bouncer as fast as possible. She was screaming as if she was in pain, as if someone had pinched my baby’s chubby adorable legs while my back was turned! I couldn’t get to her fast enough. I pick her up and hug her close and begin to rock her back and forth trying to soothe her and it literally took me a solid five minutes to calm her down from being in the bouncer MAYBE 30 seconds.
Now, I think the typical response would be that she was scared of something.. but, this is not the first time she’s been in this bouncer, but rather, probably the 20th! She doesn’t react this way everytime I place her in the bouncer, but she is never happy, and I just don’t understand it. This is just one example. My efforts to get her interested in her floor gyms are laughable! She rolls over and looks at me like, “You have got to be joking,” and proceeds to fuss and whine until she works herself up to a full-fledged cry.
I guess I’d just like to know what on earth I’m doing wrong!
Is there a way that I should be introducing these toys to her? Or is this completely normal? My days are broken up by the number of naps she decides to take and how much I can cram into those moments that she’s asleep. I feel horrible some days because it seems like I’m just waiting for her to take a nap!
If this is normal, then I don’t want to complain! I feel bad for even feeling like this… but it would just be great if he could spend some time discovering shapes and colors and mirrors and textures while on her floor gym or in her bouncer, while I got some writing or researching done, or even paint my nails or braid my hair. My to do list generally doesn’t get touched until after 9pm, and some nights, by then I’m so tired, I’m asleep right behind her!
When I tell this to my mom, she laughs, walks away and says welcome to motherhood.
Maybe I should just sip this glass of Earl Grey tea, quit whining, and get use to an 18 hour day, and that 6-8 of those hours, are after 9pm.
🙂
Courtney
Our Stretch Marks 