Tummy Time

I've tried to be a good mommy and make sure that Gemma gets plenty of tummy time, but until about a week or two ago, tummy time has been pretty problematic. Every time I would place her on her floor mat on her tummy, instead of keeping her head turned to the side so she could breathe (since she wasn't yet able to support her head), she would do what we call "pigging around." She would bury her face in the floor, twitch her head around, and make snorting noises. Then pretty quickly, she would start screaming because she was having trouble breathing. If we turned her head back to the side, she would just put it right back where it was and start pigging around again.

Lately, she has gotten much better at supporting her head, so tummy time has now turned into a productive exercise rather than a time of frustration for both mom and baby. Each time Gemma is on her tummy, she is able to hold her head up higher, and keep it elevated for longer amounts of time. And when she's not lifting her head, she's at least leaving it turned to the side so she can breathe. She has made drastic improvements just in the last week. I am so glad - I was starting to get a little concerned that she might just keep pigging around forever!

Here are some cute pictures of Gemma enjoying tummy time. (Though it looks like she's sucking her thumb in one of them, she's actually just gumming it. Yum.)