Newborn Care: Bathing a Newborn, Newborn Games, and Diet

This is a wonderful time for you and your baby – the beginning of his/her life.  And

children of teenage parents

deserve as much help and tender loving care as you can provide.  In future years, you will benefit from spending time playing 

newborn games

, as your child will remember and have a special bond with you.

Newborn Games: Have Old Fashioned Fun

Being a mother always has special rewards of intimacy — and sometimes just plain fun!  In this post, I’ll provide some fun infant exercises, as well as some hints on bathing a newborn, & a resource list at the conclusion of this article.

Healthy Baby Sleep: What You Need to Know

Of course, your newborn will devote a lot of time to sleep.  This is natural — it can be as much as 16 hours per day.  Baby sleeping habits are good to know in advance, so that you won’t worry!

The lowdown is that your infant should likely rest in segments of approx. 2 hours.  Reason: due to the fact your little one is still developing his nervous system.   Thus, this is normal.

So in just a couple months (roughly), your infant will begin to sleep for longer stretches.  This goes on till he or she settles in at the normal rate of 6-8  hours straight at night.  Of course, this may well be frustrating to you – especially since you are a teen parent & there are things you’d like to do – but just remember  that in the early going you’ll have to give up a little of your sleep.

That’s just the way it is.  And, as a new parent, just remember to let your baby sleep whenever he wants to.

Hint:  Find More Resources on Healthy Baby Sleep Here plus  Baby Sleep Tricks & Advice

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Infant Exercises

Did you know a newborn baby can benefit from infant exercises?  Of course, it must be gentle and performed by you.  Here are steps for various exercises:

Rolio Infant Exercises –

• Put infant on his back with his feet toward you
• Grasp your infant’s feet & hands in your hands
• Roll your child’s body from side to side with desired speed

You’ll soon find out the pace your little one most enjoys.

Toes to Nose Infant Exercise:

1. Lay infant on his or her back.  Alternately: have infant sit on your lap.
2. Bring your little baby’s toes up to his nose.
3. Alternate sides.
4. Repeat

Stretching - This is a diagonal stretch

• Position for infant: on his back
• Hold 1 hand and the opposite foot
• Stretch the foot & hand away from each other
• Do so gently
• Now alternate sides & repeat
• Give him tummy rubs

Did you know that this is a wonderful bonding experience? Helping your newborn achieve muscle strength is a worthwhile endeavor; muscle massage, gently performed, can help your infant with muscle strength and control.

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Newborn Diet

Here is an expert video on breastfeeding – it is from About.com (An “Authority/expert website”).

Also for You:  Breastfeeding :  A List

Bathing a Newborn

Be careful when bathing your newborn, as bathing a newborn too often can dry out their gentle skin. Do not bath every single day and when you do bath them, a sponge bath is advisable – it is a safe option in the beginning because it is a more gentle method.  Focus on gently cleansing one part of your newborn’s body at a time and use a soft towel to wrap him or her in so they do not get too chilled.

 

Sponge Bathing a Newborn

Here is a good step-by-step video on

sponge bathing a newborn

It outlines what items you need to gather ahead of time, and has excellent instruction on safely caring for your newborn when it comes to bathing.

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New Mothers: Don’t Be Afraid to Ask For Advice

At my site, “HealthyKids” there are other articles pertaining to baby rest – Check these out :

1)Toddler Sleep Problems and  2)A List of Baby Sleeping & Baby Habits Articles

Don’t ever be shy in requesting help & advice from more experienced mothers; visit online forums for expert help. *Since nobody can be a “perfect first-time mom” straightaway, it is only normal & natural to seek guidance.  

After all,

Children of Teenage Parents

deserve a good beginning to Life.

I hope you found this advice beneficial and I wish you luck on your new journey into parenthood!

For a Resource List go to this page:   TEEN PARENTS

 

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