Worried to turn baby world facing in pram

[Pinkdreams]

I have a 1 year old and when in her pram, she’s always been parent facing, i don’t know why but im worried to turn her world facing, i feel like I wouldn’t get anywhere for keep stopping to check on her, did anyone else have this issue?

Is your baby waving? If mine is a bit quiet I say “wave at the cars / wave for mummy” and he sticks his wee hand out and waves. (Same if I say want a snack - the little hand shoots out!)

What pram do you have? Mine has a peek mesh window in the hood so I just keep that open and i can see what she's up to.

What are you worried about?

Why would you need to keep checking on her?

Why do you want to turn her then? Just keep her facing you!

You can keep her facing you until you feel comfortable. It’s also good for their language development to face you as you talk about journey etc.

Poor kid! By age one she'd be utterly bored surely.

OP you don't need to check on your baby if she's strapped in to the pram. She can't go anywhere, and if she's unhappy she'll let you know.

My little one is 9mths and we don’t world face all the time but I have started with world facing on local short trips and visits to the farm/zoo etc so he could see things better. He loves to look at everything and started to keep turning round in pram to see better so I knew was time to try. I do look round the side to check and talk to him or walk at the side for a minute holding the bumper bar and he loves being pulled along and laughs. I can also hear him laughing and talking away - also shrieking with excitement when he sees things he likes- so know he’s okay!

It does feel strange and I don’t like not being able to see him when he’s that way but to hear and see him enjoying the view is lovely.

There’s no rush to turn her yet, my girls about to turn 1 and I’m keeping her facing me for now as I love talking to her on our walks. One day it will just feel right and you will try it and realise that it’s absolutely fine! You can still chat away and they usually love being able to see everyone and everything. It’s just another step towards them becoming a little bit more independent ☺️ (she’s my third so have done this rodeo a couple of times!)

So do you stare at her face 24/7?

Why would she be bored 😂What a weird response!

I made mine outward facing from as soon as they outgrew the bassinette! Far better for them to learn from the world than stare at my face and see snippets of things going by. Quite selfish really. Just don’t give your baby anything they can choke on.

Is that a serious question?

If she’s happy parent facing and you feel more comfortable that way then there’s no rush to turn her.

I still have my 2yo parent facing as she’s a clinger and I find she gets whingy otherwise.
Conversely, I already have my 10mo world facing on days where I know I’m going to want to eat on the go because she couldn’t give a hoot if she can see me but she will scream bloody murder if she wants what I’m eating 😂

It’s not selfish. What a bizarre take.

I'm obviously in the minority and people laughed at me for the same thing, but I felt just like this. I spoke to a health visitor who said its good for them to see you and to copy your expressions/ develop language.
Didn't turn them til I was ready. Trust your gut.

Also I totally understand the anxiety, I was the same with my first two!

So selfish to interact with your baby...

Parent facing children develop language earlier on average

No. It's a serious as the notion that she'd never get anywhere for the constant need to check on a 1 year old. Following that train of thought, she must never drive anywhere, leave the room, sleep separately.... it's daft and you know it.

It doesn’t need to be either/or. You can do world facing (when you feel like it’s right) and parent facing. There was a small study a few years ago saying parent facing was beneficial as more opportunities to see your face, interact and develop their language.

Do what feels right for you. I had my baby facing me for a long time. I remember her studying my face so intently as I sang to her on the walk to a park.

Her speech was amazing by the time she was 18 months (first word at 8 months).

They can still see out and you when they're parent facing. Your child will not be bored at all!

Some people see 'forward facing' as a milestone, when it really isn't. It's just a direction. A baby isn't 'more advanced' because they're facing forward.

Interacting with an adult is good for them, they learn more from you than anything else - they can still see plenty around them and if it works better for you just keep them facing you.

I never turned my two, they faced me until they stopped using the pushchair (aged 2 and almost 3). DS1 was an escape artist and would have been out and running the second I stopped walking, and DS2 screamed blue murder if he couldn't see me!

There is no reason to face her away from you and every reason to keep her facing you. If you chat to your child and point exciting things out and use your normal conversational range, it really helps develop language skills and expression. Look at all those parents pushing their children away from them (often into a sea of legs, if in a town) whilst scrolling/ messaging on their phone and then at the articles on kids going to school without language or communication skills ... maybe a connection?