Tell me what you did today with your 6/7 month old...

[VerityClinch]

Have hit a bit of a wall with my 7 month old DD. She's not sitting unsupported yet, prefers to throw herself on her tummy and spin in circles - which I am more than happy to let her do, except if she does it too soon after a feed, she pukes EVERYWHERE and now she's on solids, it's a messy old business...

Our days at the moment run pretty much along these lines and it is getting BORING and I need ideas for things to do that fit in the short spells between all the milk, food, napping, nappies etc etc etc...

6:30am - wakes for a milk feed
7:00 - 8:00am - dozes with me in bed, she will usually get another half hour's kip at this time.
8:00 - 9:00am - we both get up, shower, dress, etc, play "who's that baby in the mirror? on the way downstairs" (clue: always her, she doesn't get it yet, though, so lots of mileage in that still)
9:00 - breakfast, clear up, bit of washing up, general kitchen stuff, she watches from her highchair playing with whatever fruit and veg are to hand to keep her amused
10:00 - milk feed, then nap
10:45am - wakes from nap, play on her mat or in her bouncer, read books, rip up newspaper etc
12:00 lunch, followed by a giant poo, usually requiring change of clothes (can take some time...)
1:15 nap
1:45 wake from nap, milk feed
2:00 - 5:00pm - only real window of opportunity to leave the house and DO something (walk in the park/by the river, shopping, errands, coffee and cake etc etc)
5:00pm - tea time
6:00pm Waybuloo (yay!), bath, milk, bed, asleep by 7pm

It was SO much easier when she just had milk feeds, we went out loads, all over the place, and she was really "portable" and happy just looking around and drinking it all in. Now, though, she's getting increasingly frustrated/bored of just "hanging out with mummy's friends" and wants to be DOING stuff - but not mobile, so soft play etc way out of our league for the moment.

I am finding this stage quite hard, actually - much harder than when she was newborn. We do go to Monkey Music once a week, which she loves, and usually have friends with babies over for lunch/coffee once or twice (or go to them), but other than that, not a lot, and I think she is finding life a bit boring.

Am I doing enough? How do I liven things up a bit?

Can she have some of her naps in the pram/sling/whatever? I'm quite disorganised, so poor dd (and now ds) had to put up with minor chaos; with dd I'd go out shopping in the morning, let her sleep, and then have lunch with her. At this age it's still pretty interesting to her to just see stuff, so getting out and about is good for both of you (need to do that more with ds myself, though am now tied to dd's playgroup times...).

In the house you could sit her surrounded by cushions to prop her up and give her a bowl or basket full of safe household objects - this keeps most babies remarkably well entertained - much better than toys!

I think we must be on the same wavelength, Verity, as I've had the same sorts of concerns recently. It's so hard at this age to fit things around the eating (particularly weaning), sleeping and clearing up schedule! I've just deleted a long and tedious account of my day with DD (7 months)today, which amounted to: DD screamed pretty much all day while I did anything I could think of to make her stop.

But more usually, we're out and about quite a lot. I try to fit her naps around what we're doing (in the car/pushchair or at home). Milk feeds, as you say, are easy. She's not that keen on solids yet so I'll just pack a few reasonably non-messy things when we're out and about (dried apricots, breadsticks etc) and/or give her bits of what I'm eating.

We do music, too, and go to various playgroups, but I'm aware that I'm doing this very much for my own benefit. If I may be so bold, do you really think your DD is getting bored, or is it perhaps your drive to be the best possible mummy and give her all the stimulation etc you can possibly think of?

I think it will get easier when our DDs are more mobile - or at least the challenges will be vastly different!

It sounds as though you're doing a fantastic job balancing the mundane everyday tasks with a desire to do fun and interesting things with your baby.

We have a similar schedule (DS will be 8 months in 10 days) only he takes his 10am nap in his pram while I wander the town. Even if I am just taking a walk through City Centre, he enjoys looking around until he falls asleep.

Tomorrow, for example, I have to be at the doctor at 910 and I have to fast for a blood test, so we will both have something to eat after that at a coffee shop and then head to the supermarket, where he will promptly fall asleep as soon as he sees the Tesco sign!!

Also, I postpone almost all clean up activities, like the breakfast dishes, until either his afternoon nap or after he wakes from it, when he will play in his bouncy seat or his Leap Frog Activity centre. That gives us more time to go out and see things in the morning. So I do all the day's tidying during that time.

ExistentialistCat - yes I think we ARE on the same wavelength - keep seeing you popping up on threads I'm on or have been reading!!

I thought hard about writing "I think she's bored" - was it me who was bored or her, etc? But I really think she IS bored. She's a very easy baby in most respects, but has been cranky since we got going with the weaning, which is really unlike her, and I'm sure it's because we are spending more time in the house. I don't think it's the ctual food pissing her off, because she gets very excited at mealtimes and is eating really well (apart from mashed potato which she hates - what on earth is there to hate about mash FGS?) She loves to be with people (obviously finds them more interesting than me) and especially other babies...maybe I need to join another group, gymboree or something...

She does usually have one nap a day in her buggy - but she doesn't sleep well there, and her sleep is a bit up the wall at the moment (after sleeping 6:30 to 6:30 since she was 8 weeks she is now rising and shining any time from 4am onwards...) so I've been trying to get her to nap in the cot, where she sleeps better, as if she sleeps well in the day she sleeps well at night.

Am going to start swimming lessons with her in April which will hopefully (a) be everso exciting for her and (b) knacker her out so she sleeps better... but April seems a long way off!

Ha, I'm finding the same, although am just back at work as well so it's mixed in with a healthy does of guilt.

On Sunday I did "diy soft play" put paddling pool up in the lounge, put a couple of inflatable beachballs in it and she went in circles round it for half an hour in the morning and again later.

Also a bit of rolling round on the spare bed (with me hovering about 3mm away so she doesn't roll off.)

Went to a Gymboree party last week for first time and found it was great. Just lots of soft stuff to sit her on and have her look at. One thing they did was on stomach rolling them sort of over a gym ball. Also peepo v popular here, and sitting on the sofa (me again 3mm away) playing with a different toy.

That's the limit of my current creativity! I so miss the days of her lying on her back on a starbucks sofa looking at a toy.

My ds is nearly 7 months old too and when we are home alone he's starting to need more stimulation. (when ds1 is around he's a great source of entertainment)

I find that when we're in the house, just a change of room helps - I sit him in the middle of our bed whilst I potter around upstairs and the change of scenery works for a while if he's irritable.

I've just started to go to a playgroup and go swimming sometimes, keep meaning to go to the free wriggly reader session at the library but it coincides with his nap time usually.

Oh, the crankiness and sleep being off sound terribly familiar (AND my DD also hates mash, much to my puzlement)! I'd assumed it was all down to developmental changes / teething / getting used to digesting food. But perhaps you're right, maybe boredom does come into it. Oh no, another thing to stress about!

In my area there's a local mag called The Grapevine that is distributed free in supermarkets, child centres etc - I found that a great source of inspiration and information about events and activities. Perhaps you have something similar?

The other fantastic thing is SureStart centres. There's so much going on there and they're great sources of information.

Otherwise, I do pretty much what mamaduck does and take DD from room to room as I'm pottering about with miscellaneous housework. Each room has a few toys that live in just that room, and that seems to help - change of scenery, change of toys.