Day 55: Look, Ma, No Hands!

We have an interesting conundrum.  As stated previously, Michal dislikes being on her stomach for any prolonged amount of time, so tummy time ends up being a ticking time bomb of how long she will happily play along with the activity before she starts to get frustrated and explode.  That amount of time has increased over time, but it is still her least favorite activity.  It is amazing how quickly the screwed-up, upset face relaxes into a huge smile and coos once we flip her over onto her back.  She has made progress, rolling from her stomach onto her back twice, but it is still a great frustration for her.


 Michal rolls onto her stomach, from her back, all the time now in her sleep.  Sometimes she rolls over and continues to sleep, happily oblivious to her position in the crib.  But sometimes, especially in the morning, she begins to get incredibly upset, unable to figure out how to be in a more comfortable, less strenuous position.  


The problem is this: she cannot quite figure out how to get leverage to roll her body over.  It does not help that her fluffy, cloth-covered bum adds a slight obstacle to the motion, and it certainly does not help that she expects to roll without the help of her hands and arms.

  She will not really push up on her arms to tilt her body over.  Instead, she lifts her entire body up off the ground, leaning back as far as she can, trying desperately to roll over (I cannot imagine the core strength she is building from this).  Unfortunately, the arm you cannot see in this photo acts as a sort of kick stand that keeps her body from toppling over.  We tried to show her how to keep her arms out in front of her so she could more easily roll over without the hindrance of her arm, but she is a stubborn one, continuing to do it her way.  I have no doubt that she will eventually find a way to flip over, but in the meantime, flailing baby persists.