It will be the longest 3 minutes of your life.  

If you follow Pediatricians’ recommendations, Tummy time (lying down in the prone position) will be the longest 3 minutes of your new baby’s life, too.

At about day three (postpartum for a baby carried to term), it’s time to give your infant the opportunity to develop even musculature in the neck, arms, and upper body.

Twenty-one years ago, I discovered that my 5 month-old was ready to play hide and seek.

I didn’t mean to.  Really.

My teaching colleagues in Panama had gifted my new baby with an assortment of of hand-appliqued blankets (sheets, actually — this was a tropical birth).

Five months later, back in the US, and past her swaddling stage, my daughter used to enjoy looking at the brightly colored ducks and ginghams that bordered the sheets.  She also spent a lot of time on her tummy, reaching for and touching the embroidery stitches that illustrated the layette.

Sometimes baby just needs a hug.

Some babies need constant hugs.

And sometimes Mommy just needs baby to sleep.  For a little longer then she did yesterday.  Please?

You and your baby want the same thing: contentment.  For baby, the ultimate contentment, the ultimate hug, was what she experienced when she lived in her own apartment, (aka “the womb”).  Since your newborn can’t go “home” again, her new neighbors (aka “family”) will just have to find ways to help her settle in until she learns how to comfort herself.

Even our baby’s blankets have to multitask these days.

In addition to providing warmth or comfort for baby, and a pink-blue gender clue for admiring strangers, a baby’s blanket ought to earn its keep.  It should make Mommy’s job easier, and baby’s life a little more interesting.

Like a good toy or book or nanny, a good blankie will meet more than just one of your baby’s developmental needs.