Movement Mat, Modified.

**I can't believe I am sharing this picture. The mirror is flat-out dirty. Yuck.
 I am too tired to retake them, and this is proof of my exhaustion. (Also, in my own defense, you really can't see the smudges in real life!)
Moving on.  This is Quinn, 4 months old, on her improvised movement mat. Montessori style "mats" are more like floor beds, but we seriously don't have room for a little crib mattress on the floor. Our house is TINY.  So, I have a permanent mirror mounted at floor level in the playroom, and when Quinn is ready to do some movement time, I lay a handmade quilt or sheepskin blanket down.
 She loves it, but in all honestly, she doesn't get to hang out there much. You see, in our house, lying on the floor can be a dangerous business. A curious 13 month old and a wild 2 year old makes Quinn a prime target for injury.  I have to choose my times to put her on the floor very carefully.  She enjoys it so much, though.  I try to find time each day for her to explore.

Kenna, in a rare moment of calm tenderness, joined Quinn in tummy time, and they made silly faces at each other in the mirror. Priceless. Mirrors are a great way for babies to start making conections- they watch themselves move their body parts, and gain knowledge about their bodies. And of course, free-time on the floor encourages grapsing, rolling and crawling practice. I try to give Quinn as much free movement time as I can each day, but sometimes it has to be up on the changing table, or in the pack-n-play, or when the big kids are napping. I hope that soon we overcome this little issue of "danger!!" and all three can happily, and safely play together. Right now, trying to convince a 13 month old not to poke people in the eye is about impossible.  And telling your two year old "be gentle" is like telling a grizzly bear to "be gentle."  She tries, she really does.

(In case you are thinking- four months old?? Yeah- Quinn's in 12 mos clothing and can already sit up. And she's in the 115th percentile in height and weight. She's a giant baby.)

*Shortly after this picture was taken,  Little Man butt-scooted over and aimed for Quinn's eyes with his chubby little fingers. And Kenna tried to roll on top of Quinn. And tummy time was over.