Stretch!

Baby massage is a huge thing now days.  It is a praised cure for fussy babies and gas relief.

Well, this Mama happens to love a good massage; so, whether or not it fixes anything for Clara, I thought it was worth a try.  Initially, I used it as a calming technique when she was 2 months old and would show signs of being tired or just generally fussy but didn't need to nurse or have her diaper changed, etc.  It has now turned into the cutest stretching routine after her naps.

I will get her up from a nap, feed her and then change her diaper, redress her and the stretch routine commences.

While she lays on her changing table, I:

1. Grab her little hands and lift her arms up above her head and say, "Uuuuuup!" while gently pulling one arm and then the other slightly higher.
2. Bring her arms down by her sides and say, "Doooooowwn." again alternating which arm I pull slightly lower than the other.
3. Repeat 2 or 3 times until she seems to have gotten the stretch she needed. We end on an "Up."
• I can always tell when she is enjoying it because she will arch her back as we go "Up" and crunch her tummy and pull up her legs when we go "Down."
4. Run my palms down her arms until I get to her upper back and rub/pull in little circles.
• "We're gonna get that baaaaack.  And that looooow back."
5. Alternating sides, firmly press into her hips/butt muscles with the heel of my hand in circular motions.
• "And those hiiiips."
6. Grab the tops of her thighs and pull all the way down to her feet.
• "And those leeeegs.  You like that, huh?"
• She always straightens out her legs and flexes her feet as soon as I grip the top of her thighs.
7. When I reach her ankles, I then run my thumbs on the underside of her flexed feet to her toes.
8. Kissing each foot, I say, "I got your feet!  and your toes!  Mwah, Mwah, Mwah, Mwah, Mwah!  Alternating which foot I kiss and which toes I munch.
9. Lastly, holding her feet, I push one foot up so her knee is bent and as high on her tummy/chest as it will go while pulling the other down and straight.  I alternate each leg and will either sing to her or tell her we are going running or whatever comes to mind that day.
• This is a sure-fire way of getting her to pass some of that gas that she constantly has in her belly. 
• We just cycle away until she seems to have finished passing gas or seems ready to move on to see the world.

Clara will sing, coo, smile, and laugh during this whole stretch routine.  It's great for her body, it helps with her gas, and it is fabulous bonding time for the two of us as she awakens and rejoins me for a new part of the day.