Baby Sensory Is Amazing

So recently my wife went to something called Babybuds. It’s where a group of parents get together in a local hall, with their babies, and give the little ones a ‘baby sensory’ experience and get to speak to other parents which is great. There is a dark area with lots of lights, sounds (e.g. music and rattles) and stuff to grab, plus a normal room with ball pit, baby swing, play mats etc.

There are drinks, biscuits and a few other things going on for the parents, but the majority of photos and videos I saw were of the dark room in which N was enjoying himself.

Jealous!!

So where was I while N and Clare were at this amazing event? In work of course. I tell you what, there’s little that would make you as jealous as being in work whilst your partner is off having an amazing time and fab experience with your baby. I asked Clare to send me pictures so I didn’t miss out entirely but I was so jealous! I just need to win the lottery!

So because I was so jealous and excited by the whole thing we decided to set up our own baby sensory. I should point out here that N was excited by the experience too. I’m not just doing this for me! Ha! Can you imagine!

Anyway, whilst sat in work I started to think of all the things we already had around the house that would do the job. I made it my mission, that evening, to gather things together to give him a sensory experience the following day.

What Equipment Did We Use?

The first thing we did was go through our house to see what objects we already had that could be useful for baby sensory. This basically featured around lights and things N could touch. We managed to find:

  • Battery operated candles that change colour
  • Christmas lights that flicker and coloured ones that don’t
  • Tin foil (it’s great for reflecting light)
  • Various cut offs of materials for him to touch
  • Felt
  • Foam
  • Mat for him to lie on

Turn on your baby sensory equipment, turn off the room lights and enjoy!

We then wanted to buy something that projected lights up on to the ceiling, different colours and lights that moved around…

Elecstars Star Night Light Projector

Elecstar Star Projector
Elecstar Star Projector

We found this one from Amazon. This is a great projector. It has three buttons on it which change whether there are lights on, what colour those lights are (red, green, blue and yellow) and whether the top rotates. It projects lights of the colours you select through the top which has stars cut out on it. These lights then move across the room and ceiling. It’s great as N likes to track these lights across the room and stares at them.

Fibre Optic Lights

Fibre Optic Lamp
Fibre Optic Lamp

We got a bit excited with the whole sensory idea and how much N seems to be enjoying it. It’s amazing to see him smiling at the lights, and just staring all around the room. At this sort of age for a newborn I think you just experiment with lots of things to see what makes them smile. The effort you go to for one smile!

So, to continue our efforts we bought a fibre optic lamp that changes colour (here). We bought it from Amazon for £10.99. It really is fab, am amazing sensory item. Just put in three AAA batteries and turn it on. The light changes, a section at the bottom changes colour. we’ve only just received it and started using it but N seems to like it!

Mixing It Up

Could we have too much sensory stuff? Would it overstimulate his senses? Is that even possible? I don’t know to be honest, but putting all of this stuff out seems to make him happy.

We’ve tried to mix it up a bit though. Try to not put out the same items every time. Put out only one light and more stuff to touch, or no lights at all. Perhaps put no touch items out and only lights. For me it’s about variation. If we vary it then N will focus on different things at different times and therefore have different sensory experiences. It’s all good learning for him.

A Great Experience

It’s just so amazing when you see your baby staring around the room at all these lights and getting excited. There’s little that feels as good as knowing you’ve made your baby smile.

Have you tried creating a baby sensory experience at home? How did it go? Any tips to share?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.