:: Fun Activities ::
Things I always encourage my families to do is really get in there and play with their baby. Babies learn best when they have the opportunity to watch and observe from a friend (be that a parent or a baby who is a little further along on a milestone). So let your little one see you crawling, pushing up into a seated position, and using your hands to get up off the floor.
Some activities you can do that might be a fun way to practice body strengthening while also burning calories are:
Take her to the playground/backyard and put her into a bucket swing for a spin.
Be sure to bring a pillow to support her in the back.
Practice having her ride in the stroller seat.
Again with a pillow to support her back so she has to engage her core.
Or use your stroller's infant insert if you need a little more support.
Wear her facing in until her core is strong enough to support her facing out or she can sit up independently-- meaning that you aren't helping her to get there and she can do it herself.
Depending on your carrier the recommendations for when to turn baby around are slightly different.
Create opportunities to practice sitting up.
You can support her around her trunk to hold herself up or help prop her up with her arms (like a kickstand).
Create opportunities to practice standing.
Support her weight and bounce her a bit so she gets used to having weight on her feet.
When possible, drape her across your lap and rub her upper back with your fingertips. This is also called Lap Soothing (@2:04).
If you are sitting on a couch you can read a book off to the side of you (but in front of her-- since she will be perpendicular to you) or play with a toy to keep her engaged.
Make use of your exercise ball.
From the sound of our conversation it sounded like you have a big ball but if you are wanting to add in something small, I like this one.
Another video of how you can play with the big ball.
Create a Tummy Time station.
Your little one is just about the right age to have this work out-- especially since she can almost sit up/prop herself up. Just keep in mind that as her world perspective changes you will have to keep elevating toys to hold her attention and get good body engagement.
If you start to notice her getting a little overstimulated take a break and go into a quiet, dark, calm room in your house and take deep breaths, reminding her it's okay to decompress and allow oxygen to flow.
Doing Object Circles
The gist of this game is to make a circle of toys around baby that are juuuuuust out of reach. And then place baby in the middle and help direct her attention to the various toys in an alternating clockwise and counterclockwise manner (we got to keep things even). This helps her to use her hands and arms to direct her body while also engaging her core so that she is able to make the rotation bilaterally with ease.
Some of the toys I like for this game are:
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