Mom Bounce

         
Soon after God gifted us with a teeny tiny newborn, we realized that Ryan loved being held and loved movement. Yep, he was a normal newborn. As our little one was held by more and more people, Chris observed that all of the mothers that held him knew to start moving once Ryan was laid in their arms. Some rocked back and forth on their feet. Some had a vertical movement going on. Some swayed side to side. Basically, there were ants in their pants! The next time we were alone after Chris had observed this, Ryan was fussing, and I was merely standing, Chris exclaimed, “Do your mom bounce!”  And thus, the term “mom bounce” was born.

Merriam-Webster and people all around, if you are listening, here is my proper definition of "mom bounce." Enjoy.  
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mom bounce

¹mom bounce noun  \ˈmäm -ˈbauˈn(t)s\

Definition of MOM BOUNCE

- a colloquial term that describes a rhythmic movement performed by a person holding an infant or toddler that imitates the swaying movement a baby experiences in the womb of the mother (mom).

     Examples:

-       Her mom bounce rarely failed to calm her baby.

-       The baby fussed without her mother’s constant mom bounce.

-       The mom bounce gently lulled the infant to sleep.

²mom bounce verb \ˈmäm -ˈbauˈn(t)s\

mom bounced | mom bounc•ing

Definition of MOM BOUNCE

transitive verb

- to move with a repetitive rhythm or spring with the intent to pacify an infant or toddler in arms

     Examples:

-       I mom bounced my crying newborn in order to imitate the comforting swaying movement in the womb.

-       Her baby began to stir so she began to mom bounce him back to sleep

intransitive verb

- to move with a repetitive rhythm or spring that normally may pacify an infant or toddler in arms, but there is no infant or toddler present

     Examples:

-       I caught myself mom bouncing even though my husband was holding our son.

-       A passing infant’s cry in the airport triggered a traveling mom’s muscle memory and caused her to mom bounce even though her baby was a thousand miles away. 

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A LOT of mom bouncing occurred in the wee hours of the morning when Ryan was almost two days old. Call me crazy, but I miss that night. 

Do you have any funny mom bounce stories? See someone who has a crazy case of ants in your pants? Do share!