Baby Play! Carnival Posts (Part 6)

I have a friend that once confided in me that she didn't like the newborn stage. She found it a bit tough (lack of sleep and stuff) and also just not that exciting. She couldn't wait until her baby was ready to play. That is when the whole parenting thing became real and fun for her. Personally, I love the newborn stage and having a sleepy little baby all cuddled up in a sling while I go about my day, but I can completely understand her longing for the fun to begin.

...and now it can!

Krista from Typical Ramblings put together a great series with play ideas for babies:

• Play with Me (Part 1): This first post sets some ground rules for playing with your baby and provides some great play ideas for birth to 3 months and from 3 months to 6 months.


• Play with Me (Part 2): In the second post, Krista puts together a list of great play activities for 6 to 9 months and 9 to 12 months.


• Play with Me (Part 3): The third segment includes more play activities, this time geared at 12 to 15 months and 15 to 24 months.
  

From 1 year to 2 years, those babies change so much. There are so many more fun games that they can start to play. Their increased mobility and comprehension opens up completely new worlds.

As they get ready to leave those baby years, they will be at a tenuous stage of growing into independence and yet still needing help with some stuff. I see this in my "big girl" who has just turned two, and one of my carnival participants wrote a great post about it:

• Lessons from the Park: Tara from Feels Like Home wrote about and photographed her trip to the park with her husband and 22 month old daughter. This great post about a simple visit to the park really captures that stage of development where kids are learning to do more things on their own, but still need some help and some encouragement, as well as the security of the family bond.

Those baby days will be over before you know it. Take the opportunity to play with your baby. You are the best toy for your baby, hands down. Forget the plastic and just be present!

Comments

[Loukia]

Agree! There are so many ways to play with a little baby that doesn't involve toys... the one on one interaction when they are in those early months are extremely important. I couldn't get enough of my babies in the first few months - (still can't get enough of them!) singing, laughing, cooing, exploring...