Want to Have Fun with Your Baby?

While it is partly true that many babies only eat, sleep and poop their first few weeks of life, it is never too early to start playing with your baby! Play helps your infant to develop their senses and to begin understanding the world around them. Early stimulation of your baby's brain will start then down their road to success in the great big world around them. I'll list some great early infant toys to help develop their motor skills as well as mental skills!

A first toy for many infants is their bouncy seat. A bouncy seat is an excellent way to allow the infant to stay safe and observe their surroundings. Many bouncy seats have a toy bar that dangles stimulating toys in front of the baby. As the infant grows and begins to use their hands, you may notice your infant grabbing for these toys that they have been studying from afar. Some bouncy seats even react to kicking and pulling of the toys. This is a great way for your baby to begin playing!

A Boppy is also a very useful toy in any home with a newborn baby. While most commonly used as a nursing pillow, many moms find their Boppy to serve many other uses. You can prop your baby up on their tummy for some very important tummy time. Place small infant toys such as teethers and rattles in front of the Boppy and watch the fun begin. Tummy time is very important for you baby to begin developing strong neck, back and stomach muscles.

Another fun infant toy is a Bumbo seat. This is a fairly new product on the market, but so many babies love to sit up like a big child and get a better view of what is going on around them. The Bumbo seat is soft, foam like material that supports a very small infant. This seat will help your child to develop strong muscles so that he or she can sit up on their own. While sitting in the Bumbo seat, your infant can see more which leads to a better observation of you and everything else!

The next fun toy for your infant as they get to be 4 months old is an excersaucer. There are many excersaucers on the market today, but they all do one thing the same: provide a stable environment for your infant to stand up straight. Most excersaucers are filled with stimulating toys that will make fun sounds and movements when the infant touches or grasps them. Babies love to play in their excersaucers for days on end! The excersaucer also helps to develop neck, back and leg muscles needed for walking and standing on their own.

One last fun infant accessory is a jumperoo or doorway jumper. This toy allows your infant to jump up and down while being confined to one spot so you don't need to worry about them falling. Many babies love movement especially when they can control their own moving! Jumperoos are a stationary jump zone, while a doorway jumper needs to be hung from a door jam. A jumperoo is completely movable and can be placed anywhere throughout your house. These toys develop great leg muscles as well as help your infant to coordinate movement throughout their legs. Balance is also acquired through jumping up and down in these apparatuses.

Once you have adjusted to the new demands of motherhood and you are meeting the needs of your infant, you can move into the playing stage. Play is very important for children as it helps them to learn about their surroundings and how things work. Surround your infant with toys to stimulate their senses and you will both be on the road to learning!