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Parenting

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Original poster

Keeping my 6 month old entertained!

23 replies

lunavix · 13/10/2004 14:35

I was wondering if anyone had any good ideas for games and toys for my 6 month old ds, just for daily use? Being a dutiful first time mum I bought every toy and gym known and he hates every one. The only things that will keep him from crying are being carried, the tweenies song time video ( and i don't like him watching much tv as he's so young) and newspapers(to chew and rip). Help!!!!!!!

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zebra · 13/10/2004 14:38

Of course baby likes playing with you best. Shows he has good taste, doesn't it?
You're just a(nother) typical first time mum who was bamboozled by all the gear on offer...
Try not to dispair, some of that baby stuff my 4yo still plays with, it won't go all to waste!
Have you tried a door bouncer, they work miracles with some babies, getting you some space. Else put him in a backpack while you get on with jobs?

nailpolish · 13/10/2004 14:39

have you got a door bouncer? i found it invaluable esp when i needed to do something like make the tea etc. i also found watching other babies on tv or looking at them in baby catalogues was a favourite. they seem to like watching other babies. you can buy specially made videos

Original poster

lunavix · 13/10/2004 14:48

I've got a baby bouncer which he does like, his podge sticks over it a bit though so I'm scared he's getting a bit chunky for it!
I feel like I don't actually play with him enough, o I was wondering if anyone could suggest anything. The only thing he likes doing together (apart from cuddles :c) is knocking down towers i make, but after 20 odd minutes my concentration spans long gone!

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nailpolish · 13/10/2004 14:52

yes, it is really hard. my dd never liked any toys either. she just liked me talking and singing to her all the time. just strap her to you and do stuff like the ironing or cooking and talk to him about anything and everything. sit him on your knee and read the paper out loud (i got that idea from 3 men and a baby!) if you dont have a sling beg or borrow one. hope this helps - it will pass too dont worry

clairabelle · 13/10/2004 14:57

My ds is 11m now at 6m we had a bumbo which used to give me a couple of minutes to do something, I used to pull it around with me. We did and still do lots of action songs row row etc.Looking at board books just lying on the floor with them and tickling. Toys we love are ELC squidgy blocks and a VTech animal musical thing sorry not very specific. But really it's only now he's reallay interested in playing with anything.

Chuffed · 13/10/2004 14:58

dd does like an occasional story, she also likes her piano thing that she thumps with abandon making her own music.
If she starts getting wingy (when I was at home ) I just used to get her out of the house. Even just outside to deposit the rubbish or up to buy some bread...anything that involved seeing somebody who wasn't me and she'd be happy for a while.

Original poster

lunavix · 13/10/2004 14:59

clairabelle - whats a bumbo?

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clairabelle · 13/10/2004 15:00

lunavix have a look on ebay for piccies but it's like a seat very supportive when they can't sit up and it lets them sit upright.

Original poster

lunavix · 13/10/2004 15:01

Chuffed - That's just it! He is the most sociable baby and we go for 3 walks a day as it is (regaining the pre-ds figure :c) and he's fantastic at groups but short of going to two or three a day...
Maybe I need to get working on number 2, then he will have someone else to be amused by

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clairabelle · 13/10/2004 15:04

Umm when dd started school we had a couple of bad days when he realised the entertainment had left the building. Had to rope the dog in

acnebride · 13/10/2004 15:07

Stacking cups? My mum just appeared one day with them and said 'you need these'. How right she was. I only say it because personally i would have waited until he was old enough to build a tower with them, but there's loads they can do with them earlier. Sorry if you're already ahead of me with this.

I do think 6m is a tough patch until they get mobile and toothed - 3-6 mo is much easier. hang in there!

acnebride · 13/10/2004 15:09

oh, a walker, the sort they can sit in - i know they're bad for kids but mine was beyond a godsend, ds loved it and still does at the ripe old age of 9 mo.

Chuffed · 13/10/2004 15:13

acnebride we have stacking cups but dd doesn't seem interested in them at all. I've built towers and helped her knock them down but she is far more interested in exploring than anything else.

Chuffed · 13/10/2004 15:14

dd 6months too

Original poster

lunavix · 13/10/2004 15:19

yes i got these great stacking cups from ikea, theyre what i'm building towers with at the moment, but all he will do is knock them down.
I got a baby walker when he was early 5 months, he's been standing (supported) since then, but he still can't reach the floor in it - and apparently he's very long as well.

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californiagirl · 14/10/2004 00:38

Stacking rings on a pole. They don't stack them either, but derive amusement from unstacking them and gnawing on the pole. A ball he can grab (you can get fancy ones, or you get just get a medium sized rubber ball and deflate it some). A Skwish. My DD is hypnotized by a Brum bear from Ikea, I have NO IDEA why. An incredibly dull board book with touchable bits -- "Peekaboo Kisses" is my DD's absolute favorite, but Usborne makes a ton of mind-mumbing baby-pleasers in the "That's not my..." range. Lego makes a shape sorter which again will not get put to its proper use but the shapes are excellent for banging together and you can shove all sorts of things into the bucket and put the top on, and then the baby takes the top off and eats it for a while and then dumps the toys out. The Xylophone puppy is noisy but at least it's in tune and not electronic, and DD adores it no end. She also likes the Sounds set of Peek-a-Blocks.

essbee · 14/10/2004 00:41

Message withdrawn

throckenholt · 14/10/2004 08:05

mine really liked laying on a towel with no nappy on at that age - kept them happy for ages - no idea why

handlemecarefully · 14/10/2004 08:31

I'm not being overly pessimistic (just realistic) but I don't think you'll find a magic solution - this is the way most babies are ...eminently prefer being carried / bounced on someone's knee rather than 'playing' on the floor or whatever. IME it improved when my first born started crawling - she could then crawl to an object of amusement, play with it for a while and when bored (after 30 seconds!)crawl over to the next one. She was so taken by her new found independence she became much more contented and I was able to snatch a few minutes to do this and that rather than having to cart a baby 'cling on' around with me constantly.

Oh and please don't give yourself stress and unneccessary guilt - you say that you don't feel that you play with him enough...don't worry about this, as long as he gets cuddled and therefore feels loved and secure then thats enough at this age. You are doing more than enough if you are taking him for lots of walks etc.

If your ds is 6 months old, you probably only have around 3 months more to wait before he is at the crawling stage.

Original poster

lunavix · 14/10/2004 09:41

Thanks everyone I was starting to feel really useless!
Peek - a -blocks? I think I have some, I bought this dump truck that have 5 blocks, and I love it! It plays this really really cool song and I always sing a long!
Ds hates it though.....

OP posts:

Amfs · 14/10/2004 09:50

You'll find it gets much easier over the next 3 months

Personally I wouldn't worry about him 'watching tv' .. he's watching the movement and hearing the sounds ..

In a month or 2 you could get a large plastic bowl out of the kitchen .. put in it wooden spoon / metal spoon and any odd object with different textures .. like keys / a large smooth pebble, a piece of cloth / an orange .. whatever you can find ... babies love that

BTW

"yes i got these great stacking cups from ikea, theyre what i'm building towers with at the moment, but all he will do is knock them down."

PMSL .. that's his job .. and that's yours I'm afraid

Original poster

lunavix · 14/10/2004 10:44

LOL
I'm lucky he knocks them down at all! Half the time he looks at me with a 'mum, why do you like those cups so much' expression, and rolls the other way!

OP posts:

WigWamBam · 14/10/2004 10:47

Re door bouncers and walkers - I didn't like either, but in a similar vein dd had one of those static activity things, looks like a walker but doesn't move, has a seat in the middle that turns, the legs bounce, there's a tray to play on and toys attached to the top, dd loved it, it was worth its weight in gold. The one we got was called a Play-de-Bug and was a big red ladybird but you can get other sorts.

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