Our favourite toysJuly 3, 2015

A post about ‘how to play with babies’ came up on my feed yesterday, and I was reminded how surprisingly difficult it can be to think of things to entertain a little one. Once Adam could sit it became easier, the play area on the floor or his high chair gives us rest-bite from the constant arms in the air, ‘pick me up please’ movement.

Everything, stop read that again, EVERYTHING, goes in his mouth at some point. He can’t crawl and yet loves to sweep things out of his reach, he wants to twist turn and examine anything he gets his hands on but usually loses interest after a minute or so. The best times are when mummy and daddy hold him, read a book, dance around the room, or best of all take him on an adventure outside.

Some toys capture his attention better than others. Last month I gathered all his favourites and gave them a little photo shoot, perhaps I’ll put them on the wall one day. Today it hit home that he’s really developed his hand eye coordination and his favourites are already starting to change. It came while I sat in the play area and watched him examine a long bootlace for 10 minutes. Pulling the lace through his hands and grabbing it from the floor totally enraptured him.

There is this odd urge to get him toys to move him on, to experience something new, to develop a new skill, to mark the passing of time… but equally there is a hint of sadness when he skims over things that he once seem to love. That ever changing, growing, emerging boy is coming from the tiny babe I once carried inside of me. One day all that will remain of those first favourite toys will be mere images. Even as I write this I think that is how it should be, we should not cling to the past but carry it forward, develop to new things, be open to new ideas. Our past teaches us deeply, but when our minds become closed it is a sad time indeed.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.