6 Must-Have Baby Registry Items for PLAY
Below are 6 of my essential, favorite play items for baby! This post contains affiliate links. At no cost to you, I will receive a small percentage of the cost of the item if you purchase an item by clicking on the links below. I do not recommend products unless I love them!
Ofie play mat
A play mat is an essential part of your play space (whether it is in your living room, nursery, or a dedicated space) because as baby becomes mobile they will fall...a lot. You will be much more relaxed and inclined to let baby play if you have a great cushioned play mat, and this play mat will grow with them because
It looks great. I am an architect so design is really important to me, I love that having this in my living room doesn’t make the space look overly child-like.
It isn’t over stimulating. Babies need some stimulation but too much can be overwhelming. I love the subtle colors of this mat because it doesn’t distract baby!
It is waterproof. This play mat is perfect for messy play for any age! This will last with them basically forever, and you can even bring it on a patio for some cushioned play.
One word of caution: if you have an animal who scratches everything this may not be the mat for you! Any foam mat is not going to stand up to being scratched. We have been able to keep our cat off it though.
Lovevery Play Gym
A versatile play gym is so important for the first 6 months or so of babies life. You will want something that comes with great toys but to which you can also attach other toys and items like the scarves I mention later. This play gym is awesome. It has a point of attachment on each leg- and the form of this gym is important because it encourages baby to look and lie in more than one direction, which builds different muscles and coordination. It also is designed to not over stimulate baby. You can lift just one flap of the mat at a time if you want to. The toys that come with it were some of our favorites, like the crinkle teether and ring. I love the design of this play gym—it will fit into the style of any home and look beautiful. I also love that this gym grows with your child, because it comes with a cover that turns it into a fort!
Manhattan Toy Mobile and Plush Toy
Okay, technically these are two toys, but I am grouping them because they are very similar but one is for the car and stroller and the other is for at home (although you can use them in any setting). These two toys were absolutely our go to’s for the first few months of baby’s life. They are designed to capture baby’s attention and stimulate development with high contrast images. They look different than most baby toys—but it is for a reason and when your baby plays with and looks at these toys you will definitely know why they are superior. They mobile is so captivating that baby would stare at it for a whole 30 minute car ride and not tire of it. This is the best toy you can have for car rides and stroller rides for the first few months. You can even flip the cards upside down to change the images. The plush toy is also so intriguing for baby and it is perfect for when baby starts grabbing.
Rainbow Sensory Scarves
These “toys” are so versatile and I use them in many of my play hacks. They are lightweight, semitransparent, and beautifully bright. You can use them from the newborn stage up, and every Montessori play room would be amiss without sensory scarves. When baby is an infant hang them on her play gym to look up at, or dangle in front of her during tummy time. These scarves do tend to have frayed edges because of the material, so if that bothers you, you may prefer play silks by Sarah’s Silks which are a bit less transparent and more expensive, but fray less. These should only be used under close supervision.
Soft Peek-A-Boo Forest Book
This book is definitely a favorite toy and book in our house. My baby loved the bright colors and texture and crinkle sounds, and this was a go-to toy for months. Now that she is older, she loves when we read this and she can pull down the flaps to play peek-a-boo. This is also a huge book win because she can’t eat it! Our board books all have bites taken out but this book is inedible! Ha ha
Farm animal sound puzzle
It may seem early to be buying a sound puzzle but hear me out on this one. I love Melissa & Doug wooden sound puzzles because they help baby develop pincer grasp, you can use them when baby has just their palmar grasp by taping ribbon under the pieces, and even if baby can’t do it herself you can play with her and she can hear the sounds the pieces make. I love the farm animal puzzle because you can use it as an opportunity to talk about the animals and what sounds they make. I found that when my baby was only a few months old, I would struggle with what to talk to her about. I knew it was important that I talk to her but sometimes I felt like I ran out of things to say. I love toys like this that prompt conversation! My baby can’t put the pieces back but can take them out, and even still this has been a top three favorite toy for months.
Check out my blog babyplayhacks.com and my Instagram account @babyplayhacks for tons of baby play ideas using some of these items as well as every day objects!