Need new ideas for how to play with my 8 mo. old baby

In no particular order:

simple puzzles (they are good at taking the pieces out- ones with big knobs...)
wrestling/tickling
singing songs (esp with hand motions)
playing with food (FWIW sweet potato works well as fingerpaint on a tray...)
water play (a dripping faucet in the tub is FUN!)
books (board books that they can't hurt)
blocks (build towers for baby to knock over)
name body parts (this is baby's nose, this is mamma's nose, can you touch mamma's nose, while demonstrating)
things that make noise- coffee cans, keys, spoons, buckets
puppets (simple and handmade or nice ones)

hope that helps!

-Angela

DD is just 9 months and enjoys (in no particular order):

pulling up on things to allow her to stand
practicing walking while holding onto someone's hands
banging toys together to make sounds
exploring new objects (kitchens are great for this)
trying to pull up on the dog; trying to eat the dog's tail
dumping toys out of their storage totes
"talking" with folks
going on walks
playing in the wood chips near our garden
watching me water the herbs
mouthing EVERYTHING
watching other kids - especially toddlers - play

i thought i'd never run out of ideas, but if i'm tired or sick, honestly my brain fogs out. so i use Sesame Street's baby site. their activity center is set up by age group, and then cognitive, physical, social and emotional play. i printed it out and put it in one of those plastic page protectors. i don't usually need it, but when i do, it is wonderful!! i read a few ideas and then it sparks off all sorts of other ideas.

i also have 2 sets of Baby Einstein cards. it says they're for 9 months and up, but Willow loves them. they're heavy cardstock, bright pictures, and concepts she's familiar with (like cat, or banana) so she gets excited. i lay out an entire deck on the floor, then pick 5 or 6 at random, shuffle them, and then make up a story using them. so they're great for "story starters" one day, there was a clown who lived in a house made of pizza and he liked to eat bananas and he kept a cow and a giraffe as a pet :LOL

Wow. Great ideas!

My daughter's just a week over 8 months old and we've been scrambling for some new stimulation as she's been teething.

For the summer heat blahs, I made some ice cubes with strings frozen in them, and she plays with them in the tub like they're little boats. (Or outside on the grass.)

Inside voice/outside voice games have become a big hit. She screeches, I whisper, she whispers, she forgets and screeches again.

Banging. Her dadoo has a djembe and has been teaching her how to drum. Now she drums on everything. I've been teaching her that the floor is good for drumming, the books are good for drumming, the table is good for drumming, Mama is *not* good for drumming, the cats are *not* good for drumming....

This side/that side guessing games. I don't know if it's an early form of object permanance or pattern forming, but she loves it when I hide behind, say, the coffetable and pop my head up over alternating sides while she tries to guess which side I'll show up on.

Play silks. She LOVES to play peek-a-boo by pulling the silk off her face *all by herself* (this is very important to her); we make wind-waves with the silk, hide toys under it, hide the kitty cat, play tug-of-war (she holds on to one end, I hold on to the other, and she tries to pull herself up to standing), etc.



Sarah
Mama to Qualia, 8 months