Playing with a 9 Mo. Old

I had a drawer and a low cabinet in the kitchen filled with plastic bowls, spoons, play food, etc. specifically for my daughters. They loved emptying them and putting it all back. It kept them amused especially when I was fixing meals. Just don't put them close to the stove or where you chop things.
If you don't have a spare drawer/cabinet, fill a box that can be put elsewhere when not needed.
Have fun.

at this young age... it is not necessary that you have to play/entertain them... for a baby... just them doing their thing, is a BIG learning experience for them. They keep active themselves. Her "boredom" as it seems, may just be that the baby does not know what to do next... or they are overstimulated as well. A baby needs also times where they are just hanging out... and they need to learn how to play by themselves too... to learn self-direction. On the flip side- always entertaining a baby/child... will sometimes give them the in-ability to think of things themselves, too. And then they will not rely on themselves.

"Let" her explore. THAT is how a baby learns, THAT is playing and how a baby gains skills, too.

She is doing fine. A Mom does not have to entertain every minute of a baby's wake time. It is not being a "bad" Mommy to allow a baby time to self-explore. Sometimes "hovering" is not good either... because a baby will need to learn self-assurance as well.

At this age or any age... just playing with things in the home, is a lot and good for a child. Go by her cues... and as you see, she is exploring a lot. That is good. THIS is what babies do. YOu are doing fine.

All the best,
Susan

I love S H's answer. Babies do not need to be entertained. It would be exhausting for us. The simplest things will do.
If you would like to read more about how to "Play" with your baby read some books by Magda Gerber.
Also the Library is great. I started taking my daughter at 10 mon. We also are members at the Y which is great for both of us.
At 18 mon. and thanks to following some things I learned reading various parenting books, I am a first time SAHM, our daughter plays great by herself and can entertain herself for an hour give or take.

I agree, keep it simple. You shouldn't have to play with your child because they're bored. If you find that she seems restless, give her things to play with, like what the other mom said about bowls and mixing spoons. If you play with her all the time, you're going to have a child who wants to be entertained all the time and isn't able to stay occupied on her own. I played with my kids whey they were babies/toddlers, but mostly they played on their own, kept themselves busy.

K., since she is your first is it easy to think that you must entertain her, all the time. However it is very good for her to have some time alone, where you are not playing with her. I dedicate my mornings to my babies so they feel secure, and then after their first nap and a feeding just give them things to do and go about my chores. They can follow me if they want to but I will just give them something to play with where ever I am. Usually they end up playing with something at least for a few mins before moving on to the next. After the second nap/ and snack I will play for just a min to get them interested in something and then I can do what I need too. I usually will pop in and out of playing with them. After the third nap, I will give them a snack and something to do in the high chair so I can make dinner.
I keep three baskets on the floor in my main room. They are all filled with different kinds of toys and are arranged by size. The biggest basket holds the biggest toys etc... Then I just get the basket out and them go through them and take stuff out and put them back in. It is also good practice for cleaning up too. I also keep another basket with board books for them to look at. It is easy to clean up these toy baskets and they are always advalible when you keep them on the ground.
Do a search on line for childrens songs with actions, Kids always love those. you could take her to story time at your library too.
Good luck!
E.

Keep it simple...kids don't need a lot of fancy "gear" to have fun. Let her play on your kitchen floor with a pot and spoon drum, shape sorter, musical toys, boxes of different sizes to stack, picture books, etc.

I'm not implying that you do this but I wanted to mention it, just in case. My best friend and I were JUST talking about this yesterday. With our first child, we felt a little bored at home and figured our babies were bored too. We did things a little differently. My best friend tried to entertain her son all of the time and she regrets it. Now, he doesn't play alone well and cannot entertain himself. He ALWAYS wants her involved in his play and she can't get anything done (he's 3). My son, I feel like I over stimulated, which caused a whole other set of issues. I often had the TV or music on. I was constantly dragging him out everywhere. Now he's a bit on the overly energetic side and has trouble controlling his excitement at times. You might think I'm crazy but I am now a big believer that what they are exposed to in the first year of brain development has a lot to do with who they become. I gave him all kinds of random things to play with and he has always played on his own well. A closed bag of macaroni, wooden spoons...whatever you can think of. Enjoy this baby stage and don't pressure yourself to keep her busy. Just put her down and let her go while you watch her. Within the next year, you will not feel this way. You will be chasing your child around everywhere. She will be so curious about life!

Teach her songs, esp. with movements. Let her "color" and use finger paint. Take her for walks, to playgrounds (maslls often have indoor ones for cold days). Go to museums and nature centers - my daughter just likes a new view. Build forts from pillows for her to explore. Get a big box she can hang out in.

Tummy time, activity mats, lights & sound games, reading... what are you doing now? What are you expecting from her?

I'd get involved in a playgroup and take some classes. Music, swim, etc. Take her to the library --if they have a play area.

Library for story time. Also there is a play group call The San Antonio Diaper Bunch that I belong to and we all get together and let our little ones play. They range in age, but really no one over 2. It's also good for mothers to socialize. My daughter is 14 months.

Go to your local library and ask the childrens librarian if they have any book recommendations. I owned a child care center and found the children's librarian to be my best resource for books. There are many good books that can inspire you.

I also have several websites I love, parentcenter.com, familyfun.com, I will post some links specific to your request below.

http://www.babycenter.com/0_20-fun-silly-development-boos...

http://www.fisher-price.com/us/ms2/baby-games.asp

http://www.littlekidsgamesonline.com/baby-games.html

http://infantstoddlers.suite101.com/article.cfm/playing_w...