Activities for Bored Infants

T is going through an 'I'm really bored' phase. I don't blame him. How much can a five month old do on his own? He makes this annoying , whiny, screaming noise to let me know that he's bored. If I added up all the minutes in a day he spends telling me he was bored, it would be over an hour. He makes me a very busy Mommy.

These are some activities that silence annoying , whiny, screaming noise for a few minutes. I'll share more next week.

Peek-a-boo
An all time favourite for parents and infants alike. Try these different varieties throughout the day.

• Classic peek-a-boo: Cover your eyes and when you pull them away, with a big smile, say "peek-a-boo". (But I'm sure you already know this.)
  
• Getting dressed peek-a-boo: If you use an over the head onsie, pull the onsie over baby's head, like you normally would, but when it comes over baby's eyes, with a big smile, say peek-a-boo.
• Good morning peek-a-boo: Take a light receiving blanket, gently cover baby's face with said receiving blanket, slide the blanket off, with a big smile say "peek-a-boo."
• Mommy's-exercising peek-a-boo: When baby's in crib, lunge down out of baby's site, then pop back up with a big smile and say peek-a-boo.
  

Happy in the Mirror
Whenever T is crying, M or I simply pick him up and stand in front of the mirror. For whatever reason, every time this kid looks in the mirror, he sends a huge smile to the people on the other side. I'm not sure that he knows that it's us in the mirror but he certainly likes socializing with whoever they are.

Car wash
T is learning about different textures. He's always grabbing at my and M's hair. So I let down my hair one day, kneel over him so that my hair dangled close to his face. Then I swayed my head back and forth so it would tickle the sides of his face. Just like when your car goes through the car wash.

Kangaroo
Ok, this is totally cheating but T does enjoy it. (And it's great exercise for baby's neck). If you have a Snugli or a HotSling, wear your baby while you do a few things around the house. Put a spring in your step or narrate everything you're doing. Make silly noises and have fun. I can get a few things done around the house and distract T at the same time.

Mr Fixit
T likes to know how things work. So sometimes we walk around the house and look at all the light switches. Then we turn them on and off. Or we'll go to the kitchen sink and turn the tap on and off. This also works for toys that can come apart and back together again - like Lego.