I have bought toys that light up.

Toys that make sounds.

Toys with buttons, textures, moving parts, and very enthusiastic descriptions on the box.

And somehow my baby still wants the cardboard box.

Or the spoon.

Or an empty container.

Or the tag attached to the toy instead of the actual toy.

At first, I kept trying to redirect the situation.

“Look at this one!”

“This toy does something!”

“You’re supposed to play with this!”

Eventually, I gave up.

And honestly, it became much more fun.

Everything Is Interesting When You’re Seeing It for the First Time

One of my favorite things about watching my baby is realizing how ordinary objects aren’t ordinary to them.

A wooden spoon?

Very exciting.

A soft cloth?

Worth studying for several minutes.

A container that can be filled, emptied, filled again, and immediately emptied again?

Apparently the greatest invention of all time.

I think adults forget how much there is to discover in everyday life.

We already know what everything does.

Babies don’t.

So sometimes I just let that curiosity lead the activity.

Some of Our Favorite Activities Are Very Simple

One thing I’ve learned is that entertaining a baby doesn’t always need a big setup.

Sometimes we sit together and stack a few cups.

Sometimes I put a few familiar objects in a basket and let my little one take them out one by one.

Sometimes we look out the window and I talk about what we can see.

Cars.

Trees.

Dogs.

People walking past.

Sometimes I play music and we move around the living room together.

And sometimes the activity lasts approximately forty seconds before my baby decides something else is more interesting.

That counts too.

Repetition Is Apparently Never Boring

As an adult, doing the same thing twenty times sounds exhausting.

For my baby, it seems to be the entire point.

Put something in.

Take it out.

Put something in.

Take it out.

Drop something.

Wait for Mom to pick it up.

Drop it again.

I used to keep trying to introduce something new.

Now I’m more willing to stay with the same little activity when my baby is enjoying it.

I remind myself that just because something feels repetitive to me doesn’t mean it feels that way to them.

I’m Enjoying Seeing the World Through Smaller Eyes

The biggest surprise is that these simple moments have become fun for me too.

I notice little things more.

I laugh at things I would normally ignore.

I find myself narrating the most ordinary activities because there’s a tiny person listening like everything I’m saying is fascinating.

Motherhood has definitely made my world busier.

But in a strange way, it has also made me slow down and notice more of it.

And apparently, all I needed was a baby to remind me that an empty cardboard box can be extremely entertaining.

What random household item is your baby currently more interested in than their actual toys? I have a feeling the answers to this one are going to be funny.