Purposes of Baby Toys—the good, the bad, and the ugly!

With the holiday season upon us, I’ve been slowly building the following list of reasons we give our babies toys…there are some very positive reasons, of course, but I’ve also been pondering the not-so-positive (but sadly true, if we’re honest) reasons as well…

1. To help teach baby developmental skills that common household objects might not teach as safely or efficiently.
2. To entertain/distract baby when mom or dad need a momentary break from the job of full-time most interesting person in the universe.
3. To babysit baby—i.e. replace mom and dad.
4. To calm when baby is bored, over-stimulated, tired, or upset.
5. To give baby something safe to “put in the mouth” (for sucking, chewing, etc).
6. To provide safe tactile stimulation for baby’s growing senses.
7. To safely encourage baby’s boundless curiosity and exploration.
8. To expand baby’s horizons—through music, bright colors, manipulation, etc.
9. To help baby play pretend—either practice/ role-play adult activities (like cooking, eating, building, etc.), imagination-stirring toys (like unicorns and dragons), or experience aspects of the world not otherwise available to baby (like foreign cultures or being a horse trainer).
10. To sell merchandise associated with popular movies or TV shows.
11. To acculturate baby into gender-specific societal norms—like dolls and purses are for girls, trucks and transformers are for boys.
12. To subliminally teach/reinforce our own values and beliefs upon our children (ie: what we think is beautiful, right, appropriate, desirable, worthy, etc.)
13. To grow up good little consumers, who think that the more the better, and who always want something NEW.
14. To make mommy and daddy feel less guilty for not spending the time with baby that baby needs...
15. To reward or celebrate a milestone or special occasion with baby.
16. To satisfy our own need/desire to spend money (all the while justifying our poor choices because "it's for baby") by buying far too much for baby!

I hope this list gives you pause as it gave me—please email me with any other purposes that I might have missed!!