Amusing a Baby During a Monsoon

Well, it's not really a monsoon, just a nice rainy Florida summer. It seems like a monsoon because the rain has been going on for quite a while now. The weather is driving a lot of people crazy but I love it. I love hearing the rain falling on our tin roof, the "rain frogs" croaking, and the sounds of cars splashing through puddles. The only bad thing is that it means I can't take The Precious outside much. So we've been playing inside and I've tried to come up with new things for us to do so she doesn't get too bored.

First I tried cutting paperdolls, because that is something I loved as a kid and still enjoy now. She loves watching my shiny big scissors as they carefully navigate the lines I see in my head until a string of ballerinas or little girls or angels or whatever appears. Then she enjoys sitting down and tearing them up. It keeps us both happy for a while.

Another thing we have enjoyed is the "cave" I have made for her by draping a blanket over my fabric cutting table. She can crawl underneath and hide behind the blanket and peek out at the world, and she giggles a lot when I crawl in after her.

I need to come up with something new because the rain keeps coming. I think today I will try hooking up my keyboard and playing music for her so she can dance.

Any suggestions for indoor activities for a one-year-old?