play mat

It's helpful to have a play mat so you can plop the baby down to play on the floor in the kitchen or bathroom or wherever you are, though the functionality isn't that different from a thick/cushioned baby blanket. We have the Sleep Sheep Snug Rug, but we never use the sound machine functionality because our baby doesn't nap on it, so something like this plush elephant mat would probably have been better. We also have this Blabla Play Pad (they have tons of cute options) and use that one a lot more. Note that the play mat is pretty useless as soon as the baby can crawl and move around, since you can't just plop them down and expect them to stay in the same spot after 6-7 months.

People also use foam tiles to create play spaces that are clean and soft in case the baby bops their head or other body parts while playing -- increasingly useful as the baby gets more mobile. Foam tiles have a longer useful life and can be used from infancy through the toddler years.