my babies are all about "new" right now. if they have seen it before, it's trash, and if the other one has it, it's tears. I threw together a little "treasure" chest for them to dig through and they love it! once a day or so I put a new item or 2 in it and they love finding it!
I made sure to clean everything first, and that there was nothing that they could choke on, or once contained a harmful substance.. then, I put it in an empty wipes container.
O the excitement!
I also stitched together about 8 patches of felt at the corners, and the girls love pulling the colors out of the top of the wipes container as well!
The girls also love this rattle! I just put some felt, pearls, and sequins in a mini plastic bottle. you could dried beans, rice, seeds or whatever you have around the house too! I super glued the top, just in case..
I sometimes forget to think outside the "target toys" box, so I hope this helps your budget and baby boredom!