File this one under “Stuff You Never Knew You Needed.” Going to the bathroom with a baby in tow is a PITA, but this invention allows you to do so in peace. Lifehacker writer Michelle Woo discovered this contraption during a trip to Tokyo, Japan.
Right next to the toilet, there is a seat for a baby. It’s like a shopping cart seat, but for the bathroom!!! GENIUS.

Photo Credit: Lifehacker
These contraptions have been around in Japan for years, per this Reddit post. While a lot of moms are probably over here wondering when on Earth we’ll get these in the U.S., several Redditors assert that these are actually… a Thing? In certain U.S. cities?
“Saw one last week in a Wal-Mart in Ohio,” one Reddit user wrote.
“See them all of the time in PA,” another said. “Just have to go into the handicap stall.”

Photo Credit: Reddit
Okay, so why are they not in EVERY bathroom? This reminds me of the Great Changing Table Debate. Going out would be a lot easier for families if these simple contraptions were commonplace everywhere.
Apparently, Japan is parent-friendly in many other ways. They have rentable strollers at shopping centers, and feeding rooms at airports (with hot water dispensers for making formula)!
Catch up, America!