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.
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.”
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!