Favourite baby activity center?

[drk]

There''s one on sale at ToysRUs in Canada this week, and wondered if anyone has had experience with it: http://www.amazon.com/Baby-Einstein-Discover-Activity-Center/dp/B000WJPCFW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=baby-products&qid=1268621808&sr=1-2

Or if you''ve got one that you love and could tell me which one it is, I''d love to see what the alternatives are that I should be considering. Is this something you''d buy second-hand, or can they get pretty beat up after 1-2 kids have already used it?

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Something like that would be fine second hand. My kids had a similar older version/brand (from way back in 2000-2002) and it held up with both kids. The thing is, my kids NEVER really got into it. . .basically it bored them so the entire point of them being in it was a safe place to put them while I was in the shower. lol

They were much more "stimulated" by the Baby Einstein videos.

Well, actually kind of. . .they still were bored by those. . .

 

[fieryred33143]

Yes, I wouldn't mind buying second hand.

We have the same thing but as a jumperoo. DD LOVES it especially now that she has figured out how to jump. She plays with a station, jumps, plays with another station, jumps, etc. And the good part is that the jumperoo has a bunch of extra rings that you can put pretty much any toy that can be hooked to something. We hook all kinds of random toys to it. It also has a little tray that we put cereal and puffs on.

It's a lifesaver when she wakes up at 6:30am on Saturday. Gives me enough time to wipe the crust from my eyes and drink 2 cups of very strong coffee

ETA: Here's the link to the one we have with some different toys on it http://www.amazon.com/Baby-Einstein-Musical-Motion-Activity/dp/B000HZDN9I

 

[Pandora II]

The best thing we have bought so far is the Vtech First Steps Baby Walker that has a panel you can remove so the can play with it on the floor as well.

We have a jumperoo and it was great for about 6 weeks. Now she''ll walk round the outside and play with the toys but won''t go in it or jump for more than a few minutes and that''s if you can get her in it at all.

 

[Burk]

I''d buy second hand because it really depends on the kid whether they like it or not. Tayva LOVED her jumperoo and would spend hours in it if I had let her.

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 3/15/2010 11:07:49 AM
Author: Burk
I''d buy second hand because it really depends on the kid whether they like it or not. Tayva LOVED her jumperoo and would spend hours in it if I had let her.

Yup, ditto. Amelia was in her jumperoo from about 4.5 months to something ridiculous like 9 months (I can''t remember exactly, but it was a LONG time). We finally had to stop using it because it looked like the thing was going to flip over when she jumped (she swung back and forth and she jumped.)

 

[lili]

My daughter was the 5th one in line for a handmedown Exesaucer (forget which brand) and it still holds up.
She's been playing it since 4 months.
Now at almost 2 yr old, she use it as a tunnel/cave where she crawled in and come up through the legs.

Personally, I'd hold off and test drive the jumperoo or exesaucer when the baby is old enough.
Babies who likes to jump prefers the jumperoo.
My daughter wasn't excited about the jumperoo.

 

[Puppmom]

Man, those things have a lot of bells and whistles! I remember when DD was little, we had a walker with just a tray. Times have changed!

 

[ponder]

Date: 3/15/2010 2:18:45 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 3/15/2010 11:07:49 AM
Author: Burk
I''d buy second hand because it really depends on the kid whether they like it or not. Tayva LOVED her jumperoo and would spend hours in it if I had let her.

Yup, ditto. Amelia was in her jumperoo from about 4.5 months to something ridiculous like 9 months (I can''t remember exactly, but it was a LONG time). We finally had to stop using it because it looked like the thing was going to flip over when she jumped (she swung back and forth and she jumped.)

Thritto! My LO used her jumperoo from 4.5 until about 8 months. She LOVED it and would play in it for hours if I would let her. DH and I agree that it was the best $80 we ever spent.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Meh on the one you listed. My mom bought that. While T liked it she LOVED our evenflo so much more (probably b/c it had more toys/noise/lights). T spent SO much time in this one. I do think you could buy it second hand but if you are going to have multiple children I think it pays for itself.

ETA: she played with it from 4 months to probably 20 months (stood on the outside playing with the toys). She probably STILL would play with it but I finally put it in the attic.

 

[rockpaperscissors67]

Will had an Evenflo Exersaucer similar to the one in the link Tacori posted and I think he got pretty good use out of it. We lent it to a friend for their little girl and just got it back so Ben can use it in a few months. It was great for entertaining Will when I needed to do something, but he didn''t spend hours and hours in it. Still, I feel like it was a good purchase just because it bought me a little bit of time!

If you do buy new, be very careful putting the thing together. When I put Will''s together, I accidentally let go of one of the springs in the leg that I was holding down and it smacked me HARD in the face. That wasn''t a good moment.

 

[Sabine]

We also chose the jumperoo over the exersaucer, and we''re glad we did. Ds has been using it since 4 months and he''s now 7.5 months and it''s his favorite thing to do during the day. He''ll probably lose interest once he becomes mobile on his own, but I couldn''t have lived without it these past few months. He even tries to jump still when you just hold him.

I would definitely buy second hand if possible. And if you have to choose between exersaucer and jumper, maybe wait till your LO is old enough to use them, then try them out in them to see which they prefer before purchasing.