Archive for 'Gear'

cheaper at target
Go to target. Paid under for it there!! Great toy though!! As far as the toy goes it is a great one and keeps both my kiddos busy.. son 3 1/2 and daughter 11m

Best toy ever
Have 3 children ages 5, 3 and 9 months and they have all enjoyed this toy so much. Originally purchased almost 3 years ago and still a favorite. Now my son ( 9 months ) is in love with it. Great buy !!

Great Product, but baby is not interested
This is a very good quality toy. I'm just so tired of all musical and battery operated toys. So I thought this will be great for my 10 month old baby boy. To my disappointment he is not interested at all. He played a little with the doors, but that was it. I'm hoping he'll get interested later. If you decide to get it, compare prices with Target. It is less expensive there and no shipping fee.

good but damaged
my son love this at once he saw and he liked it very much to play.but we found many cracks in the wood and i thought it is not really safety.woods are chirping and paint is peeling off.otherwise it is really good one for kids.i returned the product today and planning to get another one.

We returned it right away
We wanted to get an engaging and safe discovery box for our 11-month old and instantly loved the cute, colorful look and fun features of the Busy Zoo Activity Center. However, due to the many reviews indicating "poor craftsmanship", we weren't sure if the Busy Zoo was right for us. We were also eyeballing with the Educo Down on the Farm Discovery Box by Hape since we have many Educo high-quality, non-toxic toys. After much research, we first ordered the Busy Zoo, because we thought it would be cuter and more fun than the "rather plain" Farm Discovery Box. We were simply hoping that the Busy Zoo would have an acceptable quality. How wrong we were!

Right when we opened the box, we noticed paint peeling off from the surface. Once we took it out of the box, we saw many corners and surfaces where wood was splintering off. We ordered the Educo Down on the Farm Discovery Box right away and did a 1:1 comparison of the two. Educo's Farm Discovery Box might be "more plain" and appear a little more boring than the fun Busy Zoo, but it is of so much better quality. All the surfaces are smooth and it doesn't look like the paint will ever come off.

We ended up keeping the Farm Discovery Box and returning the Busy Zoo. We were really sad to return the Busy Zoo. We loved the colorful zoo theme and the many fun things you could play with on each side. However, since quality is important to us when it comes to toys, we kept the Farm Discovery Box and we love to see our 11-month old play with it. He is all over it all the time and loves to play with each side. He pulls himself up and stands in front of it while playing with the maze on top. Our favorite thing is to see him play with the farmer's truck beneath the maze. It's so cute to hear him make "brumbrum" noises when he moves the truck.

Great overall product
I bought this carrier because my son likes to face out, and the carrier that we had does not support that. Also, he was born on the smaller side, and Baby Bjorn carriers are made to carry babies as small as 8 lbs, so we could use it comfortably sooner. My only complaint is that the shoulder straps are not very padded, so as the baby gets heavier it gets a little harder on your shoulders (this is why I gave it only 4 stars).

It was delivered in a timely manner and the product was new as stated.

BEST WARM WEATHER CARRIER
We used this carrier while visiting Thailand for a month in 95+ Humid days. It was so conducive to traveling and touring the city and countryside. Our little girl (4months) comfortably slept while we visited the palaces and temples; walked 4 miles each day; rode the train without limiting my mobility or overheating baby or mom. We used the our BabyBjorn instead of a stroller and were so thankful we did. BabyBjorn can go so many places that strollers can't.

It isn't bulky, it breathes well, washes easily, and baby can easily be removed while sleeping and put into a crib.

Bjorn Air/Classic vs. Synergy/Active vs. Comfort vs. Ergo
I'm a bit compulsive so we own quite a few carriers. For the purposes of this review, I'll skip slings, and stick to backpack style shoulder strap carriers. Specifically the Bjorn line and the Ergo.

Ergo: The most comfortable of the bunch! While it can get a little toasty for both you and baby on warm days, both wife and I felt that we could wear it just about forever. Unlike most backpack carriers, the Ergo has a waist belt on which most of the baby's weight rests. Those of you who've used a hiking backpack know exactly how much this helps. For those who don't, there's a padded band that sits just above your hips. When worn correctly most of the baby's weight is distributed across your hips greatly reducing the stress/load on your shoulders and back. Unfortunately for us, our little monkey recently decided that she must face out, and the Ergo only allows them to face in. So it's been sitting in unused in the closet for several weeks.

Bjorn Air/Classic: Smallest, lightest and easiest to use. We have the "Air" model, and the special fabric actually does work to keep you and your baby cool. It's my preferred carrier for quick jaunts and hot days. But the wife and nanny will wear it only if they have to. It is by far the least comfortable carrier we own. The shoulder straps are unpadded and relatively thin so they really dig into your shoulders. I find it merely a bit annoying, but the wife says she can't wear it for more than 5 or 10 minutes before it really starts to hurt.

Bjorn Synergy/Active: Basically the Air/Classic but with wider, padded shoulder straps and a lumbar support piece. While a little more comfortable than the Air/Classic, it is still a far cry from the comfort of the Ergo. While the lumbar support is okay, the fundamental problem remains: all the weight is still placed on the shoulders.

Bjorn Comfort: The newest Bjorn, and by far the most comfortable. It has very wide and nicely padded straps, and like the Ergo, the Comfort has a padded waist band! While it isn't quite as comfortable as the Ergo, it comes close. I have used it for multi-hour walks with no back or shoulder discomfort. And unlike the Ergo, baby can face in or out.
A couple minor complaints. First it is quite bulky. Given the way its constructed, its actually much bulkier than even the Ergo, so it's not the easiest thing to stuff in a bag/under the stroller. Second is that as of yet you cannot buy additional bibs. One bib is included, but given how much we use the thing it's nice to have a second (note the Bjorn bibs currently sold are NOT COMPATIBLE with the Comfort). Plus while it doesn't seem as warm as the Ergo, you and baby will be plenty sweaty on hot days.

All these carriers seem very well made, and with the sole exception of the Air, I feel will last a long, long time (while so far so good, I have some reservations about the long run durability of the fabric shoulder straps of the Air). Currently we mostly use the Comfort, but I still bust out the Air on hot days or for short jaunts and all in all we are quite happy with the carrier situation. But we still have hope that one day our little one will deign to face in so we can bust out the Ergo again.


---ERGO---
Pros: Most comfortable
Cons: Baby can only face in. A little warm on hot days.

---Bjorn Air/Classic---
Pros: Easiest to get baby into/out of. Air is fabulous for hot days. Smallest and lightest (great for packing).
Cons: Least comfortable. Some concern about durability of Air fabric.

---Bjorn Synergy/Active---
Pros: More comfortable than Air/Classic
Cons: Still no waist strap!

---Bjorn Comfort---
Pros: Comfort (almost as good as the Ergo)
Cons: A little warm on hot days. Can't purchase replacement/extra bibs. Bulkiest of all four carriers.

If your a mom, you wont be disappointed.
I researched baby carriers quite a bit before I purchased the Baby Air. I love this because I'm pretty functional with my three month. We go on walks and I do a good amount inside our home. He loves it because he's pretty comfortable and so am I and the best part is he's close to my chest, so he can here my heartbeat. Which as a mother knows is a nice quality. It seems to calm him down to know he's with me and me be able to rock him and do things around the house too. I live in Salt Lake City and it can get pretty warm here in the summer. It was important for me to find something that will breathe on those hot summer days. Whats also a great part about the carrier is that it supports his head and I never have to worry about him bobbing around. The flap does fold down so when it comes to that time you can turn him around to face forward. It also has a small mesh bag built into the bottom strap to fold and travel with. Easy adjustable and really light. Great pick and I couldn't be happier :)

must have
I would not have survived motherhood beautifully without the BabyBjorn Carrier Air. I have used it for both my children (a boy then a girl). It is easy to don and doff, baby is very comfortable and happy in it, and I have both my hands free! My kids just hated being in a stroller.

It IS pretty loud, even with a brand new motor!
I got mine on craigslist for half price. The motor was working intermittently and slipping so I called Graco and ordered a new motor (the entire tower) for 50 dollars. It is an older model, or so the customer service rep. told me, but even with a brand new motor mine still makes a pretty loud noise, so much that you have to turn up the TV to be able to hear it over the noise. It will still slow while swinging and almost stop, then starts again, so it seems to be a design flaw and not due to a run down motor. I also think the vibrating chair is even louder than the swinging motion.

My two week old can still fall asleep despite the noise, and it is one of the few places he will stay asleep for hours. The music entertains my 3 year old, and he likes to sing along. The sound quality is nice, and it does seem a bit loud to me while the baby is sleeping, but not loud enough to disturb him. He also likes to watch the toy hanging from the canopy.

I loved it, My son did not.
I bought this because of all of the features. My favorite was the MP3 hookup. There are so many ways that this can be used, but my son was more of a hands on baby. He was very colicky and this swing only made him cry more. Its a beautiful swing & so many positions, vibrations, and tons of other things...it just wasnt right for us.

One of the best items I received.
I love this swing. It is very easy to switch the swing seat out for the car seat. My son takes most of his naps in it and when we come home from car trips, I don't have to wake him up by moving him out of the car seat. The only thing I would change is to make it easier to take the material off to clean. You have to unscrew two areas to get the cover off. However,it washes nicely.

Love it!
The BEST Baby Swing! I am a mother of three, and this has by far been my favorite! My only negative is the fact that I have big babies and my son is only 6 mos old and still loves his swing, but he weighs in at 21 lbs and it won't move anymore even though the weight says up to 25 lbs. Something to think about I guess! However, I have not checked the weight limits on the other swings. I may contact Graco, perhaps my swing is defective in that area.

Could be better...
This was recommended to me by one of our friends who had a colicky baby. I loved the features, it swings side-to-side and back-to-front. It plays pre-recorded music, womb sounds, and has an iPod attachment. This part of the swing was a life saver, especially when one of my twins wanted to be held throughout the night.
However, it doesn't lay flat (the seat does adjust to sit more upright, we needed it to lay a lot less upright though). There are no fun toys on the activity bar (the mirror is too small and the teething ring is too heavy).