Seeking Recommendation for Exersaucer or Other 'Stationary Entertainer'

Updated on April 24, 2007
M.R. asks from Chicago, IL
16 answers

I'm curious to learn more about ExerSaucers, jumperoos, or other stationary entertainers that moms have tried. Which ones have you used? Which ones did you like and why or dislike and why? What, developmentally, should a baby be able to do before using something like this or are there any age guidelines? I'm not interested in any jumpers that 'clip' to doorways, nor am I interested in any 'walkers with wheels'.

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J.C.

answers from Chicago on

We had the jumperoo Deluxe and the Baby Einstein Exersaucer as well. I highly recommend both, but if you have to choose only one I would go with the jumperoo, or look for both used.

Also, we have 3 daughters and they all spent much more time in their exersaucers than 20 minutes a day and they had ni muscle development issues nor do they walk bow-legged. I wouldn't sweat that too much, they will let you know when they are done in it.

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E.B.

answers from Chicago on

For your baby to be ready developmentally for a toy like this, he or she definitely needs to be able to hold his head up and be able to sit up fairly well. I think the recommended age is about 6 months, but we put our son in the saucer at about 4 months because he was strong and we felt he was ready for it. We waited a little longer for the jumper, since it could jostle him around.

As for brands, we had the "Intellitainer" by Fisher Price, but evidently it does not exist anymore. It was a gift and at first, I just thought it was ugly and enormous but once we put it to use it was GREAT. It had a seat that slid back and forth on a track within the toy so our son could move around and play with all the features. It had electric lights, music and sounds, as well as a "book" and quiet toys. And he loved to pull himself up on it and continue playing even when he outgrew the seat. The pros are the number and variety of activities it features - way more than the Baby Einstein saucer. The cons are its size (bigger than most saucers) and that it doesn't fold away. I was always kind of jealous of the saucers that collapse and can travel with your. But, we just recently put the Intellitainer away and our boy's almost a year and a half. It was a lifesaver!

We also had a Jumperoo and although our son liked it, I don't feel like he loved it enough to justify the size of it and the price - I think it was about $60. It is huge and even though it "folds away", it's not really a space-saver. And the music is really annoying. Aside from jumping, there's not much for the baby to do with it. But to let you know, our son never walked on his toes so we don't have proof of a correlation there.

For either of these toys, I recommend borrowing one from a friend or picking one up at a consignment shop before you commit to a big purchase. They can be great toys, but they can also be great wastes of money if your baby isn't into it.

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C.

answers from Chicago on

I agree that around 6 months is when they can start in those, or when they can hold themselves up well in it. We had the jumperoo and an exersaucer. My first son absolutely LOVED the jumperoo. He would squeel and laugh in it ALL the time. We used it maybe 15-30 minutes a day every day about because he LOVED it so much!! He DID walk on his toes to begin with and I was real suspicious that the jumperoo was why. He didn't need special intervention to learn to walk normally...came on it's own at least. But I thought I'd let you know that especially after reading the other post about the same thing. My second son never got real into the jumperoo. He was fine sitting in it, but never got really into jumping in it or anything. He never walked on his toes. My sons are now just turned 3 and almost 18 months. As far as what kind of exersaucer, we just had the safety first car shaped one because cars are a big hit around here. It's a pretty basic one. The ones where the kids can go in a circle or slide across with the piano at the bottom look neat, but we haven't had them. :)

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A.F.

answers from Chicago on

We purchased a "Baby Bounce Bounce" for our 7 month old when he was about 5.5 months old. We selected this one b/c of price AND that it did not have a lot of "electronic toys" (it has some....don't they all?)

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P.P.

answers from Chicago on

We have a Baby Einstein play center (which has been re-named the Poopy Einstein, since that's what my son every time we put him in there), and a Deluxe Jumperoo. My son LOVED LOVED LOVED the Jumperoo. I would highly recommend it, or something similar. It helped him strengthen his leg muscles, taught him cause and effect (when he'd jump, the music would play) and was a great "temporary babysitter" while I washed his bottles or did some laundry. Now that he's moving around, it's too restrictive for him. But we still use the Baby Einstein. There are so many similar products - I'm not sure it matters which one you buy. But they are great. Once they start moving around, it helps to keep them in one (safe) place while you are doing dishes or laundry. I wouldn't have been without either one of these toys during my son's first year.

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L.S.

answers from Chicago on

My daughter loved the jumperoos up until she started walking. After that, she didn't want to be restricted to walk. I think it helped strenghen her legs using the jumperoo.

It's very mobil also so if you need to be in different rooms, it's great.

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L.L.

answers from Chicago on

I actually had my daughter on both. and I will switch of once in a while. The jumperoos are great because they get to jump aound and have a little fun. My daughter tired her self out one time she feel asleep in the jumperoo. The exosaucer was fun because she was able to play with different toys. Great inventions!!!

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T.K.

answers from Chicago on

My son loved the exersaucer, until he started to crawl and now that he is walking doesn't like to be in it at all. They have a jumperoo at his daycare and he loved this as well, again until he started to walk. Both Highly recommended.

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A.S.

answers from Austin on

I had both, but not till my son was 8 months. My son LOVED the Jumperoo better than the Exersaucer, but it was still nice to have to put him in to entertain him......Exersaucer seemed to work better for longer periods of time, but he had way more fun in the Jumperoo.

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K.A.

answers from Chicago on

Hi,
I have a 7 month old, we just bought the graco baby einstein exer-saucer at babies-r-us for about $75.00. Our baby loves it. Great for a baby that can sit up and is into being upright, as opposed to lying down all the time. He has a great time in it and stays safely secured if I leave the room for a second to get the door or use the bathroom. It was easy to put together too, it's a big box though, so make sure you make some room in the car before you get to the store.

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K.S.

answers from Chicago on

We have both the jumper-roo and the exersaucer (the baby einstein one), and our daughter likes both. The jumper is big, takes up a lot of space, and she can't really be in it for a very long time, where as with the exersaucer she can stay in it and entertain herself while I get ready for work in the morning. It's worth it's weight in gold for that reason alone. If I only could pick one, it would be the exersaucer.

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A.P.

answers from Chicago on

My son loved his jumparoo (alot). He started using it when he could hold his head up really good (6 months or so?? can't remember) He would go crazy jumping in that thing. But my sister recently told me that she saw articles about jumparoos causing kids to walk on their toes more so than non jumpers. And that they say to put shoes on the child while in it. My son was in it kind of alot because he liked it so much, and I hadn't heard about putting shoes on them. So he did walk on his toes for a while after learning to walk. He is almost 2 now and is just now stopping that. Coincidence or not?

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K.K.

answers from Chicago on

Check your used store. These things cost like 70 dollars for a few months of use. Not worth the money. I bought one from the used store for 30.

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M.P.

answers from Chicago on

The around-we-go-entertainer is great. My daughter is now 13 months old and doesn't use the seat anymore but still loves it.

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J.V.

answers from Chicago on

Hi. I have an 8 month old son who started on his exersaucer at 3 months. He had good head control and a strong back. Its called the exersaucer mega by gymini i think....and it has a little tray area for a snack and sippy cup when he gets old enough. My son loved that thing and still does. He has 3 of them for different houses he plays at! i havent tried the jumperoo but i want to get one. Whats concerns me with those though is that if they jump too hard, could it cause some sort of brain damadge? My son if really fiesty and bounces around in the exersaucer, so once they get a certain age i think ill have to put it away. My doctor said dont keep it for longer than a year, because they will end up trying to get out of it and accidents can happen. I hope this informed you a little more, and trust me....they work if you need to get some small things done. Good luck!

N.P.

answers from Chicago on

We received the Evenflo Exersaucer as a gift. I only keep the kids in it 20-25 minutes a day as the exersaucers (if used too much) can hinder muscle development and cause bowl-legged (sp?) issues. We started to put them in at 6 months.

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