Evenflo Triple Fun Jungle Exersaucer

Evenflo Triple Fun Jungle Exersaucer. My babies love this toy and it's one of the few toys we have actually purchased new. It was about $100 on Amazon but it's completely worth it. I don't say that a lot about $100 toys. In fact, I don't think I've ever said that before. It's a good quality product and (my favorite reason to love it) GROWS with your child. The boys started using it before they were old enough for an Exersaucer by using the play mat with toys. Then they graduated to the Exersaucer. And a few months (weeks?) from now when they are standing and cruising, it converts to an activity table.

As a first time mom, I wasn't even sure if I wanted to get one of these. I had read this article by an occupational therapist about the "dangers" (and benefits, but mostly dangers...) of letting your children use an Exersaucer. I didn't want my children to have poor posture, trouble standing, walking or balancing and I definitely didn't want them to not be interactive with their environment. That's some scary stuff when talking about baby development!

Real busy, mom!

However, as with many things, I have had to adapt my view of how I would raise my children. Mostly because of the fact that there are 2 of them, not 1. But also because of my mommy instincts. Mommy instincts told me to go with the Exersaucer and I'm so glad that I did. The boys LOVE standing and I obviously can't hold up 2 babies all the time, all day long. This allows them to stand and play. The saucers are close together so they can see and interact with each other without ending up in a baby-pile of legs and arms and screams because someone just got hit in the eye. And now that they are mobile, I can walk away for a minute without fear of losing (literally losing... as in, can't find my baby because he got under the couch!) a baby.

I didn't throw all caution to the wind, though. I did take to heart a few of the key points from the article about best Exersaucer-use practices. The boys don't have a time limit for use throughout the day, but I make sure that it is never the first and only place I allow them to play. They still get lots of floor time, which is important to helping them learn to roll, crawl and explore their environment. The toys are detachable, so I take them off for the babies to play with them on the floor. I also rotate the toys between saucers so they do not get bored. It's really hard to bore a baby, by the way, so you don't need to change the toys daily.

Sitting and playing with the Exersaucer attachments!

For those of you on the fence about getting an Exersaucer --- I would give it a try. If it's not your thing, fine. But it has been a life-saver when I need to put the babies down and get something done. They find it entertaining and stimulating and they have had no developmental troubles (not that I expected any due to Exersaucer use!)

Thrifty tip: Yard sales! Consignment stores! E-bay! It seems almost every baby has had one of these things and once they get past a certain age, people are jumping at the chance to get these things out of their homes... meaning you can get some great deals on them!