I didn’t make my usual blog entry at the tail end of last week as I was away having a mini break by the sea so I’m going to use this opportunity, before my next post at the end of this week, to tell you about a fabulous new bouncy chair that’s been keeping Jimmy well entertained. I say bouncy chair but it’s actually a little bit more than that really; it’s a chair AND a toy and it doesn’t end here for it’s also a travel toy too! Jimmy is such a good boy and doesn’t complain much but he definitely doesn’t like to be sat doing nothing; he’s active and awake a lot in the day time and is at that age now where he requires stimulation, he’s growing and learning which is awesome! Having an older toddler I obviously can’t entertain him 100% of the time as I did very often with Florence when she was a baby. I also used to be able to hold her most of the time because I didn’t have anyone else to look after and even though I’d like to do that with Jimmy too it’s obviously not possible. Popping him in a boring old bouncy chair just wouldn’t cut it I’m afraid, wouldn’t cut it with any baby but with one who is eager to learn and has an active mind as with both my children it’s a complete no go with some of the chairs on the market. We have an old one of Florence’s at my Mum’s, one of the things that I bought when pregnant and didn’t have a clue about what a baby would like. I chose it, just as I did our original boring play gym because I liked the look of it and the colour scheme went with our living room! What a rookie mistake I realise now!

When I put Jimmy in that old chair when we’re visiting he stays entertained for oooh, 3 minutes I’d say, then he wants out! But of course he does! It has nothing for him to do, nothing to see and nothing to grasp his attention or make him want to reach out and touch; basically anything a baby would like! It does looks rather nice, for an adult, as it pales into the back ground! Babies do not like things that pale into the back ground! Yet again, just as I did when I realised I had made a mistake with our original muted coloured play gym, I have turned to Tiny Love for Jimmy’s bouncy chair! I think it’s important that you realise at this point that by turning to Tiny Love and the bright, engaging, colourful products they produce does not mean in any way that I have skimped on style and bought something loud and brash. I wouldn’t do that actually, it’s still my living room and it’s got to work for the both of us right! If I had a play room then perhaps garish could be an option but I don’t, we all have to share this space and it’s got to be perfect for everyone and Tiny Love toys provide both elements; bright and entertaining toys with the added bonus of being gorgeous to look at no matter who you are!

The chair we have been using for Jimmy is called the Gymini Bouncer and in my opinion is incredible value for money at £59.99. I’ve seen chairs on the market with less to them and they’re twice the price. I usually end up saying you get what you pay for but I really do think in this case you get much more than you would expect! First of all it’s super easy to put together, even I, and my husband will tell you I don’t do DIY of any kind, managed to put the chair together in under half an hour. I thought the instructions were easy to follow (unlike lots of baby products), the assembly was easy to do with just one person (unlike most products of any kind) and I even managed to find our Phillips screwdriver and put the batteries in. (This product takes one C battery for the main chair and 3 AAA batteries for the crab toy.) I was impressed with how simple it all was, just two screws and the rest slots into place!

From box to ready in less than half an hour on my own with Florence running round and Jimmy having a quick feed in between! Not bad eh!

So what do we love about the chair aside from the fact that it meets Jimmy’s needs on the stimulation front and our needs on aesthetics? Well, we really like the design in general. It bounces of course, it’s a bouncy chair but it also has a vibrate mode which you can have on or off depending on how you want your baby to be, asleep and soothed or awake and wearing himself out! For that same reason I think it’s a brilliant idea that the arches can be moved close together or far apart and out of the baby’s vision. This also makes it very easy to get him in and out. Another chair we had for Florence when she was tiny and another one stored at my Mum’s for visiting use only is a swing chair with a whacking great bar across the front of it for the toys. It can be removed but it takes some force and is not at all easy meaning it is easier to negotiate the baby out without removing it but that is also incredibly difficult and uncomfortable. Being Tiny Love, you can interchange the Tiny Smarts (hanging toys) with ones from other Tiny Love toys such as the play gym we have! This means it can be made fresher and more interesting and favourite toys can be with him wherever he is! Jimmy is loving sitting in the more upright position but the chair can also be reclined which is great for napping! I find that putting the arches down, reclining and turning on the gentle vibrations creates the perfect environment for him to snooze and he certainly thinks so too! So for play and calmer moments this chair has it all!

Think he likes it!

Playing in the upright position and relaxing when reclined!

Arches up!

Arches apart!

Arches down!

Oh! And one other thing! It also has the crab!!!! What’s so brilliant about the crab I hear you ask? The crab is a little toy all in his own right and can be taken with you on the buggy, car seat and of course is to use on the chair. He has rather adorable pincer claws which is what attaches him to your chosen location and a hard plastic body with big friendly eyes. Underneath crabby are fish, sea shells and starfish who light up alternately in different colours and he also plays a tune which, and this is rather brilliant, can be muted yet the lights keep going! Usually with toys like this it’s either on, or off, so this is a major plus as sometimes you just can’t face any more music (when I say you, I naturally mean you and me, the children can’t get enough of it)! although I have to say this music is very quiet and not too intrusive. Crabby also has crinkly touchy feely legs – LOVE it! So from the jungle theme on the wipe clean material to the vibrating all singing all dancing elements, I have to say it’s a winner for Jimmy, he’s cooing in it as I write!

Crabby on the hood of our buggy!

And this is what Jimmy sees when we put Crabby on the bar over his bassinet!

0m+, £59.99, Find out more about the Gymini Bouncer and all Tiny Love products on their website www.tinylove.com

I’ll be back later on in the week with my usual style of posting but I just couldn’t wait to share this review because it really is a great product. Take care for now and see you back here soon I hope!

In the meantime follow me on Twitter @rocknrollerbaby

(All opinions and words, apart from those in green, are my own. I have not been paid for this article although I did receive some products to keep after I had reviewed them.)