gatorgirlie's Full Review: The Step2 Company Kangaroo Climber
Children's birthdays are the wonderful times of the year when you receive all those large items that you were thinking of buying for said child from your relatives. You know, that drum set you'd never really get your son but you (secretly) think it'd be great? Well, for Aidan's first birthday my step-mother-in-law brought us a rather large box containing the Step 2 Kangaroo Climber for our little man and I've been pleased (more or less) ever since).
What is this... Kangaroo Climber?
No, it's not a climber for pet kangaroos... It's a slide/climber combo for your little monkey. It's essentially an open cube with four sides -- a door, a slide, square step-up wall and a circle step-up wall. It comes in the "Naturally Playful" color scheme, meaning beige, brown and red, and coordinates with our Step 2 Naturally Playful Sand and Water Activity Table quite nicely. It's made of durable, sturdy plastic and retails for $119.99 at stores like Toys R Us. I know my in-laws purchased it on sale last December for $100, so keep you eyes open for sale prices around the holidays. The recommended age range is 18 months and up, though my son started using it at a year with no problems. It weighs 40 lbs and has a max load of 60 lbs.
Assembly and Disassembly
Since this climber is so big, it comes completely disassembled... but that's not really saying very much. You have the four sides, the slide, the seat and the door to attach, it's not that much. Since we have a large house and my son got it for his first birthday we decided to set the climber up indoors first (the better to keep an eye on him with). One of the greatest parts about this climber is that the pieces snap together -- no tools, screws or bolts required. Just snap and go. Or so we thought... Let me tell you that first assembly took my brother and I FOREVER. I can't remember exactly how long it really took, but neither of us could get the pieces to snap together. I was really close to throwing this in my car and returning it as defective, but right as we reached that point everything worked out. One thing I noticed is that it's definitely not a solo job -- when I'd go to snap in a side, the other one would fall down (though this might be a result of the pieces not snapping like they should). For a month I was worried that it would fall apart (in case the pieces weren't connected well), but it didn't (thank god).
For four months it sat in my living room before we had a large outdoor bbq for the kids in my mom's group and realized we would need to move the climber outside. This meant completely disassembling it (because there's no way it would fit in the doorway) and reassembling it outside. I dreaded this task but it went surprisingly well. The pieces snapped together in ways they refused to the first time. I'm still not sure what I did incorrectly the first time (or perhaps I just needed to bend certain things into place). Since then we've moved it around by disassembling and reassembling the pieces a few times and it's gotten easier every time. What a piece of cake. I guess the only thing I could say is that it's fairly bulky and heavy when put together, so don't plan on moving it around that much (unless you disassemble it first).
Sturdiness and Durability
I can't really say I've had this outside for a full year, but it has been outside since my son turned 18 months (May of this year)... so it's been in direct sunlight for over six months with no issues... and we're talking the direct, 100 degree sunlight that Florida receives in the summer. There's been no fading, cracking or any other showing of wear on the climber. It's taken quite a bit of abuse during all the toddler playdates and family bbqs we've had, with the various little ones climbing, crawling, jumping and sliding on it. That's one big reason I like Step 2 products, their stuff is durable to the max. Since it's outside, I'll just spray it down with a hose to clean it, making it a cinch to clean. When it was inside, I wiped it down with a wet cloth or used Clorox Anywhere spray to sanitize it. Even now, I'll still use the Clorox spray to sanitize it every once in a while.
Does Aidan like it? Does Mommy like it?
Aidan *loves* it. It's not as fun as the slides at the park, but it's a slide in his own backyard and will do until a larger substitute comes along. My son's been all over this climber from the time he turned one -- learning to pull himself up on it, crawling through the bottom holes and sliding down the small slide (whenever mom would sit him up there). He's graduated from the small stuff to climbing, swinging and jumping, all in the safety of our backyard. I can't say he plays with it constantly for hours, but it's there to entertain him whenever we're outside. He'll usually switch from the sand table to the ball pit to the slide and rotate when he gets bored. Sometimes he'll just run over to the slide just to get it out of his system before running back to the ball pit.
Now, that being said... can I see the end of its useful life coming soon? Yes. My son is the amazing monkey boy -- at two he's already conquered 90% of the older children's playground at the park (you know the one that says "Recommended age 5 - 12"), including the rock climbing wall and the rung ladder. He goes on the steep slides and giggles. This is not a child who will be satisfied by a tiny two foot slide for much longer... heck, when he sits down at the top of the slide his feet reach the midway point so how much fun could he really be having? Since he just turned two, I can see this lasting for another six months at the most before he will want an upgrade... he already cries if we don't go to a park at least two times a week. That being said, he really only started using this thing in earnest (climbing and jumping, etc) when he was 15 months so you're spending $100 - $120 on a toy that's usefulness is defined in a year, perhaps year and a half, before getting old. I know most baby/toddler toys are like that but keep in mind how much more expensive this is.
Overall
I can't say many bad things about this toy because it really *isn't* a bad toy. It's easy to put together, easy to take apart, easy to clean and it lasts virtually forever. I can see this lasting through three or four children, even out in the Florida sun. It's fun for the toddlers and encourages them to exercise -- my son still loves to play with it (though he really wants a bigger slide). It doesn't take batteries or make noise (hallelujah). The only concern I'd have is spending $100 on a toy that doesn't have a long lifespan. The recommended age is 18 months, so if you purchase it then you'll have maybe a year and a half (though closer to a year) of truly useful play. If you know you'll have more kids down the line then it's probably not a bad investment because it'll see you through quite a few children. In addition, Step 2 and Little Tikes outdoor toys seem to rarely lose a lot of value over the years (I've seen $300 Little Tikes toys sell for $200 on Ebay after five or six years of being outside), so you might be able to recoup a lot of your initial purchase price upon resale.
Overall, though, I'd give the Step 2 Naturally Playful Kangaroo Climber a hearty four-star rating, tempered only by the initial cost, and a Yes on the recommendation because it is a great way to introduce your child to playing on playgrounds without all the older kids shoving them.
One final note: Please be careful where you set this up. When your child starts climbing on it, make sure its set up in a soft location (meaning sand, mulch, rubber chips, etc) to ensure that no injuries would occur. Keep it away from things like walls, fences or anywhere else where a child might be able to hit their head. Don't place it on unstable ground, where a child might cause it to flip over. While the maximum fall height is only 40" or so, it could still result in serious injuries, or even death, when placed over hard surfaces. Always supervise your children while playing on this structure.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 119.99 Type of Toy: Other
Age Range of Child: 12 to 36 Months
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