I found this at Walmart and had to get it on the spot. Whoever designed it deserves a standing ovation for planning.

The seat itself is hard plastic, with nylon straps that go over the child's shoulders, and nylon ropes that end in S-hooks. There are holes in the bottom of the seat so that water will drain out of the seat (no wet pants, no mosquito breeding grounds). The seat is suspended by all four corners (for stability) on yellow nylon ropes. There are no dreaded chain links to catch little fingers (remember that pain?!?!?!?). The ropes hang from S-hooks, so you pretty much have to hang this swing from a swing set, or else have eye bolts or chains to hook the S-hooks into--this won't work on a tree branch unless it is horizontal and you've prepared the branch to accept two S-hooks. The only problem with being suspended from four ropes is that if you don't push the swing exactly forwards/backwards, it will twist, so be careful if you are using a swingset with other equipment hanging nearby!!

The best part about this swing is the apparatus that holds the child in the seat. A plastic "T" shaped piece, that swings completely underneath the seat and out of your way for getting the child in and out of the swing, swings up between your child's legs and goes all the way across in front of the child, right at chest height. What holds it in place are two adjustable nylon straps that go over the child's shoulders and snap into the top of the "T" bar. So you basically have a 5-point harness holding your child in the swing, like a good car seat! There's really no way your child could unsnap the straps from the "T" bar, because to unsnap them, you have to put your fingertip underneath a little shield and press down while pulling the strap up from the other side. The child is facing so that the shield blocks their fingers from getting underneath and pressing the release for the straps. :) It sometimes is a little inconvenient to release the straps, but it's a small price to pay for safety, and I'll gladly deal with it.

The back of the seat goes way up, so that most if not all of the child's head touches it. Your child will not get whiplash from any hard pushing! The only thing to remember is that there is no padding, not even hard rubber, on the back of the seat, so if your child holds their head away from the back of the seat and you push hard, they can hit their head on the forward swing. So be careful.

The swing is attractive as well as safe. The seat is blue, the T bar is red, the nylon straps and ropes are yellow. The only metal parts are the S-hooks. Your child is completely secure in this swing. If you left them unattended (and SHAME on you if you ever do) they would still be hanging there when you got back--I can't fathom how they would ever get out of it.

This swing will last you a long time--until the child is 45 pounds if you want (but I'd imagine by then your child will have graduated to a more "grown-up" swing). You can leave the T bar underneath the swing (there is no way to click it back into place underneath, it will just have to hang there) and leave the straps undone for bigger kids.

This swing is lightweight and it will move while you are trying to "load" and "unload" your child, even if they are well behaved, so you'll have to figure out your own "loading" technique, but it's totally worth it for the peace of mind of knowing your child is in such a safe swing!

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 20
Type of Toy: Other
Age Range of Child: 12 to 36 Months