Misleading
The picture of the baby on this review shows a huge baby propping himself up on his elbows. Any baby that is that old will not have any interest whatsoever in this toy. This toy will no longer be of interest to the baby once he is old enough to sit up, hold things, and/or move on his own. To get your moneys worth, you will need to buy this the first month. It will be useless by the time the baby is 4 months old.

This is advertised as portable for travel. This is huge! The dimensions are: 33.5 x 30.5 x 19.0. It has a nice plastic case and it folds in half but it still takes up A LOT of room. We traveled with it to Grandma's house with it and it took up most of the trunk length wise. It was the last time we ever traveled with it. It is light weight and folds smaller than the play size but it is still tall and bulky. If it doesn't fit in the diaper bag, than it's not portable!

This is advertised as being washable but the colors fade more and more every time it is washed. The mat is designed for babies to also lay on their stomach which causes drool and spit up. I think they should have chosen material or ink that would hold up when laundered...but maybe I'm expecting too much out of a $40 toy!

Caution
With the scare of SIDS many parents leave their babies on their back the majority of the time, even during the daylight hours. If you take a moment and study your babies head and notice that his head is flat in the back, then it may be time to get one of these. The flat head simply means your baby needs to spend more time on his/her stomach. Long term use of laying a baby on their back will cause a flat head but no other damage really. (I got this lecture from my Pediatrician). My baby didn't want to lay on her stomach because she was use to laying on her back and that's where she could see all of the good stuff! This toy is suppose to give a baby something appealing to look at while they are on their stomach.

Description of Toy
There is a colorful blanket/mat on the bottom (not too thick) and the poles snap onto the mat to form 2 arch. You can remove the poles completely from the mat which will make two very tall straight poles or by folding it in half which will make two semi-circles. The poles are bendable/flexible and will require a little bit of resistance to create the arch as you snap it onto the mat. Keep in mind that it is possible for the pole to immediately spring into your face while you're trying to attach it to the mat if it's not seated correctly. Once it is secured by the snaps it will not come out unless you want it to.

It comes with a few toys that dangle from the arches. They each do different things (music, squeak, crinkle, mirror). The ease of reach depends where it is located on the semi-circle. Infants will probably not be able to touch them unless you lower them with more rings. The toys remain attached when you put the item away.

What the Baby Can Do
The baby can lay on their back and look at or swat at the items or squeeze, crinkle, etc. This may sound simple or boring but will keep them occupied for awhile. The brilliant colors are suppose to stimulate a baby. The baby can lay on his stomach and look at the colors and design.

My experience
This was such a high-maintenance toy for us. Getting it out and putting it up took a couple minutes and it always had to be put away or someone was tripping on it. The baby threw up on it every time she was on this mat so I had to put a blanket on top of the mat so that defeated the whole purpose of the mat really. I had to wash the mat all the time which often meant washing separately with baby detergent.

I bought extra play rings for $2.00 at the store and added them so the baby could reach the toys better. I also added more hanging toys to peek her interest again. Sometimes rotating them into different positions pleased her.

We were restricted to using this in the living room because it takes up a lot of room when it's set up.

Final Thoughts
This is a very expensive toy in my opinion. I had this $40 gym and a regular $15 gym at the same time. My baby preferred the regular $15 gym. $40 is a lot to spend on an infant who isn't old enough to "play" yet. On the other hand, it's one of the very few things they can do at that age so you may be willing to spend more.

I am recommending this because it provides entertainment for baby although I think that less expensive mats or mobiles will entertain the baby just as much. I would feel more comfortable recommending this mat at $15-$20.

I will not be buying this product if there is a next time -- unless I find it at a garage sale of course :)





Recommended: Yes