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TP Bubble Bouncer
by 1983home
The house is now completely overtaken with toys and I have to say that my nephew is one lucky boy. As his birthday and Christmas are close together there has been a rapid rise in the number of toys that are scattered around the house. One of the presents that he really enjoys playing with is the Early Learning Centre Bubble ... Bouncer.
The Bubble Bouncer is a trampoline that is especially designed for younger children over 12 months old and is suitable for children up to the weight of 20kg. The great thing about this baby trampoline is that the handle for the child to hold onto is collapsible, which means that it is easy to pack away and takes up minimal space to store.
The Bubble Bouncer was a little scary at first as my nephew was a little reluctant to stand on it, when we placed him on it he jumped straight off, so we left it in the room for a few hours and before we knew it he was standing on it.
The bouncer is there to help your child to develop strength whilst working on their balance and co-ordination. They do not jump on it to start with as such, the vibrations make them feel like they are jumping and then as they progress and develop they start to gain more confidence and start creating a larger jump motion. This also keeps them fit and tires them out by the end of the day as it can be used inside or outside.
This bouncer is 50cm high by 20.5cm wide and 36cm deep, you do not have to worry about this damaging your floors as there are foam pads fitted to the base of the unit so that the floor is protected when baby is bouncing. As it is made of plastic this can easily be wiped over with a damp cloth.
This is a white and green plastic colour and the area where you child bounces is not like a normal trampoline it is more of a plastic than a fabric so although it has flexibility there is the right amount of movement for your young child to remain on control.
When you take it out of the box all you have to do is clip the handle into the slot and it is ready to use, to collapse it down again you just have to click the popper with your finger to release it.
I had to look online to see the price of this and was shocked to see that its recommended retail price was £39.95, but that it was on special for £29.95 which I find a more realistic price, although this is a mini trampoline I think that around the £40 mark is a little steep.
It can be taken wherever you go as it is collapsible, we take this to his Nan's house where there are only a few toys and it keeps him entertained for hours. If he is not jumping on the bouncer he likes to put his battery operated trains on it and watch then go around and around the edge of the bouncer, as there is a ribbed edge they do not fall off either as the when grips it perfectly.
Overall a great top, but due to the high price tag when at £40, I would only give it four out of the five stars, but for the fun it is given a great thumbs up.
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TP Boat Sandpit
by lights84
My mother in law bought this sandpit for my little girl recently and she said it cost her around £25 from our local ELC store. I think this is a fab price as I have bought other development toys from ELC for between £15-£20 and they have not held my daughter's attention for as long as this sandpit will. However the sandpit does not come ... with the sand, we had to buy that ourselves from Argos which cost us £6 for 30kg for non-toxic playsand.
I had a little gathering recently of other mums and their babies and because the weather happened to be nice that day we decided to try out the pit, as I had been waiting for the rain and cold to stop before doing so. 3 little girls between 11-19 months climbed in and they all absolutely loved it. Us mums had a long natter and cups of tea without little ones climbing all over us the whole time as usual. We kept an eye on the babes of course but they were happily contented in the pit for a few hours, and the two other mums who came along went away saying that they were going to buy the same sandpit for their own gardens! There was also no eating of the sand which I had been anticipating and prepared for, though I am told that it is not dangerous if children do try to do this and swallow a bit of sand. My daughter was the youngest there and although she is below the recommended age of 18 months for the sandpit she was completely fine in there as she mostly watched the other kids play and explored the sand texture herself while doing this. The other two had masses of fun doing everything they could think of with the sand and the mums resolved to bring buckets and spade for them next time as the oldest child seemed to think she was on holiday at the beach! If the weather is any good this summer I am anticipating good use of the sandpit at BBQs at my place, as it seems to go down really well with groups of children.
The sandpit is a triangle shape like a boat, which is completely lost on my daughter as she is so young, but the older girls did like the seats in the corners for sitting in and gathering sand in- 2 of the corners of the plastic are shaped for little ones to sit in. The sandpit is also a nice bold colour which stands out in the garden, blue against green, again something my daughter seems to like. When she sees it being uncovered she gets excited as it draws her attention and she knows what's coming next. Sand!! I have tried sitting my girl on a mat outside while I do gardening and it doesn't last long, however she will play in the sand for quite long periods of time, as it is such a novelty to her and also a special space just for her, and easy for me to keep an eye on her in while I go about my business in the garden.
Having said all that, if you don't mind the mess and have a rug you can put down indoors, or a piece of tarp, there is nothing to stop you using the sandpit indoors. I have tried this once and it didn't make too much mess, BUT it was a bit of a hassle dragging it indoors when full of sand, as it is so heavy when filled.
I go camping a lot so I already had a large piece of tarp to protect the pit with when it's not in use. Otherwise you will need to empty it out and bring it indoors every time, as it is too heavy to move about when full of sand. It's much easier to secure it with tarp and leave it in the garden, but it will cost you another £20 for a strong piece of tarp and you'll need to learn to secure it with rope too to stop crawlies from getting in or cats from pooing in it or rainwater ruining the sand. Having said that, there is a lid that fits the sandpit which you can buy separately for £20-£25, which seems a bit cheeky to me as all it is is another piece of plastic.
The sandpit is made by TP and they state that it can also be used as a paddling pool however I personally think that the plastic is a bit to hard and the corners a bit too narrow/sharp to fill it with water as more slips and falls are likely to happen in water and I'd rather avoid that. The sand on the other hand 'absorbs' the falls somehow and they have also been minimal as sand is not slippery the way the plastic pit would be in water. That's just my opinion though and I have not actually used the pit with water in it.
All in all this product would have has cost us £31 if the pit had not been a gift, however that is excluding the cost of the tarp because we already had it. In reality it would all end up costing mum and dad over £56 which I think is too steep for what it is, even though I love the product and it is great for group gatherings and if you like to spend as much time in the garden as possible when the weather is not terrible, like me. So I am giving it 4 stars instead of 5.
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TP Boat Sandpit
by sympatic
We paid £22.99 for this sandpit which is in the shape of a boat in the sales (very apt time to buy given it is a boat, pun for free), it was only marked down by a fiver but we did not want to spend a lot on something that will only be in use for a couple of months of the year given the British weather.
Shaped like a boat it ... has two seats and is plenty big enough for a couple of children to play in together without getting in each others way. It can also double up as a very small paddling pool however you need to consider the fact that it is a hard plastic so is rather unforginging if your toddler slips and falls, we have only used it as a sandpit. One thing to be aware of is the fact that there is no lid with this, you can purchase one as well but it will double the overall cost of the unit and of course the sand is sold seperately as well. In terms of the measurements it is 1.2m in length and 1m across at the widest point and has a depth of 20cm.
It is robsutly made and the plastic material is treated to ensure it will not split under intense sunlight, so far as well it has not faded in terms of colour. We are fortunate in that we have a large shed and can thus move it inside when not in use so we did not get the lid, when full of sand it is heavy so this tends to come out only at times when a few days sun is guaranteed and it can get some use. It is easy to keep clean and there are no sharp edges, the built in seats are a nice feature as it sorts of sets out where children can sit although they do not stay seated for long.
Overall it has been a good purchase however if you add in the cost of the lid you are paying close to £50 for it which is something to keep in mind if considering this. I cannot comment on how good the lid is as we have not bought it.
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