The Lovevery Play Gym
($140) can be used by children as young as a week old, captivating
brand-new minds with simply patterns and the motion of hanging objects.
Setup
and takedown of the Play Gym requires all of two minutes, and it can be
stored away on a closet shelf or under a crib or bed when not in use.
The
toys and activities included with the Lovevery Play Gym were selected
based on scientific research and hands-on testing with small children.
Let's face it: Most baby toys get their proverbial 15 minutes of fame
and then head off to that great toy bin in the sky, also known as any
drawer, closet, or attic box where you can find room to fit the stuff.
So when a parent finds a toy their child will play with day after day
for weeks on end — or a book for which they will always sit still or a
food they will eat without a fuss, for that matter — that parent is well
within their rights to do a little victory dance. In some ways, finding
a toy, activity, or a book our 4-year-old son loves is more challenging
than finding something our infant daughter will enjoy at length,
because he has already developed specific interests and preferences. But
on the other hand, at least he can use his rich vocabulary (If that's
sounds sarcastic... it's not. The other day he described it as "such an
odd thing to happen" when our cat accidentally turned on a faucet) to
make his preferences clear.
When it comes to finding baby toys
an infant enjoys, all parents have to work with is trial and error. "Do
you like the stuffed pig? Do you? You're crying so... no." "Do you like
the rattle? Shake shake! And... she's crying so... no." And so on. The
first time we laid our infant daughter down upon the soft mat included
with the Lovevery Play Gym
and watched her eyes move to each of the three hanging toys — a crinkly
fabric toy, a wooden clacker-style instrument, and a plush ball, for
the record — we seemed to have found a winner. During the subsequent
weeks, she has enjoyed hours of tummy time, playing with pattern cards,
looking at colors, and hearing all sorts of different sounds and feeling
different textures.
Advertisement
There are lots of baby play gyms out there, and this one is far from
the least expensive on the market. But having seen many other options
(and used a couple with our kids, too) I have yet to be as impressed
with any other such product so far. Three things make the Lovevery Play Gym stand out. I'll cover each in turn, but to list them out together, they are: quality, simplicity, and adaptability.
Lovevery
First, quality: It's evident the first time you assemble the Lovevery Play Gym.
The wooden legs are sturdy and smooth and connect quickly yet securely,
creating a stable platform that could easily support the weight of a
toddler pushing and pulling on the frame. (Also it's certified as
sustainably sourced, which is another feather in the cap.) The mat on
which your child will spend so many hours playing is thick and soft and
is made from organic cotton. It's also machine washable, which is
definitely a plus. Once constructed and ready for a baby, the whole Lovevery Play Gym looks elegantly simple. That, of course, is by design.
Advertisement
Infants are easily overstimulated (as are toddlers and older kids and
adults, by the way — why do you think you turn down the radio when you
need to focus on parking or following driving directions?), so at first
glance, the mat on which the child will lie looks like nothing more than
a hexagonal patch of soft gray cotton.
Concealed beneath flaps
placed around the edges of the mat, however, are multiple potential play
activities, from a series of clear pockets into which parents (or other
caregivers) can insert pattern cards to soft strips of color to a flap
filled with various noise-making toys. You can reveal as many or as few
activities as you want at a time, curating as simple or as involved a
play session as you think best for your child. For the littlest babies, a
single pattern card and one hanging toy may be sufficient; older
infants doing tummy time might like crunchy, colorful fabrics. And the
built-in teething ring will surely be of use sooner or later.
Finally, there's the adaptability of the Lovevery Play Gym.
At just under three months, our daughter is still smitten with the
simpler attachments and one flap at a time. As she starts to roll, she
might want to have the option to see two flaps open. Once she can
wriggle and then crawl, she will engage with the whole gym at will. And
as she enters into her toddler years (which I'm not rushing!), the
Lovevery Play Gym can convert to a miniature tent used for books, hide
and seek, naps, and more.
Lovevery
Your
child will outgrow any play gym you provide, just as they will outgrow
just about everything else from their early years; it's just a matter of
time. So when you find a product like this one that provides even a
couple years of potential continuous enjoyment — not to mention
development of fine motor control, core muscles, and concentration — the
parental victory dance is on.
Lovevery
Lovevery
Lovevery
Comments