Saturday
Sep252010
Review and Giveaway: The First Years Kickin' Coaster
Saturday, September 25, 2010 at 4:09PM
AND THE WINNER IS: JAMIE R! CONGRATS, JAMIE AND THANK YOU SO MUCH TO THOSE WHO ENTERED!
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I got so excited when I first saw The Kickin’ Coaster by The First Years as a sidebar item on a children’s website. Ohmygosh, I wanted one for Sailor! (Like she doesn’t have enough stuff.) When I found out that the lovely people at The First Years were not only providing me with one, but also willing to GIVE ONE AWAY to one of my readers, I was ecstatic!
My excitement about adding this super fun baby plaything to our collection comes because it offers some features that bouncers, playmats and swings don’t. Namely, it’s for her legs! There's a kick-plate at the base and when your little one kicks and pushes off, he/goes gliding back on the gliding seat! When your baby starts kicking the air, you, the dog and whatever passes in front of her feet, it might be time to try the Kickin’ Coaster.
I waited not so patiently for it to arrive. When it did, I put it together right away (and the assembly was super easy - so very not Ikea-like) so it would be ready to go when Sailor woke up from her nap. Once she was awake, fed and happy, I plopped her on the Kickin' Coaster, ready to watch the fun ensue! And then I was sorely disappointed to see that she was too short! Because of that, all she did was stare at me...and stare at me...and then stared at my mom...and then started to fuss like, "ENOUGH. ENOUGH!!". It was actually kind of hilarious.
The Kickin’ Coaster has EIGHT height settings, but she was even too short for the lowest one. She was just about 24”. I was so bummed!
Being that she wasn’t ready for any of her playthings when I wanted her to be, I was far from discouraged. After waiting a couple of weeks (with random testings that proved she was still too short and thus impatient) I put Sailor in the Kickin' Coaster and she was a happy lady! She stayed in it for almost 25 minutes! I brought it in the bathroom with me and was able to shower AND SHAVE MY LEGS. (Moms, you know that alone is worth AT LEAST a weeks' pay.) And she was still happy and kicky when I was out, dry and applying lotion to newly smoothed out calves. So awesome.
I know that jumpers also work legs, but this is a little different. The Kickin' Coaster is great even when baby isn't perfect yet at holding up her head due to the oh-so comfy full-support cradle that comes with a detachable infant pillow. Plus, unlike jumpers, baby doesn't have to be shoved into a seat with a ton of fabric between her legs - with the Kickin' Coaster she can let her legs align naturally to her body.
As you'll see in the video, Sailor is a big fan of using the lights as targets. It's kind of like she tries to play Simon with her feet, which is not only great for motor skill, but for visual tracking as well. She does that more than glide back and forth at the moment, but I think it's because she's still the teeniest bit short.
Check out the video for a demonstration of how it works!
QUICK FACTS:
OVERALL THOUGHTS: The Kickin' Coaster is a great addition to any baby's playroom as it offers fun and leg work like no other product. I will agree with some of the other reviews, however, in that a play bar would be nice. But a play bar could also distract from baby's focus on his/her legs and the recognition that it's the legs causing the gliding motion to happen. It's also a great seat if your child likes to watch TV. She can watch and kick at the same time!
______________________________________________
I got so excited when I first saw The Kickin’ Coaster by The First Years as a sidebar item on a children’s website. Ohmygosh, I wanted one for Sailor! (Like she doesn’t have enough stuff.) When I found out that the lovely people at The First Years were not only providing me with one, but also willing to GIVE ONE AWAY to one of my readers, I was ecstatic!
My excitement about adding this super fun baby plaything to our collection comes because it offers some features that bouncers, playmats and swings don’t. Namely, it’s for her legs! There's a kick-plate at the base and when your little one kicks and pushes off, he/goes gliding back on the gliding seat! When your baby starts kicking the air, you, the dog and whatever passes in front of her feet, it might be time to try the Kickin’ Coaster.
I waited not so patiently for it to arrive. When it did, I put it together right away (and the assembly was super easy - so very not Ikea-like) so it would be ready to go when Sailor woke up from her nap. Once she was awake, fed and happy, I plopped her on the Kickin' Coaster, ready to watch the fun ensue! And then I was sorely disappointed to see that she was too short! Because of that, all she did was stare at me...and stare at me...and then stared at my mom...and then started to fuss like, "ENOUGH. ENOUGH!!". It was actually kind of hilarious.
The Kickin’ Coaster has EIGHT height settings, but she was even too short for the lowest one. She was just about 24”. I was so bummed!
Being that she wasn’t ready for any of her playthings when I wanted her to be, I was far from discouraged. After waiting a couple of weeks (with random testings that proved she was still too short and thus impatient) I put Sailor in the Kickin' Coaster and she was a happy lady! She stayed in it for almost 25 minutes! I brought it in the bathroom with me and was able to shower AND SHAVE MY LEGS. (Moms, you know that alone is worth AT LEAST a weeks' pay.) And she was still happy and kicky when I was out, dry and applying lotion to newly smoothed out calves. So awesome.
I know that jumpers also work legs, but this is a little different. The Kickin' Coaster is great even when baby isn't perfect yet at holding up her head due to the oh-so comfy full-support cradle that comes with a detachable infant pillow. Plus, unlike jumpers, baby doesn't have to be shoved into a seat with a ton of fabric between her legs - with the Kickin' Coaster she can let her legs align naturally to her body.
As you'll see in the video, Sailor is a big fan of using the lights as targets. It's kind of like she tries to play Simon with her feet, which is not only great for motor skill, but for visual tracking as well. She does that more than glide back and forth at the moment, but I think it's because she's still the teeniest bit short.
Check out the video for a demonstration of how it works!
QUICK FACTS:
- Retails for anywhere from $65 to $80, depending on where you buy it.
- Says it's good for birth to 25 lbs, but I'd go by height unless you want to get it and just use it as a soothing place for baby to nap using the vibrate setting first.
- Has two vibrate settings (which are demonstrated in the video).
- Has two song settings - one fun one and one calmer one to help baby relax. Both are played on the video, but I don't know how well you can hear them. This is my first video, okay? I figured out how to do titles. I patted myself on the back for that.
OVERALL THOUGHTS: The Kickin' Coaster is a great addition to any baby's playroom as it offers fun and leg work like no other product. I will agree with some of the other reviews, however, in that a play bar would be nice. But a play bar could also distract from baby's focus on his/her legs and the recognition that it's the legs causing the gliding motion to happen. It's also a great seat if your child likes to watch TV. She can watch and kick at the same time!
HOW TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY:
- Leave a comment here telling me about your little kicker who would love this!
- Follow me on Twitter and leave a seperate comment letting me know you did. (And include your Twitter name, I'll follow back!)
- LIKE Blahggy on Facebook and leave a comment letting me know you did.
- FOLLOW The First Years on Twitter and leave a comment letting me know you did.
- LIKE The First Years on Facebook and leave a comment letting me know you did.
- TWEET the following message as many times as you want and leave a comment letting me know each time you do (include your Twitter name.): I'm entered to win the Kickin' Coaster @Blahggy so my baby can work those legs & have a blast! It's so easy to enter! http://wp.me/pRcGL-bO
BONUS ENTRIES:
- Poke around and comment on any other Blahggy posts. When you leave a comment, write (COASTER) in parenthesis just like that so I know you're going for an extra entry. Each comment gets an extra entry!
FINE PRINT: (Even though it's written in the same size as all the other print. But, it is in italics.)
Contest is open to US Residents only. (Sorry Canadian folk.) It ends at midnight PST Sunday, October 3rd. (Oh my God, can you believe it's OCTOBER already?). Winner will be chosen at random using random.org. I received a sample of the Kickin' Coaster for the purposes of this review.
Copyright; 2011, Blahggy. All rights reserved.
Reader Comments (16)
Great item to have for the grandchild.
tahearn at roadrunner dot com
following on twitter.
@tahearn
tahearn at roadrunner dot com
I am due with my second son in four weeks! I would LOVE to have this for him.
I'm following you on twitter
@jmroubinek
I "liked" blahggy on facebook
I'm following The First Years on twitter
can't enter... don't twitter, tweet, whatever you call it, but Vi would love that thing!:)
Hey Shelly! You already entered once just by replying! And since you're a regular visitor & don't have facebook or twitter, and have commented in the past, I'll put in two extra entries for you!
i was just being a smart ass, but really i can enter all i want, i can't win... i'm a Canadian:(
If I win, since I don't have kids, can I give it to somebody else? That thing sounds cool!
Oh, bummer. Not that you're Canadian - that you can't win.
Of course! If you win you can just give me the address of where you want it to go!
[...] Review and Giveaway: The First Years Kickin’ Coaster [...]
I think my little kicker would LOVE this. He's 4 months and just starting to get a little coordination.
I just 'liked' you on Facebook.
My daughter is four months, too! Well, she's four months TOMORROW. When was your little kicker born?