thoughts on exersaucers

[ElliesMomma]

what are your thoughts on exersaucers? we have two. the first one i paid $2.50 for at a resale event. the second i got free on freecycle. the second one is "better" than the first. the lesser one i keep on the front porch and my DH has used it on occasion when he watches LO while i mow the lawn. the better one i keep in the living room and i have popped LO in it on occasion when i need to "contain" him (he's crawling) and i have to get something quick done (go to the bathroom, quickly make dinner, etc.). in general, though, i don't use the exersaucers much. definitely not for extended periods of time (never more than 10 minutes at a time, often less than once per day). i do think that if my DH were "in charge" of LO more often (he's just not), that LO would spend a great deal more time in the exersaucer.

this is just my opinion, and i'm very interested in hearing other people's opinions, too: but the exersaucer strikes me as a kind of "boring" parking lot. i mean, even little babies, they spin the things, push the buttons, bang on the flat part, mouth on the toys... and then what? do all of those things again, and again? it *seems* as if the novelty would wear off pretty fast. maybe i'm wrong.

and then from what i've read, they aren't very good for baby's development either, right? they employ different muscle groups than the ones the baby uses for walking (and crawling?), so physically, you are really just preparing the baby for more time in the exersaucer, right?

seems like baby is much better off with freedom to explore and try expanding his mobility, even if doing those things is taxing to the parent, and frustrating to the baby.

maybe i'm missing something, i frequently overlook the obvious. if you love your baby's exersaucer, please tell me why it's great! thanks!!

[tzs]

i think you named it right there: it's just a parking lot and with any parking lot (i remember having one in every room before babe could sit) it get's boring. same with the swing, same with the bouncy seat, etc etc...
for us it was just a spot to put her when i needed free hands, since she's been sitting i haven;t used it but could totally see putting her in it if i needed her contained for a short time...for sure!

that's just us, we didn't really need it.

yeah they don;t do anything for development but i've had friends whose saucer literally saved them because their babe could be upright (whether it was reflux or just needing to watch what was going on) and weren;t ready to do it on their own and not everybody can hold/wear their babe as much as they need it.

[CherryBombMama]

i hated the one given to us, but of course my ds loved it. and never got tired of it. and to this day, with its parts all over and broken, he STILL picks the parts up and plays with them.

i absolutely hate them, i hate "containing" a baby, but i gave it to my mom right away because she watched him while i was finishing off work to SAH (maybe a month or so), and it saved her (she is busy w/ my 2 special needs brothers.) so im sure he was in it a good deal and im amazed he still likes it.

eta: he's a walker and doesnt go in it anymore, just picks parts up, plays w/ them and throws it lol

[34me]

We had one when they first came out when my dd was born 16 years ago and they hardly had anything on them. We used it as another place to plop her. 30 min while dh (SAHD) folded laundry mostly. DS1 hated it but ds2 loved to stand and "talk" to his sister. We never left either one in it for more than 30 min at a time but in a very small apartment it was a life saver some days.

[octobermoon]

i think sometimes they might be helpful for some people in some cases. as in the case of being alone with the baby and needing to go to the bathroom or while in the kitchen cooking something. yes unfortunately containing a baby is not ideal but then neither is being completely alone with children in a house for most of the day most of the week.

[lifeguard]

I think it's a tool that can be used to help you out but like all baby containment things really shouldn't be used very much - it shouldn't be the main way to deal with a baby.

Personally I don't have space for a large gaudy item that will only be used 10 minutes a day. If I had the room & it was cheap/free than I'd probably go for it.

[Marylizah]

I just got one for my 3.5 month old son.

He wants to be sitting UP all the time-- and he weighs over 18lbs, so I just can't carry him all day long. He gets frustrated in his bouncy seat because he's not sitting up enough.

So, I think it will be fun for him from time to time. Plus, I found a used one in great condition at a great price. If I'd had to buy it new (they are hard to come by and cost over 100 Euros here) we would have done without.

[Asparagus78]

I don't hate them, and I don't love them. I think they are useful sometimes. I never had one for DS1, but I like that I can put DS2 in it and DS1 can interact with him a lot more since they're both at the same eye level and it's much safer than having them play with DS2 on the floor. Of course I stay right next to them!

[redpajama]

We had one, and I feel about them like I feel about most "baby equipment": it was useful to us a handful of times, but we could have found some way around using it if it weren't available to us. And the cost (if you bought it new) did not justify the amount of use it got. This goes for nearly every baby-thing I have seen/tried--swing, bath, bathseat, bumbo, exersaucer...

We sold ours at a recent garage sale, even though we're not 100% sure we won't have another baby, and even though, at 8 months, our youngest may have used it a few more times. It wasn't worth tripping over it for the possibility of it being useful for 10 more minutes.

[KaliShanti]

We like ours and our kids liked them too.

[MsVyky]

We got a hand-me-down exersaucer, and honestly, I think it's a wonderful tool if used properly. Obviously don't abuse it, but I thought it was a great thing to have in that stage where Lyra couldn't sit up on her own yet, but lying on the floor was boring for her (3.5ish months- recently). She'll play for 15 ish minutes in there and then very clearly communicates when she is finished, and I take her out. It doesn't get used nearly as much now that she can sit unassisted. Now that she can, her favourite place is on the floor with whatever random object.

[Icehockey18]

We got one as a shower gift. Ds sort-of likes it. It depends on his mood. I only use it if I'm home alone and need to shower (the toilet and other 'non baby proofed'things in the bathroom are way too tempting). But ds doesn't last long in it. Although now he likes to play with it from the 'outside' (not sitting in it). It is helpful to use for short amounts of time, but should not be 'abused' by using for long periods of time...IMO

[RiverandJulie]

We just had an early-intervention specialist come to check on our preemie (5mo, 10 weeks early) We asked her the same question. SHe was in agreement with many of the posters, She said floor time was the best for a baby's development, that excersaucers develop the wrong leg muscles.....but, if used for small periods of time, when you need to get something done, they are perfectly fine. SO, like most other things, use in moderation.

[Lillitu]

my son is now almost 4 months old. he would love it if i could hold him all the time, of course. but that is not possible right now (aside from physically, i am a grad school student and constantly scrambling to make ends meet).

we got an exersaucer from freecycle, and we also got a "baby gym" (the things where they lay on their backs and play with things dangling above them), a vibratey chair that has a spinning starfish that Ro likes to watch, and a swing. we also got a bumbo and tray. we don't use the jumper that we also got yet, as he is too young, i think.

we use them at different times for different reasons. he usually takes his AM nap in a swing. we put him in there after eating, and he will fall asleep for an hour or so while i can get stuff done. i think of the swing as more essential than the other places to "plop him" as other people put it. it is soothing and a place to chill.

the other places i def. use to distract him so i get some time to do quick chores or something, usually 10-20 minutes at a time. i don't use all of the each day or anything, i rotate their use to keep them novel.

i decided on getting an exersaucer because after eating, Rowan would sit/stand on "my breast friend" pillow, pushing himself up and down (doing squats) with very little help from me (i just acted to steady him). so i thought an exersaucer would be something that he would like, with the added bonus of spinny, colorful, talking things to amuse him. so far, so good. i have to put a small pillow behind him in the seat to make sure he is supported, but other than that, he walks in 360, plays with the toys, and lets me know when he is finished.

the vibratey chair and the gym allow him to kick and flail excitedly and look at intriguing things at the same time. the gym allows grabbing and tactile sensation to boot.

we use the bumbo as we prep food in the kitchen. he is placed on a counter so he can see everything and interact with us. we will place things on his tray to play with, too. this builds their core muscles and gets them to sit unaccompanied sooner, yes? that's what i have heard.

so yeah, we use the baby junk, and will continue to do so- we never keep him in there if he wants out, and we use them for different reasons in different situations...

[zamia7]

My son loves it. hes 8 months old, and just wants to be upright. I do limit his time in it, but when I need to make supper or do the dishes when I cant keep an eye on his every move (SO close to crawling, lots of rolling and getting into things). It is also his "poopy" chair. It used to be his bouncy seat, but that is no longer safe for him. (every morning, plop him in it and like magic the poop comes out. The bouncy seat was much better for that, but it usually the only place he will poop.) as soon as he seems like he is getting bored i take him out.

Oh and he likes to be at the same level as the dog

[DevaMajka]

We got one handed down to us, and ds loved it! We only put him in it when he wanted in it, and took him out as soon as he wanted out (which was about 5-10 minutes, typically, I think). But he was never one to just quietly stay somewhere that he didn't want to stay. lol

I think if they aren't used too much, and baby is happy in it, then they are fine.

[belltree]

We don't have one and never felt to urge to buy one. Those things are gigantic! Our son tried it at a friends place and just wasn't really interested, and we live in an apartment.

[ElliesMomma]

quoted: we use the bumbo as we prep food in the kitchen. he is placed on a counter so he can see everything and interact with us. we will place things on his tray to play with, too. this builds their core muscles and gets them to sit unaccompanied sooner, yes? that's what i have heard.
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be careful about using the bumbo this way. i'm pretty sure it's not intended for being placed on a countertop. they are only safe on floors - i'm pretty sure i read. also don't count on it to build muscles by him sitting in it and playing with things on the tray. i'm pretty sure i also read that it misaligns the pelvis or something when they are sittting in it (probably the angle is what keeps them "sitting' unable to get out). i very much doubt that sitting in any contraption is going to get them to sit alone sooner. sitting alone sooner will be accomplished by more plain old floor time where he's "loose" without contraptions.

your babe is 4 months and not yet mobile. maybe you could try taking advantage of this time to do more floor time while you are making dinner, since he can't get up and crawl away yet!

[baturay]

We babywear, so never had a need for one. I did use my bouncy seat for when I would take showers in the morning. We live in a small space and those exersaucers are huge! Plus, they look like they'd get boring after a while.

[dislocator3972]

We got one that has a table in the center and a chair that moves around it. My DD still adores that table. She insisted on being upright all.the.time! when she was little, so this was a lifesaver. Often, we would just stand her in there and play with her, talk with her, etc and let our arms have a break. I know DD spent a lot of time there when DH was watching her because he was trying to study (grad school) while I was gone. He'd sit near her, but let her play.

Now that she's mobile and pulling herself up, we took the seat off and she still prefers that table to most of her other toys.

If used in moderation, I don't think it could possibly impair your DC's development, motor or otherwise.