Customer Reviews

Fisher-Price Infant To Toddler Rocker, Bug Friends

5 star:		(350)
4 star:		(150)
3 star:		(58)
2 star:		(18)
1 star:		(16)

 

 

I've been reading the reviews about people putting their babies in this in the rocking position, and that's entirely too early for this feature to be used. The rocker part is for when the child is old enough to reach the floor with his/her own legs. You wouldn't put a child in an adult rocking chair and you shouldn't use the rocking feature of this chair for babies either. It's for the toddler stage. I've had this rocker for 6+ years and none of my 3 children have ever fallen out because they've never been put in by themselves in the rocker mode.

(I have the previous version of this rocker, the mechanics seem unchanged).

Our son loved this rocker as a newborn (1-2 months). We pulled out the "kickstand" and that allowed him to be in a flat position and he was very comfortable. Most bouncers are too upright fro newborns. Also, the rocker has two recline positions for you baby's comfort.

As he got older (3-4 months), we would push in the "kickstand" in so we could use the rocking feature. He liked being more upright than flat at this age. He liked to look around and play with the toy bar. Also, we could rock him to sleep.

But, once (around 5-6 months) when he was trying to sit up and lean forward he fell over (the reason for 3 stars only). He was strapped in, so the chair fell over with him. I was in the same room as he was and he is fine - he was just a bit startled.

(Think about sitting in a rocking chair and leaning forward - if you cannot lean back then you would fall forward.)

I put it away for now and will try it when he can climb in and out of the rocker on his own.

First off, I have last years model. From what I can tell, the difference is the color scheme. I bought this for my daughter when she was about 4 months old. She's 11 months now. At first, she didn't like the vibrating, as it made her itchy and she'd rub her face. Now that she's older, she's OK with the vibrating mode. It's nice and portable and is good for keeping her put for a short while. She does get bored in it if stuck there for too long...but not much more than others things that are confining. At her current age, the activity center does the job a little better, but a bit bulkier, so this is great for hauling into the bathroom and keeping her safe and in view while I shower. Oh, so now that's she older she is able to yank off the toys that can be velcroed to the top bar. Not a big deal. Try the linkadoos and attach your kid's toy du jour to the links...attached in turn to the waist strap. DD is fond of throwing toys overboard these days, so with the links, they don't go far, and she can then reach over and retrieve them herself.
NOW, I MUST MENTION TWO things I don't like about this item. FIRST, my daughter isn't yet tall enough to reach her feet to the floor and rock herself, and she gets a bit frustrated at staying still in the non-rocking position for too long. I know that in time, she'll grow and that issue will be resolved.
But, the MOST IMPORTANT thing to note, is not to assume your child is safe and secure if you dash out of site for a moment. My daughter leans so far forward in the chair now (but is unable to reach the floor with her feet), that the entire cloth back just comes forward with her, since she's strapped in. No big deal I thought, until...I left the room for a moment, and when I returned, she was crawling on the floor! I have NO idea how my little houdini did it, but I had her buckled in...and the waist strap was still buckled! The chair wasn't even overturned! There she was nearby examining our heat register in the floor. We were VERY lucky since there were other non-baby-safe items within her reach and the door to the room was open...and the house not yet completely baby-proofed. My husband and I were in utter amazement and the only thing we could come up with is that she leaned so far forward to reach something on the ground in front of her, that her body just folded over itself and she simnply somersaulted out of the chair...her legs sliding out of the belt (and it's on the tightest setting...but still doesn't fit as snug as I think it should...but I never thought THAT would happen). The chair must have just rocked back into it's upright position...and there she was crawling around happy-go-lucky; unscathed by the event.
I still think the chair is a good thing...will last longer than a bouncer. However, NOW, if I have to dash out of site for a moment, I make sure the rocker is in the non-rocking position so that it doesn't lean with her if she tries to reach forward too far.
This just seems to be an awkard stage to get it's best use.
If they could improve upon the fit of the harness belt, and make the cloth back somehow not move so much with the baby as he/she leans forward while belted in...I would give it five stars.

THIS CHAIR IS WORTH EVERY PENNY! We've used it daily since we brought my daughter home from the hospital. She's 9 months now and still loves it!

It has a kickstand so you can lean it back for a smaller baby/infant. Our daughter took all of her daytime naps in it for the first few months. We used the Snuzzler infant support pillow with the chair to make it more comfortable. It reclines far enough that we didn't need to strap her in every time like her regular bouncy seat. It made it very handy since we had a nice place to put her down quickly.

My daughter's head would flop around in her regular bouncy seat. This chair reclines far enough that we didn't have that problem. We would cover the chair with a blanket (toy bar removed) to take pictures. The Snuzzler pillow made her head stable so the pictures turned out great!

The toy bar is easy to install/uninstall. You just pull it out of or insert it into the two holes. The toys are a bit difficult for a younger baby to reach, but she still enjoyed looking and batting at them. We didn't use the toy bar much in the beginning, but use it most of the time now.

The chair is also easy to carry from room to room. Now that my daughter is older, I do strap her into the chair. She sits in it while I shower, cook, etc. She loves the toy bar and somehow manages to get one or two of them off to chew on. It also makes a good TV chair before they are able to sit up on their own.

Another plus is that it also vibrates like the other bouncy seats on the market.

The nicest thing about this chair is that it is an actual chair. The bouncy seats have a limited lifespan. My daughter outgrew hers by 6 months. The infant-to-toddler rocker will be used for a few more years. Her 2+ year old cousin sits in it every time he visits. It's also nice that we still have an infant chair so my friends with younger babies can use it when they visit.

This chair has been worth every penny. We've used it daily for 9 months! I highly recommend it and tell my friends that it's a MUST HAVE!

I loooooooooove this chair! My daughter is now 2 and I have to say that I have probably used this chair everyday since she was born. As an infant chair, the soft vibrating action always kept her comfortable and calm. Never had an issue with the chair tipping when she got to be about 7 or 8 months, as i did with our "bouncer" chair. She uses the chair now in the rocking position as her everyday seat to put on her shoes, watch a movie or read a book. I would recommend this product to anyone who was looking for a vibrating chair for their baby. The fact that I know this is one item that I will be able to use for sometime to come is just the icing on the cake! 10 stars for this one!!

We purchased this for our 4th child. It is the first time we have not just gone with a bouncy seat. I really like it better than a bouncy seat because I don't have to worry about my older children sitting in it and totally bending the thing way out of shape. All it takes is a couple of times and a bouncy seat can be ruined. I LOVE that it only uses one D size battery.
My older children love to rock the baby and I like that you have the option to make it immobile too.
My only complaint is that the music from the umbrella toy is pretty loud and it doesn't have an OFF switch or a volume switch. That gets annoying, I don't think I will replace the batteries on it when they die. OR I may try taping it with a thick piece of Duct Tape (it just accured to me to try that). The other 2 toys attach by velcro and I like that part too because it rewards a baby who really tries to get the toy instead of just acting like a golden carrot that he can never get! The velcro is pretty sturdy it isn't easy to pull them off but it can be done. The other 2 toys also seem a little cheesy to me but my son likes them.
My baby is 7 months old now and I'm not sure how he will fit in it as a toddler. His head is already only a couple of inches from the top bar. So don't let the picture of that cute blonde toddler fool you, it shows her resting her head back but she must be petite!
All in all this is a great buy.

I bought this rocker because my daughter loved to rock her self in her carrier. But as she got bigger (she is now 9 months), I had to start leaving the carrier in the car because it had gotten two heavy for me to carry. This chair is great! She continues to rock her self in it and I put it stationary when its time for her bottle. I never put the batteries in it for the vibration because shes calm and relaxed just being in the chair alone. Also, just wanted to comment about a previously written review about sitting up in this chair. My daughter often sits forward in this chair (strapped in of course) and because of the (what I'll call) stoppers on each side, it prevents her from falling forward. Of course, always us caution because you never know! I would definitely recommend it.

I have two boys ages 1 year and 2.5 years, and I have two of these rockers. My oldest enjoys watching TV while sitting in it (even with the kick stand up). My youngest still takes naps in his rocker. We have one rocker upstairs and one downstairs mostly so the baby can take naps. The instructions tell you not to use the rocking position until the child can get in and out of the chair on his own. So, yes, if you have a 9 month old learning to crawl in the rocker in the rocking position, he/she will be able to lean forward and tip the chair over. Keep the chair in the kick stand position or put it up for a few months as another mother suggested. Around 15-18 months, when you bring it back out, your kid will really enjoy the freedeom of getting in and out of the rocker on his/her own. The straps can be easily tucked away when not needed anymore. Vibration is great for infants. Toy bar has some neat toys that hold attention. I'd recommend for sure.

Bree slept in this rocker exclusively in her first 3 months of life (just would NOT take to the crib!), and it served well as a bassinet with the kickstand down. Later, when she finally accepted the crib (still no idea what that was all about!), she enjoyed rocking herself in it, or having us rock her in it, still in the reclined position, and the toys were always of interest to her.

Now, she's almost two years old, and the "toddler rocker" version of this piece of furniture is her favorite sitting place in the house. Once I understood how much she liked it as an infant, I finally broke down and bought a second one. One is at our house, and the second is at the grandparent's house where, again, it's the favorite seat in the house (barring grandpa's lap, of course!).

Choose the Infant to toddler rocker over a bouncer without hesitation....If I could "do it over again", this is one "baby item" I would choose again automatically.

UPDATE Jan. 2008: My daughter is now 4.5 years old and STILL loves her rocker!

UPDATE Jan. 2012: My daughter is now 8 years old and still uses this rocker on and off @ her Nana's house. It's the funniest thing! She's technically too big for it now, obviously...but it serves her purposes in play!

My first son loved this as a vibrating soother seat when he was an infant. He liked sleeping in it with the kickstand down better than the swing or his bassinet(he hated the bassinet in our room). It worked great as a portable bassinet for trips too.
I put it away when he was about 6-8 months old because he didnt like sitting still much and would rather have his excersaucer. I also agree with the earlier reviewer that it may tip over if an older baby tries to lean too far forward in the rocker position. Even though it never happened to us I was scared that it might. That's why I gave it 4 stars.
When he turned one, we were moving and he discovered it and fell in love with it as his own big boy chair! It is small enough and sturdy enough to get in and out of easily and he LOVES having his own chair. There are little feet on the bottom that prevent tipping now that he has the muscle control to not lean too far. He is almost 2 now and it is the only place he wants to sit.
I have a second baby coming in May and he will definately need his own. I need one for my infant and my toddler!