Baby seats/bouncers/rockers/swings?

[PistachioTruffle]

Not sure where to put this, so I thought I'd post here where hopefully some experienced parents can set me on the right path!

DC1 is due in December, and I'm thinking about things that we might need. I was thinking it might be good idea to get one of the above as somewhere to put baby as well as the Moses basket, but the choice is, quite frankly, mind blowing!

Are they something that are worth having, or one of those things that are sold to first time parents but really a bit of a con?

The price range seems to be from £20-150+, ranging from a basic seat to ones with music, lights, toys, swinging and vibration(!), are there any features which I should look for, if indeed they are worth getting?

I also get the feeling it may be one of those items that some babies love and others hate, with no way of knowing beforehand......

[MamaTo3Boys]

Definately get a bouncy chair. I had one for all 3 boys and it was a godsend!

I had the ones that vibrate which actually helped get them to sleep at times, and toy bars etc can be good too as they are fascinated with them as they get older and will start to reach for them

[PeazlyPops]

Bouncy chairs are great, I had a few different ones. The one that vibrated always made DS poo!

The baby bjorn one we had was my fave, it rocked DS to sleep.

[delasi]

I have one DC, and a rather large number of friends with children. Based on the experiences of all of us, a bouncer is so useful. Perhaps there are babies that don't get on with them, but all of the babies I've known have loved them. It's a safe and comfortable place to put them, and it's also often a really easy place for them to drift off especially as newborns.

As for type, a regular model will do, and the most important features (in order) are: 1. Bounce! 2. Vibrate. 3. Toy bar.

I put toy bar last as we hardly used ours, but only because it was supposed to be a bit 'swish' and actually wasn't as interesting for DS (the model was a gift). However he likes regular toy bars so they would normally be interesting.

Fwiw, a friend bought theirs - a Fisher Price, very good, all of the 3 key features - for £10 in a Tesco baby event. So keep your eyes peeled for these things, as they're often in the different baby events. I would budget around £10-25, personally.

[Callmedreckly]

I got a bouncer as a present (£45) & it plays music & vibrates. DD cries if I put the music on

I got another bouncer for upstairs, secondhand £3 & its just a basic thing, she loves it & kicks so much I think shes going to bounce away!

I got a second hand Fisher Price take along swing on Ebay last week for £10.60 (10 mile radius search, so I collected it) they are £120 usually
They have a weight limit as well, so don't last for ages.

DD was sick the first time & cries after about 10 minutes.

I would wait until January sales!

[ChimneyDeep]

Dc1 was an awful to settle baby and we somehow discovered she would drift off if swung in her car seat - many a sesh of exhausted lugging ensued. When pg with dc2 I scoured ebay and bought an electric swing to do a similar job and felt all sorted. Dc2 hated being swung!

The bouncy chair is a definite though. I never found the swish vibration one any better than the basic cheap one though.

[mrsmartin1984]

Fisher price rocking motion soother was a godsend. It simulates a car movements.

[gastrognome]

Baby Bjorne bouncy chair is the best IMO. Though its more expensive than other models, it's one of the only ones you can use past the age of around six months (once they can sit up unaided) as it won't topple over. Used it safely for both mine till they were about two!
Also super light, easy to rock with one foot and folds up almost totally flat. Probably my top baby purchase ever. Only downside is that it's not great when babies are really tiny. Started with mine at around one month (before that they were in a sling most of the time anyway).

[HPsauceonbaconbuttiesmmm]

I have the baby bjorn, DS and DD both loved it and the bounce is second to none! It will also outlast most of the others as it takes a much heavier/bigger child. It's also tasteful

I also have a tiny love bouncer which vibrates and has a baby hypnotising musical crab. It's hideously bright and garish and DD adores it. I use 1 upstairs for showering and one downstairs.

IMO you should have somewhere to out baby in each of the rooms you use frequently, whether Moses basket, rug or bouncer. Makes life much easier.

Never had a swing.

Agree with OP though, you won't want to use them til DC is 4 weeks ish anyway so wait for the sales or see what people give you.

[HPsauceonbaconbuttiesmmm]

That's somewhere to put baby

And, agree with PP...

I need more sleep.....

[sureitis]

I agree with the tiny love bouncer as mentioned above. It looked so comfy and lasted my wee one for ages. However I wished I'd splashed out on an electric rocking one because of the hours (and hours) spent rocking her to sleep with our foot! She never (and still doesn't) went to sleep without being rocked.

It's worth investing in a decent sized bouncer and one that's pretty sturdy as my sis got a cheap one that lasted 5 mins before the babies outgrew it.

[Discolite]

Bouncers are great but make sure you get one with a hollow for the baby's bottom. The ones which don't have a hollow are useless for little babies as they list to one side. I found this out by buying a crap one first

[KateCroydon]

We have a fifth-hand cheap looking bouncer. Doesn't vibrate, doesn't have a toy bar, but does have a hollow for baby's bottom in that it looks like a deckchair. Baby LOVES it and shuns pricier models.

[KeepTheFaithBaby]

I think it depends on the baby. We got a cheap bouncer which is great. In the early days it gave me somewhere to pop her when I was showering! However we have a sleep resistant baby - needs motion to sleep - so in desperation we bought the Fisher price rainforest take along swing. The thing has been a godsend! First time we used it she napped for 1 1/2 hours and we cried with relief! Prior to that she'd only napped on us or in the car (waking when the car stopped). Good job it's take along. It's already travelled with us to 4 alternative locations!

I'd advise buying a cheap and cheerful bouncer to start with and look at more expensive swinging chairs if you need it.