The My Little Lamb Cradle N Swing : a Review

As it is, when expectant parents are trying to pick out some baby gear for their soon-to-be new baby, there is an overwhelming amount of choices. One particular popular item is a baby swing, used for nap times, quiet time, or entertainment. With so much to choose from, here is my review of one baby swing that I specifically used with my daughter and loved.

Colors
The My Little Lamb Cradle N Swing comes in what I believe to be a great palette of colors. It's mostly white with some brown, light blue, and other pastels sprinkled throughout. I thought it was a great choice for my situation: I knew I was having a girl when I picked this, but you never know if the sonographer guessed wrong on the sex of your baby. Not to mention that if I ever had another child and it turned out to be a boy, I could still use this swing and not worry about it being gender-based. It's a nice neutral set of colors that works for both sexes, and it's definitely not obnoxious to the eye (Think hot pink! Yikes!). And the fact that it has 'ears' and a 'mouth', representing the face of a lamb if you stand back and look at it, is an added factor of cuteness to this item.

Comfort
I couldn't believe the feel of the My Little Lamb Cradle N Swing the first time I looked at it in a store. It's so soft, it's unreal! I can attest that it actually stays soft even after multiple washings, which is unheard of. The material is a soft, plush fabric that has a an amazing headrest for even the smallest of babies. What's great about this is that the My Little Lamb Cradle N Swing is still firm (to help reduce the risk of SIDS, should baby fall asleep in it), but soft enough to provide great comfort to your little one. Let's put it this way: this swing is the only place my daughter would sleep in through the night from 1 month to about 6 months. I suspect that even in the most inclined position, it's tilted up slightly and helps with infant heartburn.

Entertainment
The My Little Lamb Cradle N Swing actually offers a few options in the entertainment department for baby. There's a removable tray with a couple of bead bars and a little stuffed lamb. There's also a circular mirror above baby, and a built-in mobile featuring clouds, stars, the moon, and little pastel lambs. The swing moves in two different directions, either side to side, or back and forth, and can swing in six different speeds. And as far as sound goes, there's a nature sounds feature, and also a musical selection that includes eight different tunes (which, trust me, are actually bearable and cute!). The greatest feature about the My Little Lamb Cradle N Swing entertainment features is that you can pick and choose what you want to have working, because each feature is a separate switch. For instance, my daughter loved the musical tones, but didn't much care for the swinging or mobile...so I was able to have just the music on and nothing else, which is very useful.

Convenience
There's a few great conveniences with this swing that makes life for a new parent just a little easier. For instance, the swing's cover is removable and machine washable, and still keeps it's softness. And speaking of removable, the toy tray across baby's lap is also removable (my child didn't care for it, personally, so this was a really helpful feature). And the little lamb toys hanging from the mobile are also removable.

Safety
Of course, when using infant gear like this, one of the most important things a parent looks for is safety features, and I'm happy to say that the My Little Lamb Cradle N Swing doesn't disappoint. Besides being made of sturdy material, the swing also includes a lap belt that has a pretty wide covering on it. The best part about this lap belt? It's super-soft, just like the rest of the material used on the seat of the swing. And if you keep the removable toy tray on the swing, that's another layer of protection to keep your little one strapped in and safe.

The Little Things
There are little things that you should probably know about the My Little Lamb Cradle N Swing before purchasing. For instance, this swing uses 4 D batteries (think rechargeable!). Another important detail is the weight limit, which is 25 lbs for this swing (which is a pretty large baby). However, more than likely, you'll stop using this swing for baby long before they hit that weight limit because they're more than likely moving around too much by that point. My Little Lamb Cradle N Swing was also really easy to put together, and at 8 months pregnant (and HUGE!), I was able to put this together in less than an hour because the instructions were pretty well written. And storage is another factor. The two legs that create the base of the swing can be closed together, however, it doesn't really make the swing smaller for storage purposes because the shell (or seat) is still kind of big and you can't fold that up. So although some of the swing reduces in size, you still need some decent space to store it (although I can tell you with confidence that it will fit in a closet with ease).

One last thing of note: the Fisher Price website has the My Little Lamb Cradle N Swing retailed at $150. Some stores (like Babies R Us) will actually sell for higher than that, so beware. But peek around on the internet and you can probably save yourself a bit of money (hint: Walmart.com currently sells it for just $110!).

So was the My Little Lamb Cradle N Swing worth the money? Absolutely! I can't really find anything bad to say about this swing, and although my daughter couldn't flat out tell me that she felt comfortable in it, I know for a fact that she'd tell me somehow if she wasn't comfortable. The fact that she always fell asleep in it easily and that the music seemed to soothe her says a lot. So if you're looking for a good, sturdy swing that's inexpensive, this one's a great choice.

Sources:
personal experience

http://www.fisher-price.com/fp.aspx?st=2000&e=product&pid=45667