Toy Review: Bathtime Pal Barney by Fisher Price

Ahh, just when I thought my daughter had outgrown her fascination with the strange purple dinosaur, she is back at it again! We recieved a new dvd all about Barney not too long ago, so the little one is back on the Barney bandwagon.

Now, I don't really have anything against Barney. I just find him to be a bit strange. When I found out that Barney is now also a bath toy, I felt that he became just a bit stranger. However, for the sake of keeping a three year old happy, we picked up a Barney Bathtime Pal made by Fisher-Price. We bought Barney for 12.99 which I thought was a bit steep for a bath doll, but it seems a bit different and unique so I thought, "Why not?" A Barney that my daughter can throw in the bath with her ( she is big time bubble bath fan, thank goodness) is surely to keep her occupied and entertained while she gets clean. So Barney was adopted from Toys R Us and came home with us.

One would think Barney Bathtime Pal would be made out of rubber since his main mission is to be a bath buddy. This Barney is made out of a soft terry cloth material. Barney as usual, is purple with a green belly, and is smiling showing what is supposed to be very white teeth. Barney has on his own swimming trunks ( FINALLY he put some clothes on). The shorts are board style in blue, with orange designs and a yellow drawstring. He also has yellow toes that match the drawstring. Barney has a little hook on top of his head that almost resembles a Teletubbie, but really it is for hanging him up to dry after a bath. Barney stands about 9 1/2 inches.

This little dinosaur was an instant smash with my 4 year old. She makes Barney dive, swim, flip, and wash every part of his body. I've had to drag her out of the bath a few times because her little skin was wrinkling from being in the water too long. However, she would just bring Barney right along with her ( NOT A GOOD IDEA). The terry cloth absorbs the water and it seems to take forever to get all the water out of Barney. So in the meantime, there is water sloshing out of Barney everywhere he goes. My daughter has the habit of playing Ring around the Rosey with Barney (well, she DID.. I had to put a stop to that one) and water just swings out of Barney like he is a water gun. Even after I rung him out, he still had water. That's where the hanger would come into good use. However, Barney needs to hang at least 24 hours without being bathed in order to dry out completely. Also, the material gets a bit worn down after a few baths, and Barney turns a lighter shade of purple. Barney does not maintain the "new" toy look for too long. I haven't washed him yet ( he is machine washable and can be machine dried) but I am sure that his looks will probably wear down a bit more.

Can I recommend Barney the bath buddy? Even though my daughter has a fantastic time with him, I wouldn't purchase him if I had it to do over. For the price I paid and the fact Barney sheds his water everywhere, he is just not worth it. My daughter feels he is not only a bath toy but a toy for everywhere, and if he was not made of cloth, that may be so. He just doesn't seem like too much a of a bath toy to me. Barney would be better suited as just another stuffed animal. The only thing that really differentiates Barney from a stuffed animal is the hook on his head and the board shorts that makes it seem like he is ready for some water fun. Also, from the time I have purchased Barney, I have noticed that he has went down signifigantly in price. There is a definate reason why.