Disclosure: I was compensated with a product sample by Bright Starts for this post, but the opinions are all mine! Know that I will only promote items I personally use and stand behind! For more information on my disclosure policy, please visit this page.
A few weeks before Brielle’s 1st birthday, we received a nice big package on our doorstep from Bright Starts! Upon opening it, I found the above two items from their “Having a Ball” Collection: a 3-in-1 Step & Ride Lion and the Hide ‘n Spin Monkey
It didn’t take long for my inquisitive 11 month old to explore the boxes and see what they were all about. She took to the monkey character right away, as just like her dad, she loves silly monkeys! I sat back and watched her look over his face then begin to press the buttons inside the box. He was approachable right off the bat!
After searching through our tools for a long, skinny screwdriver (since the first three I pulled out were too short and wide to fit in the specific screw holes), I was able to easily assemble both toys pretty quickly.
There are several things Brielle is into at this age: music, pressing buttons, and putting things into other things, so this Monkey was right up her alley!
I watched her figure out this toy all on her own. She loved to press the buttons on his hat and do her little “I’m bouncing my butt” dance move (seen above) when the music played. She’d take the balls and put them in the hat on top, which was the perfect height for her.
If you press his nose, the monkey will hide in the barrel then release all the balls from inside and put them in the spinner at the bottom. Once it’s done spinning, it’s time to pick them up and put the balls back in again.
Or, as Brielle discovered the next day, you can also put the balls inside the front of the barrel too! Needles to say this Hide n’ Spin Monkey was a hit!
The lion had a similar packaging style so she went over to meet him. Once she hit the button on his nose and the balls in his mane began to spin, she was a little apprehensive about him. Just like her momma, she doesn’t care for loud noises and the volume button had been set to the loud level inside the box. But we took our time to put him together and explore all the options he had to offer!
The seat can be used to take a ride, or you can flip it up and they can use the lion as a walker. Honestly she liked this part of him much more than actually putting the balls inside. The noise of the mane going around just isn’t personally her thing, but I can see how other kids would love to interact with a this friendly lion character. She is much more content to push him all over the living room floor, which she does often!
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Thank you again to Bright Starts for more entertaining toys to take over our living room. :)
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