Fisher Price Ocean Wonders Aquarium Cradle Swing Review

Initially I had hoped to avoid buying a swing since we were on a budget and cramped for space, but our daughter's reflux threw a kink in our plans.  The swing helped soothe her until we got the GERD under control, and also allowed her to rest upright instead of on her back.  This swing was the only place besides my arms that seemed to allow her to relax.

 So, we went into the swing-buying business rather unprepared, completely sleep-deprived and desperately hoping that we would end up with a quality swing.  We weren't disappointed, although of course there are things that could be improved.  I'll start with the negatives, although overall we're all very happy with our purchase.

 First, it seemed quite noisy. My husband and I got used to the racket and my daughter never seemed bothered, but when we first got it I initially thought it was broken.  Nope, just noisy.  The other main problem for us was that it seemed to take up a lot of space in our apartment (though a bonus is that it is pretty compact when not in use, so once my daughter outgrew it we were able to store it).  Also, at times the "legs" needed to be spread out so it wouldn't rock.  I'm not sure if that is a design issue or we didn't put it together well but it didn't end up being a huge problem...I would just make sure they were spread as far as they could go each time we put her in it.  Overall I felt the design was stable, although perhaps a little too stable since it was difficult for me to change the seat position from upright to reclined.  It was nigh impossible for me to push the little springs in if I had fingernails.  Finally, it did use up batteries each month but I was expecting it to be worse.

 One suggestion -- not exactly a negative -- would be to change the design of the belt.  It seemed to work fine although I preferred the belt of our aquarium bouncer that had more of a sturdy strap between the legs. I'm not sure if that would rub if it were implemented in a swing or not, but I think I would have felt better psychologically.  I 

The positives, though, far outweigh the negatives.  Our daughter loved it.  The main thing that sold me on this swing was that it seemed sturdier than other models in the store, and I loved the adjustable seat and the fact it swung in two directions. Our daughter preferred the side-to-side, but there was really no way of verifying that beforehand.  The music wasn't as annoying as 'baby music' typically is and was fairly well done.  I loved the mobile's soft lights and ocean effects; they captured our daughter's attention and seemed to soothe her if she was upset and I couldn't hold her.

I was a bit annoyed at first to read in the user's manual that the way to slow down the speed of the swing with newborns was to hang blankets over the side -- I was expecting to be able to modify the speed with the button at all times.  After reflecting, though, I realized that this was necessary in order for the swing to handle the increased weight gain of babies later on.  I would always cover her with a blanket, anyway, so if I felt the need to slow down the speed, I'd just hang a bit over the side and it worked well.  Another bonus about the speed regulation was the 'standby' position (can't remember what it's called in the manual) -- I think it saved batteries for us.  In standby mode I could push her with my hand and it would swing for several minutes before gently coming to a halt.  Once she was asleep, instead of turning it off completely (which managed to wake her up somehow), I'd put it on standby and she'd sleep through the decreased momentum. 

 I guess the highest praise for the swing is that it was considered essential gear for our vacation.  We packed the thing up and hauled it with us on a 7-hour-drive to be with the in-laws and it was so completely worth it.