The Explore & More 3-Stage Activity Center, by Skip Hop, will keep your baby busy for hours. It’s a chair, a table, and a colorful station for play, equipped with clip-on toys to help baby foster developmental skills. This circular activity center was designed in collaboration with a pediatrician in order to create a baby center that supports a “whole body” approach to play and learning.

Assembly is a snap, and adults will only spend 10 minutes on construction before exploring the center on their own, including the mini, musical, light-up piano. This piano (the only part of the activity center that requires batteries) has three ways to play: piano mode, song mode, and motion sensor mode. I played all three, with my favorite being the motion sensor mode. Give the piano a little shake, and it will automatically play a song all by itself.

After putting on my own little concert for the office (keep an eye out for my mixtape dropping soon), I started playing with some of the clip-on toys. I instantly made friends with the peek-a-boo owl toy that pops up and hoots. My next pal was the hedgehog, who was part of the bead chaser and spinner. Then I rattled the spring cloud that had colorful beads inside. It felt like a maraca. Lastly, my hand glided through the swaying tree toy and I felt strong like the wind.

I was surrounded by a wealth of toys, perfectly structured for imaginative play (and to rev up baby’s motor skills), I almost forgot about the suction bee snack bowl that was attached. Sadly, I didn’t have any snacks to put in it.

The great thing about this activity center is it allows baby to sit, stand, or swivel and bounce. Basically, think of a small round table that has a seat in the middle that baby fits snug into like a pool float. Just like baby can flail his legs in the water, baby can do the same with this on-land activity center. He’ll be able to move his legs on the moveable foot platform, while strapped in securely from the waist up. Another cool feature of the activity center is the Discovery Window. While baby is swiveling around, there’s a window that will give baby a look at what his or her feet are doing down below—the perfect way for baby to witness and learn cause and effect.

But of course, if baby isn’t feeling like a leg workout, the activity center makes a sturdy chair. It includes a 360-degree rotating seat, allowing baby to turn himself to reach all the clip-on toys. If baby wants to stay planted on the ground, he can simply remove himself from the center seat and be able to stand and play from the outside.

After a lot of imaginative play, I needed a little time to de-stress. So naturally, I picked up my coloring books and instantly transformed the activity center into a table! Luckily I could convert it from a seat to a small table with a smooth flat surface. All I had to do was take the foot platform and snap it in to the top of the center, where baby sits. I was happy with how simple that was, and also, how simple the activity center was to store later on. The snap on legs makes it very easy to pack up and re-assemble.

This activity center is perfect for a little brain and body workout!

About the author

Kelly Corbett

Kelly Corbett

Kelly is an editorial assistant at Adventure Publishing Group. When she's not writing/playing/thinking about toys, she's probably spilling coffee on herself, laughing at her own jokes, or doing something awkward somewhere. As a quirky redhead, she one time tricked her friends into thinking she was the new face of Wendy's fast-food franchise as a prank. She's not, but a chili lover can dream right? You can follow her on Twitter @kcorbzz.

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