Galt Toys Playnest & Gym: the perfect foldable and portable activity center

If you knew any of my children as babies, you know how much they hated to be set down on their backs. All three of them were the happiest, smiley-est babies until you would dare set them down flat on their back as experts recommend. Needless to say, “back is best” is not a common phrase around here.

But, what’s a busy mom to do that sometimes needs use of both hands and can’t wear her baby 100% of the time? She gets this: This, my friends, is a happy baby in the Galt Playnest & Gym – Farm. This educational and colorful multi-sensory activity center gives me the perfect place to set baby down without having to listen to her increasingly louder objections. I dare say she even {gasp} enjoys the Playnest, and I hope this love continues to grow during all the stages of play.

This peaceful moment brought to you by Galt Toys.

When it first arrived, I was expecting the Playnest to fill up a huge box like other baby toys and was really surprised when the box was so small. My surprise switched to glee when I realized that there was no mistake – the Playnest really does break down into a box smaller than a throw pillow. Galt understands that no one wants to devote an entire room simply for storing your baby’s gear, so they made a truly portable – and storable – solution to the big and bulky play space.

But, bigger is definitely better when baby is ready to play, which is why their Playnest design is so brilliant. Where most traditional play items are stuffed or have some sort of plastic frame that doesn't fold up for storage, the Playnest is unique in that the main portion of it is inflatable. Just like a children’s pool ring that collapses down to the size of a small book and inflates for pool time fun, the inner portion of the Galt Playnest expands to fill the entire outer ring of the activity center.

Simply unzip the side of the Playnest and slide the inflatable portion inside, inflate, and then zip up. You go from folded and compact to full-size activity center in just minutes. This makes it lightweight, collapsible, easy to store, and portable, which makes it one of my favorite baby products, ever. And, here’s where the design gets even more amazing – because you can inflate the ring yourself you can blow it up to whatever firmness you want. This makes it ideal for infant on up to little ones learning to sit up on their own and allows you to get a custom fit. Besides making it easy for the Playnest to grow with your baby through the different stages, it also gives you a better chance of your child actually liking it because you can try different firmnesses until you get one that makes baby happy.

The Playnest & Gym includes the addition of the 6 curved plastic rods that you connect to create three fabric-covered poles to form an arch over the Playnest. These then hold rings you can connect to hold the included soft baby toys for your little one to grasp and play with. While my baby is still a little young for toys since she has almost no control of her limbs, I do love how she stares at the toys and the mirror while the older kids entertain her with the sounds of the internal bells and crinkle noises. So far, we've enjoyed the Playnest & Gym during playtime and tummy time, whenever I need a free hand, and even as a newborn photography poser that I can cover with the backdrop and manipulate so I get the perfect angle for all our many newborn photo shoots. And, when my sweet baby outgrows the activity center, I plan on holding onto it for when babies come over as well as for newborn photo shoots since it's much easier to store than traditional foam seats, activity centers, and bouncers. If you are looking for the perfect solution for parenting on the go or for those that don't have a ton of space for baby gear, I would highly recommend the Galt Playnest & Gym. Shop the Galt Playnest collection and choose from the Playnest Farm, Playnest Car, Playnest Dino, and Playnest & Gym. Shop at GaltToys.com as well as numerous online retailers.

A big thank you to Galt for sending the Playnest and giving me my hands back. As always, all opinions are 100% ours.