Step2 Naturally Playful Sand and Water Activity Center
by Step2
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Our Price: $199.99 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $149.25 (click here) Category: Toy See more product details |
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Toys and Games Reviews of Step2 Naturally Playful Sand and Water Activity Center
Customer Review: The other moms in the neighborhood are jealous
Summary: 4 Stars
There are several toddlers in my neighborhood, and we all have sandboxes. All the other moms seem to be inviting themselves and their kids over to play in ours, because standing up to play with the sandbox = WAY less chance of getting sand in the diapers/socks/shirts.
The fact that it bungee-cords shut means that the cover only comes off when I want it to--not when my toddler or a gust of wind want it to.
If you want to use it with water, remember to empty the water out promptly after use. We made the mistake of leaving it in for a couple days, and were rewarded with an algae bloom. I ended up having to scrub the whole thing down with much bleach. We have left the water side empty ever since (using it for toy storage), and my son hasn't missed it. Actually, I haven't missed it either--I found that I was having to change his sopping wet clothes every single time he played in the water, since he would take the included pails (which have holes in the bottom) and repeatedly spill water all down his shirt and arms.
Because the cover has a "racetrack" on it for cars, rain/sprinkler water pools in the recesses and gets nasty, but my son and my dog still want to stand on it and both of them even try to drink from the puddles. {sigh} This is my sole complaint about the sandbox. I wish there was a smooth side to the cover as well as a track side.
We also wish there was some more convenient place to hide/store the umbrella when the cover is on (like a shelf underneath, somehow?)--the act of taking it out and leaning it against the house seems to inspire my child to attempt to drag the umbrella around the yard.
We have found it to be an extremely stable toy (we don't try to move it anywhere since it's got all that heavy sand in it) and look forward to using it next summer too.
Customer Review: Tons of fun, but watch the legs!
Summary: 4 Stars
We bought this table about a month ago for my two boys, ages 18 mos and 3.5. They have a ball playing with it! They love to mix the sand into the water and the water into the sand. They both really enjoy dripping water out of the little plastic pots that come with it. They have been coloring the sun design on the top with sidewalk chalk for extra entertainment as well. I am very happy with the table except for two things. The first is that I have had trouble getting the lid back on after play is done. This is an especially difficult task if you have left the lid in the shade, and the plastic has contracted a bit. I have injured my fingers several times trying to force the lid back into place so I could secure it. The second problem is that the legs are way too wobbly. As the kids lean over the edges of the table to play, the legs gradually get pushed in so that they are almost buckling at times. Screws bore into the hollow plastic legs, but it simply isn't enough to hold the legs in place. When our table was bumped by a mower, the screws just tore out. We were able to screw the legs back on, but I really feel that Step 2 could have designed the legs to be more stable and supportive. You can definitely not push or drag the table or the legs will buckle.
****Idea to help with the leg instability***
I just bought expanding spray foam insulation/crack filler and sprayed it into all of the crevices around where the legs of the table insert. It cures and becomes hard, so it is helping the legs to stay secure and not to wiggle and put strain on the screws. Just a thought that might help. We'll see how it holds up!
Flaws and all, I would definitely purchase this table again. My boys will have many hours of fun with it this summer. We have a regular sandbox as well and it is all but ignored now!
Customer Review: Fantastic Table- Don't Hesitate to Buy!
Summary: 5 Stars
Wow- What a wonderful table! I did acres of research on all the different options before buying this one for our youngest child's first birthday present. I'm so glad we bought this one- we couldn't be happier with it. Here are the things we like about this table.
1. Great size. This table is large enough that multiple children can play with it together (some of the ones on the market are really small). BUT, it's not so large it can't be used inside. We've put it in the kitchen on several occasions for the children to play with during nasty weather days.
2. It is heavy and sturdy. My kids have climbed all over it and haven't been able to tip it over. But, it's not so heavy that I can't lift it on my own. I lifted it over the child safety gate (with the sand in it) to carry it out of the kitchen and back to the deck.
3. I like the versatility of the table. You can use sand on one side and water on the other as intended. But, I've put in dried beans or dried rice instead of the water or just a tiny bit of water with some leftover spaghetti noodles and that was fun too. It's nice to do on nasty winter days when the kids can't go outside and are bored with playing inside. I just carry this into the kitchen and it gives them something a little new to do.
4. The umbrella is a nice feature- provides that little bit of shade so that they can play comfortably.
5. GREAT COVER- it really does stay put! We've had some strong winds and it's never come off. Also, it usually is out on our deck and the cover has never leaked, even during the worst rain storms. The sand is always perfectly dry.
The ONE and only Con (and it's a minor one): I wish that the umbrella would tilt so that I could move it around to block the shade. Other than that, this is the perfect table!
Customer Review: Best Sand/Water Table Available!
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm not sure why this table is rated for children over 2 years; my 18 month old loves it! She has used it dry (without sand or water) as a Matchbox car race track! Then we took it outside and filled it with just sand. She loved it that way too! She spent 45 minutes shoveling and building sand castles. My 18 month old has never sat still for that long!!! When it gets warmer outside, we'll put her swim suit on and try it with water. I'm sure it'll be a "splash"! I'm also interested in trying the table with dry macaroni/ dry rice instead of sand, as suggested in other reviews.
The only problem I have with this toy is it comes with two boats, two small sand buckets but only ONE sand shovel. If you have more than one child, you'll need to be prepared with another shovel.
The table is long, so there is plenty of room for several kids!!! I also like that the barrier between the sand side, and the water side is high and thick, so the sand and water won't easily become mixed while playing, although we both know it's going to happen anyway, right? :)
I put this toy together in about 30 minutes (a power drill is a must!). Each leg is held in place with four screws. It seems very sturdy.
The Umbrella is great! It's very large in diameter, and works great for keeping the sun off their skin. My umbrella was burgundy and butter in color, very attractive.
I managed to find this activity center on sale for $45.00 at another local store. It was well worth every penny! Comes in a large box, so clean out your trunk before you go! If you're driving a car, bring some string/ rope to tie the trunk lid down. I drive a mid-size car, and the box was too big to close the trunk!
Have Fun!
Customer Review: Great for all ages!
Summary: 5 Stars
My kids love water, and they love sand. When we got it our twins were two years old. Well my now 3 year old b/g twins always play with it and I anticipate that thier 8 month old twin brothers will too. They love racing speedboats when its filled and playing all kinds of games for those days that its too cold for the pool, but great for this table! We already had a sand box, so we didnt really put sand in this. We have put rice, oatmeal, cotton, water on both sides, cedar chips and rodent bedding (the brown stuff for animal cages, works GREAT) and even the colorful pebbles for fish tanks. We also tried coffee grinds as another reviewer said, and that was cute too! (the kids smelt GREAT but they didnt eat it lol) They love it, and best of all that is MUCH easier to clean than sand! This is the only toy on our backyard deck, so sometimes when the kids wanna be with us when we barbaque or anything, they play with this. The umbrella is great, though we dont use it too much as we are afraid it may fall. The cover has worked very well, and like many other reviewers said, both our kids LOVE to race hot wheels down it. We can fit about 4-5 kids around this table at a time, ranging from about 20 months to 6-7 years old too! We dump out the water when we are done and we usually take out whatevers in the sand side when we are done too (we put a cut up garbage bag in the sand side and leave a little edge left and tuck it in, fill it with whatever, and when its time to clean up we just dig for the tucked in extra length and put it in a bucket or a plastic bag for next time. Very easy clean up. All in all our kids loved this, and we thought it was great for our money. JUST A TIP, when winter comes along we just cover it with a tarp to really keep those "things" out!