... No one relishs a journey filled with whinging cries and moans, especially if there is no one around in the back seat to read stories or pick up dropped toys!
Leah spends quite a lot of time in the car as we live in a rural location and I decided it was worth investing in a decent toy for ... Read review
A toy steering wheel like no other! By pressing its electronic buttons, tots control the ... more
exciting activity panel, triggering lights, music, and fun animal sounds. Irresistible travel toy; effortlessly teaches cause and effect. Honk the horn, play "Old ...
Advantages: eases the boredom of long car journeys, can't be dropped Disadvantages: noisy and irritating for parents, child could bore of it quickly
...the in-car DVD route! The Tiny Love Wonder Wheel seemed like a good compromise. For £20, I have had hours of whinge-free driving about and it has been worth every penny.
There are two parts to the toy.- The first is a mat which hangs from the back of the front seat and has pictures of animals that light up on it in reponse to buttons being pressed on the second part - the steering wheel. The mat can be secured easily around the headrest ... ...quick to transfer from one car to another and will fit any make or mofel easily with a little adjustment. The steering wheel is attached to a cord which can be slotted through the buckle strap of any car seat. The cord also means that if your little one lets go of the steering wheel, they can easily pull it up again by the strap themselves! The toy is only suitable for front-facing travel because of this design.
Car journeys with small children rate highly on the list of stressful situations for parents. No one relishs a journey filled with whinging cries and moans, especially if there is no one around in the back seat to read stories or pick up dropped toys!
Leah spends quite a lot of time in the car as we live in a rural location and I decided it was worth investing in a decent toy for the car to keep her entertained, but I didn't want (and couldn't afford) to go down the in-car DVD route! The Tiny Love Wonder Wheel seemed like a good compromise. For £20, I have had hours of whinge-free driving about and it has been worth every penny.
There are two parts to the toy.- The first is a mat which hangs from the back of the front seat and has pictures of animals that light up on it in reponse to buttons being pressed on the second part - the steering wheel. The mat can be secured easily around the headrest or under it with an adjustable strap, meaning it is quick to transfer from one car to another and will fit any make or mofel easily with a little adjustment. The steering wheel is attached to a cord which can be slotted through the buckle strap of any car seat. The cord also means that if your little one lets go of the steering wheel, they can easily pull it up again by the strap themselves! The toy is only suitable for front-facing travel because of this design.
The mat has a farm theme with pictures of various farm animals - rooster, cow, sheep, ducks and a dog. Each of these can be made to light up and play their specific animal noise when you child presses the matching button on the steering wheel. This is especially good for travel in the winter when it is too dark in the early evening to read stories or look at other toys in the car.
Leah likes the sheep best, and I have spent an entire 20 minute journey listening to nothing but continuous "Baaaaas!" Sadly there is no volume control, and no way for a front seat passenger to turn the thing off!!!
A nice touch is that the on/off switch says "Hello" and "goodbye" to your child when operated. If accidentally left on, the batteries do not run low as the toy remains on standby until a button is pressed.
There is another button on the wheel which play "Old Macdonald" and at the same time the lights on the mat move around from one animal to another, encouraging your toddler to follow the light around and stimulating her sight. A final button squeaks if pressed hard which was the last one that Leah got the hang of, but is now her favourite (for maximum parent irritation.)
The steering wheel is made of plastic but covered with cloth, which makes it hard to clean - it can be wiped, but would easily stain. The mat is also wipe-clean only although it is out of th e reach of little fingers when in the car and so this is not as likely to be a problem. However this design does make the wheel more interesting texturally as the toddler has to feel for the buttons underneath the cloth and press them. As the child has to hold the wheel in one hand and press buttons with the other, motor control and hand-eye co-ordination is developed while playing.
The wheel also teaches cause and effect (pushing buttons to get certain noises) as well as encouraging imaginative play. Leah sometimes forgets about the animals and just steers round the corners along with me!
Although the noise of the rooster 30 times in a row can be slightly irksome to the sensitive parent, it still beats whinging, which is something I just cannot bear!
After three months of solid use, Leah is still not bored of this toy and finds new ways to amuse herself with it as she gets older. A child who didn't like animals quite as much as her might not appreciate it as much, and we are considering moving it into the other car so that it maintains some "novelty" value rather than have it in the car she is in every day. Like any toy, eventually she will no doubt bore of it.
Highly recommended for a first birthday present...
Age range: 12-36m Price: around £19.99 Batteries: AA x 3
