I have many good memories about my grandparents. Both sets were married more than fifty years and worked hard to shower us grand-kids with love. When I think back on the happiest times of my childhood, usually the memories involve my grandparents.
There is one memory I never understood until I was much older. I was standing outside of my father’s parents’ closed garage as my dad lifted the door. His eyes widened as large as mine as we saw a garage stuffed (and I mean stuffed, you can’t enter the garage without climbing on top of piles) full of trinkets. It was the coolest thing I had ever seen – an endless supply of our awesome Christmas and birthday presents. My dad – on the other hand – was not as happy as I. Apparently my grandfather loved infomercials. If he saw it on TV, he had to have it. His garage, as well as his bank account, were proof.
I don’t remember much more about that day but have reflected on that vision often within the last year. You see, I’m afraid my middle child was born with the fascination by infomercial gene. She is constantly begging for the awesome must haves proudly boasted on Nick Jr. She recently tuned five, and the top two items on her list were a Stretchkin and a Snackeez cup. To her excitement, she received both for her birthday. I decided the Stretchkin’s performance was worthy of a Bonafide Review.
The TV commercial shows children dancing and flipping with their Stretchkins stretching to the limits along with them. Now, my child is taller than most children in her preschool class, but she’s in preschool. The children in the commercial appear to be much older and taller. Their Stretchkin really stretches! My daughter has tried to imitate many of the moves she’s seen in the commercial, but her toy is not as flexible. Within 24 hours, I was already performing a quick stitch job under one of the arms.
She’s complained her toy doesn’t stretch like the commercial so she no longer attempts to do the splits or cartwheels. She mainly straps her (I’ve been corrected when I refer to the toy as a boy) to her feet and simply walks around the house. Yesterday she asked me to stitch her up again. The straps on the toy’s feet are fraying and tearing from the foot.
We’ve had the toy for 12 days, and she hasn’t played with the toy each day. In my opinion, the quality of the toy is poor. I wish I could say it keeps her moving, but she’s so afraid of ripping it again, she moves less when it’s strapped to her hands and feet.
The commercial claims the toy is “durable and life-size. The Stretchkins love exercise.” Maybe our Stretchkin was a dud, but she’s needed stitches twice and can’t do much more than cuddle.
I guess the best thing about the toy is my daughter loves it. Even though it doesn’t live up to the hype on the commercial, it’s her buddy. She’s happy with lugging it around and letting it sit and watch her play with her Barbie Dolls. If you want a soft, cuddly, plush toy that can be strapped to your child or hugged throughout the night, I recommend the toy. If you want to be able to do all of the gymnastics or hoops shooting claimed in the commercial, you may need to have a needle and thread handy.
BonafideReview 