Evenflo Gleeful Sea ExerSaucer Review

Is your baby ready for an activity seat? Are you currently working on your baby registry and trying to decide which pieces of baby gear you want to put on there? Evenflo recently sent me their brand new Evenflo Gleeful Sea ExerSaucer so that I can review it for you and you can decide if it’s the right one for your baby!

 

Evenflo Gleeful Sea ExerSaucer Details

The ExerSaucer Gleeful Sea from Evenflo is an activity seat designed to grow with your baby. It is the classic ExerSaucer we’ve all grown to know and love but when your child outgrows that feature, it converts to an activity table.

Like other ExerSaucers, the Gleeful Sea ExerSaucer offers 360 degrees of spin, but also incorporates a soft bounce-ring for added fun. With the addition of three AAA batteries (not included), one of the toys offers lights and sounds for your baby.

Unlike prior ExerSaucers that were made entirely of plastic, this one offers wood accents and a sleek design to compliment your home decor.

My Evenflo Gleeful Sea ExerSaucer Review

Initial Thoughts

I loved the look of this table! Not only do I appreciate the incorporation of wood to make it more aesthetically pleasing in our home, it has a much more sophisticated look overall. As big fans of the beach, I also loved the aquatic theme of this seat.

Setup

Setup on this ExerSaucer took me about 20 minutes. The legs went on just fine and I love how easy they are to adjust. The bounce ring went in just fine too. My main problem was with the seat cover. It was a little difficult to connect to the seat and I worked up a sweat getting it on.

Seat Cover Installation Tip: I made the mistake of push the seat cover down into the plastic seat before I had every single one of the fasteners on the fabric attached to the plastic seat. Once I pulled the seat cover back up, it was much easier to attach the final fasteners. After you’ve attached all of the fasteners from the fabric seat cover to the plastic seat, then push it into the seat. 

I also want to note that the circular plastic piece that goes on the bottom of the ExerSaucer (where baby’s feet rest) does not clip into place. The rug in our living room is so plush that it basically prohibited this piece from sitting in place perfectly since it doesn’t lock in place. Therefore, you’ll want to use it on a flat surface or firm carpet.

Attaching the Suction Toys to the Evenflo Gleeful Sea ExerSaucer

This proved to be a HUGE challenge for me. Frankly, I was ready to write this ExerSaucer off as a failure until I figured out a few tricks to get these toys attached. Once you learn the tricks to attach these toys, they are great, so don’t write it off because of this issues.

If you’ve stumbled across this review having already purchased this ExerSaucer and you are certain that these suction cup toys do not work, rest assured that they DO suction to the table and I’m going to tell you how! I’ve provided video instruction below, along with written directions to help you with this.

1. The first thing you’ll want to do is get a damp rag. Wet the bottom of the suction cup and the spot on the ExerSaucer where you’d like to place the toy.
2. Now you need to make sure that the toy base is in the unlocked position.
3. The easiest way to do this is by putting your hand underneath the toy, directly on the suction cup, and then turning it towards the left until you feel it reach a stop. Yes, that’s right, turn the white suction cup. This will make sure the suction cup is in the unlocked position.
4. Once the suction cup is in the unlock position, place the toy in position on the ExerSaucer. (If it took you a little while to reach that point and it’s now no longer wet, you can moisten it again before placing it on the table.)
5. Push the toy down into place without turning it.
6. The directions say to push down and twist to lock. Do NOT push down while you are twisting the toy to the locking position. You’ve already pushed the toy into place in step 5, so now slowly turn the base clockwise. It’s key to do this slowly because then you will feel it when it hits the locked position. If you overturn it, it will not lock and you’ll have to start all over again with Step 2.
7. Once you feel the suction base reach the locked position, you’re done! It should be solidly in place now!
8. When you are ready to remove, slowly turn the base counterclockwise until you feel it reach the unlock position.

While getting the toys into place was initially quite a challenge for me, now that I’ve figured out how to install them, I see a great benefit in having these toys and the suction ability. Some of them are small enough to tuck into the diaper bag so when we go out to eat, I can take a toy along to attach to the table for baby or even transfer them to a highchair for playtime while I’m fixing dinner.

Storage

Ease of storage is something that’s always been important to me when it comes to baby gear. Those things can overrun a house quite quickly, however when you’re planning to have more children, sometimes you don’t want to just get rid of an item. Since this ExerSaucer converts to a table, you may never really desire to pack it away. However, I’m pleased to share that should you need to put it into storage (or just want to take it with you on a trip, the legs come off quite easily, making it much easier to store or transport, compared to older ExerSaucer models. And, since the toys are able to be removed, the makes storage even more compact.

Converting to a Table

I really appreciate when a piece of baby gear offers you multiple ways to use it and extends the life of the item. The ability to change the ExerSaucer into a table is a huge plus in my book! I really like the green storage cup in the middle of the table. It’s perfect for storing crayons for art time. In fact, the toys that hang down from this toy can be removed and used as stencils when your child is older.  You don’t have to just use this table as an art table though. My kids love using it as a table for building with blocks, LEGOS, etc.

Overall Thoughts on the Evenflo Gleeful Sea ExerSaucer

Now that I’ve learned the tricks to attached the toys, I’m quite pleased with this ExerSaucer! I really love the look of it in our home and the versatility it offers. I’m excited to use it later this year once our newest baby is a few months old. In the meantime, my kids are enjoying using the table as a building station for LEGOs.

You can purchase the Evenflo Gleeful Sea ExerSaucer at Evenflo.com or your favorite baby gear retailer,  like Walmart, Babies”R”Us, and Amazon. Currently, there’s actually a coupon for $18 off this ExerSaucer when you purchase through Amazon.com. I’m not sure when it expires.

I also have your chance to win an Evenflo Gleeful Sea ExerSaucer! If you’d like a chance to win, just enter using the Giveaway Tools entry form below. Good luck!

This giveaway is not affiliated with Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, or Pinterest. Evenflo is responsible for prize fulfillment.