Little Partners’ Original Learning Tower: A Friday Favorite

Child safety is a top priority for parents and kitchen safety is near the top of the list. Back in the days of Twinkies, see-through corded telephones and high-top shoes, cool gadgets for kid safety didn’t come in multitude. Now, parents make smarter decisions to keep their kiddos safe from dangers. Even ones lurking in the most innocent of places: the kitchen. For any parent with kids, letting them help in the kitchen can be one of two things: a royal pain in the butt or loads of fun.

Cooking with kids is loads of fun because the kitchen creates an opportunity for wonderful memories and it’s great bonding time. Cooking and baking enlightens little brains to the wide world of math, logic and cause and effect. Family time spent in the kitchen enhances a child’s language skills and introduces them to new and exciting skillsets that will help them later in life.

I also say cooking with kids is a pain in the butt, because let’s face it- kids are messy. They are oftentimes not very good listeners (though I’m only speaking of my two and four year-olds haha).  Plus there’s always a possibility of someone falling, getting burned, breaking stuff or having a meltdown.  All of which will quickly diminish any hope of it being a good experience for either one of you. Am I right?!

One remedy to ensure you and your child have a good experience in the kitchen is to marry their independence and allowing freedom to help all while staying safe. Giving the kid an opportunity to control their own space while laying down a solid foundation (literally in this case) for their safety. It’s a win/win for everyone.

That’s why Mommy Convos is so excited to share with you one of our favorite kid products: The Original Learning Tower (by Little Partners). In this article, I’m going to go over all the  details of this genius contraption and why we won’t ever live without it while we have littles running amuck.

So, what is the Original Learning Tower?

 

The Original Learning Tower is a solid wood “tower” kids climb up and into to be at counter-height. This gives them the boost they need without using a bar stool or kitchen chair they can easily fall from. This is NOT to say that you’re a bad parent for letting your kid use one of these alternatives! I have to admit, for the past two-ish years, my kids have been using this horrible folding stool to climb on… It’s freakishly unstable and put me in panic mode every time my oldest wanted to help me make cookies or something…  I’m surprised my children have survived this long, but I’m SO HAPPY to have a safer place for them to be! Anywho, the Learning Tower is made of solid wood, easy to assemble, and works for a variety of ways. Check out the list of pros and cons below:

Pros

1. The rails keep kids safe while cooking, baking, crafting or even helping wash the dishes.

2. The Learning Tower is made of solid wood (birch and poplar), so it’s STURDY and durable. There’s nothing flimsy or questionable about the make of this product. Definitely a good quality piece of furniture.

3. Adjustable. The platform inside the tower is fully adjustable to different heights and easily adapts from one kid to the next- no tools required.

4. Speaking of adjustable – the Learning Tower is made for a wide range of ages (18 months to six years) so it will easily grow with your child. It’s also weight tested up to 500 lbs. though my hubby and I haven’t confirmed that yet haha.

5. It’s roomy. We have two kiddos (ages two and four) and they both fit in the Learning Tower with no problems. The platform itself measures 15 x 18 inches so there’s plenty of room to move around.

6. There’s a little “lip” on the top inside of the platform to prevent kiddos from sliding off when it’s at its highest adjustment.

7. The Leaning Tower comes in a variety of colors and finishes. Listed on their site, the tower comes in: Natural. Soft White, Dark Cherry, Espresso, Ebony, Apple Green, and Red.

8. Since the tower comes in so many colors and finishes, it will look great in any kitchen space.

9. Easy to clean. Just wipe it down with a damp cloth and you’re good to go.

10. You can purchase attachments for additional creativity and learning. Check out how cute these playhouse kits are! Or you can toss a sheet or blanket over the top for an instant princess castle. (This is my girls’ preferred method of use for the Learning Tower haha.)  🙂

Cons

1. The Learning Tower is large in size and does not fold up for easy storage. The full dimensions are 39 x 24 x 22 inches and it weighs about 30 lbs. It isn’t gigantic, but it’s definitely not really meant for super small spaces… If you  do have a smaller kitchen space, the Learning Tower will pretty much always be seen or be in the way unless you have a designated spot for it.

2. Along with the product’s bulkiness, the price tag is a bit hefty too. This product is awesome and of very good quality compared to other versions we’ve researched (who were nearly as expensive), but forking out the money all at once might not be doable for some budgets.

This post is sponsored by Little Partners in exchange for an honest review of the Learning Tower, and I can honestly say we LOVE it. I was excited to have a safer alternative for my kids to cook with us in the kitchen.  I love that my kids have the ability to be part of family activities in the kitchen on their terms. Our kids thrive on their independence so any opportunity to give them more while making sure they’re safe and secure is a huge plus for us. The Learning Tower quality is amazing for the price and I would definitely consider it a wonderful addition to our home. We use it daily!

If you have one of these or have thought about getting one, please leave a comment with your thoughts. We would love to hear from you!

Xo,

Tiffaynee