When we had Lily, a Bumbo was on our list of things we wanted, but didn’t need right away. So when it came time for Lily to start learning to sit up, we didn’t have one.
We tried to get her to learn how to sit up by holding her, and were having OK success. We then remember a friend had a Bumbo and we were able to borrow it, however, we hardly used it.
Turns out, that our practice was all Lily needed. By the time we got the Bumbo, she was already sitting up pretty well and sitting in the Bumbo was not something she had much interest in. It was confining and although she didn’t mind it she didn’t really like it.
Come to find out, that our friends little girl pretty much hated it and they didn’t really use it either.
Bumbos are a good idea, but they aren’t really needed. Learning to sit up is just like learning everything else with a baby, it comes from time and practice.
Personally I’d say save the $35 dollars and skip the Bumbo.
I can agree with that in a way. There was a short period of time when my son enjoyed sitting in it and I feel that it helped in a way. Although for the most part, he learned to sit up with a wall of couch pillows surrounding him. We quickly retired the Bumbo but another family member is getting some good use out of it. I would say that Its just a case of all kids being different. What works for one child doesn’t necessarily work for others.