For the Love of Renting Toys

Started in 2006 and ran by my friend Elaine, Rent That Toy! provides toys for rental so that parents can get a variety of toys for their kids (from birth to 4 years old) to play with at a lower cost and without the hassle of storing them when the kids outgrow them.

I like that their website is pretty easy to navigate and you may shop by the age of your child or by the brand of toy that you like.

Screenshot of the website

They offer a variety of well-known brands (see screenshot above) and some of the most popular ones include Evenflo Exersaucers and Little Tikes slides, ride-ons and kitchen sets.

When my girl was about 6 months old, we rented the Jumperoo for her as I wanted something that could entertain her, train her motor skills but does not cost too much.

Now that she is almost 4 years old, I decided on the Little Tikes Super Chef Kitchen for her because no way in hell would I buy a massive thing like this that costs more than my most expensive pair of shoes, takes up serious real estate and will likely be abandoned by my attention-deficit preschooler in, oh I don't know, 5 minutes? True story.

Little Tikes Super Chef Kitchen

She loved it and played with it for all of 2 hours before she got bored with it. She still played with it once a week (when she's in the mood to cook, she says) but for the other days, that poor kitchen just sat around the house collecting dust! I was immensely grateful that we didn't buy this!

Needless to say, we return the kitchen one month later so that some other child can enjoy it and rented the Little Tikes Large Slide instead. The girl has been bugging us to get it for her every time we went to Toy'r'us and the hubby almost bought it for her (of course I vehemently objected)!

Our house is filled to the brim with more things than I can count with my hands and feet (my kids are really privileged!!).
See how the large slide took up so much space in our house (and ours is considered relatively large)!
Unless you have a garden in your front/back yard, it's probably not a good idea to buy this.

She literally screamed (oww my ears!) when she got home from school. "What is this? Is it for me?!? Yippee!!" she yelled.

Climbing up and sliding down

"I can sleep on this mama!"

And I became the best mum in the world again (for like maybe two days, until I start yelling at her to pick up her toys and go to bed). She loved the slide more than the kitchen and played with it almost everyday so at least that made all the lugging (it's not light!) and finding a good spot for it in the house worth it.

Nevertheless, after just a few weeks, the slide was yet again played with less and less so it just sits there and takes up space in our house. Thankfully we have the option of returning it!

As for my boy, we got the Evenflo Exersaucer Mega Farmyard for him.

My boy loves pushing himself to stand in this Exersaucer, which can be adjusted to fit him perfectly

Your babies can feel free to bite on the toy/s (they always do, there's no stopping them!) as Elaine ensures that all the toys are always sterilised, washed (if fabric) and in good condition before renting them out.

We put him in the Exersaucer whenever we are busy doing something around the house and need something to entertain him. He really enjoys the Exersaucer and unlike his sister, was able to play in it for longer periods of time.

Turning himself 360 degrees to enjoy the different toys on the Exersaucer.
He is particularly intrigued by the one with music and lights.

Looking at his own reflection in the cute apple-shape mirror

Why Toy Rental / Rent That Toy! is good:

1) Environmentally-friendly: it gets used again and again. Minimal wastage.
2) Does not take up space: Return it when the child does not play with it anymore
3) More variety: you may rent as many as you like over many months
4) Less expensive: most of the toys cost less than $50 to rent
5) Hassle-free: sure you can buy new and re-sell but to me that just takes too much time and effort.
6) Loyalty Programme: members can earn points, which can be redeemed for discounts on future orders!
7) Toys for a Party: Rent That Toy! also provides toys for kid's birthday parties so that the kids can be entertained while parents can enjoy adult conversations.


And now for our GIVEAWAY!
We are giving away $40 Rent That Toy store credits to THREE lucky readers each!

Simply follow ALL these steps to qualify:

(1) Leave a comment on this blog post on your child's favourite toy from Rent That Toy! (hint: you can get some ideas by visiting their website)

(2) Like both MadPsychMum and Rent That Toy on Facebook

(3) Enter all THREE of the above entries into the Rafflecopter widget below
(Don't forget to do this as we'll be using the widget to pick the winner!)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The other entries are optional but you may enter them for more chances of winning! Good luck! =)

Terms and Conditions of this giveaway:
a) This giveaway ends on 31st May 2014 (Saturday) and is only open to readers living in Singapore.
b) The $40 store credit is valid till 31st July 2014 for one month of toy rental only
c) Participants must enter all 3 entries into Rafflecopter in order to qualify (I always check!).
d) The winners will be drawn randomly via Rafflecopter and must respond within 3 days after being contacted by me otherwise another winner will be drawn.

~~~~~

P.S: Enjoy a 10% discount at Rent That Toy! by simply entering this discount code: "MAD10OFF" (valid until 30 September 2014).


Disclosure: Complimentary toy rental was received from Rent That Toy for the purposes of this review and giveaway. No monetary compensation was received; all opinions are my own.