EDITOR’S NOTE
The Graco Soothe My Way Swing is currently widely unavailable and might be on the way to retirement. We still like the 4moms mamaRoo Multi-Motion Baby Swing as a similar, but more expensive, product. Also, the Graco EveryWay Soother mentioned in this article has been discontinued.
The fact that the Graco Soothe My Way Swing promises to be a rocker, a swing, a soother, and a musical vibrating seat all in one definitely got my attention.
But then I remembered the old adage: “if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is.”
Despite a few things that need improvement which I explain below, we recommend the Soothe My Way swing for its full set of features at a price that beats the leading competitors.
See it In Action
Graco provided Experienced Mommy with this swing for our review, and Becky shows you what she found.
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The Best Parts of the Soothe My Way Swing
We’ve reviewed a large number of the worst and best baby swings here at EM. So we know the features that are sure to wow.
Multi-Tasking Baby Gear
Babies require a lot of stuff. You know that to be true if you’ve ever tried going on a trip with a child under 1-year-old! The Graco Soothe My Way Swing and Rocker is doing all us parents a favor by doing more than one job. That means you need less real estate within your home and less money out of your pocket to give your baby what they need.
First, this is a swing. It moves and sways your baby into sleepy bliss. Simple. Supports up to 25 pounds.
Second, it’s a soother. That’s a special type of swing that sits up on a pedestal and moves your baby in all kinds of directions.
Third, it’s a rocker seat. Just click it off the base and take the seat to wherever you need it. Use it until baby is 18 pounds. You can rock it or baby can rock it all alone by wiggling around.
Fourth, it can be a play chair for baby. Add some fun toys to the adjustable and removable toy circle up top and turn on the two-speed vibration feature and it’s just like a baby bouncy chair you’d find elsewhere.
One of the best parts is that it doesn’t take a Ph.D. in gravitational applications to figure out how to get the seat out of the base. Lift to remove, set in on to secure (with a loud “click!”). No levers, no buttons, no problems. Unless you have a strong and determined older sibling, then you could potentially have a problem. But I digress.
A Movement for Every Kind of Baby
Let’s do a little movement math. There are 8 total movement types that can be done in 2 directions, so there is a grand total of 16 individual movements for your baby to experience. No matter if they are a snuggly, gentle movement type of baby or an aggressive bouncing movement type of baby, the Graco Soothe My Way will work for them.
Here are all the movements:
- Regular swing
- Arch
- Bounce
- Circle
- Wave
- Zig-Zag
- Figure 8
- Sway
There’s also a vibration option on the seat. You can add in a softer or stronger vibration setting with any motion for a whole ‘nother level of soothing. Or use it in a stationary seat to mix things up!
Music is a Must-Have
Music is a serious game-changer when it comes to calming babies, and you can’t change my mind about that. This seat has several ways to use music in addition to motion.
There are 3 different volume levels. You can drown out the sound of the swing motor or compliment it, whichever works.
The 10 melodies don’t suck, and that’s a feature to celebrate! They aren’t those terrible melodies that get stuck in your head for days and days. It’s got more of a classical feel to it rather than it being cheesy nursery rhymes.
The nature sounds are what sells it for me. There are 5, including white noise (my family’s personal favorite), rainforest, and the heartbeat, which kind of sounds like someone hammering on something.
Super Seat
This rocker seat is not a flimsy afterthought to the swing. In fact, I think it’s the highlight of the whole swing.
First of all, this thing is solid, The base is thick and there’s a big plastic part that clicks down into the base swing, so it’s bottom-heavy (relatively speaking) and the bottom rails are very solid.
Next, it has a lot of padding. The 5-point safety harness is padded, albeit scantly. Then there’s the infant body support. It’s a plush pillow that goes under and all around the baby. It is contoured to the seat so there’s no weird bunching. You can remove the pillow when baby needs a bit more space in the seat.
The fabric itself is soft. It’s like cozy jersey cotton. I would say that it seems like it might absorb a stain, but it is washable, so it has that going for it.
Finally, the seat has 3 recline angles. This is so important! The upright angle is the best position for babies with reflux issues. The flat angle is wonderful for babies that want to feel like they’re laying down to go to sleep. And the middle position? I’m not sure what it is for other than a transitional period between the two. But it’s still an option, and options are good!
Cute Colors, Great Price
These are kind of petty features, but for some of us, they do matter!
You can get the Soothe My Way in a neutral light sage green and gray, or for the girl mammas, there is a gray and pink option. For both, the only part that is colored is a little edging on the body support and one of the toys. If you removed the body support and used your own toys, it would be a completely neutral option to work for any future babies.
Then there’s the price. I feel that this is a good price point for what you get. Considering that it’s a rocker, swing, and baby seat in one, you may actually save money if you go with this choice! That being said, these types of multi-movement swings are more expensive than normal swing options.
Soothe My Way Swing, Imperfections?
Nothing is perfect. Alas, the Soothe My Way has a couple of areas for improvement.
Jerky Movements
You can see this in the review video below, but the movements definitely have a robotic flavor to them. They aren’t completely smooth and there’s a little jerkiness to the movements, especially at the points where they start and stop.
Honestly, your baby probably isn’t that picky (hopefully) and it’s not jerky enough to, say, jerk them out of a deep sleep. But if they could lube up the engine parts for a smoother movement, I think it would work much better.
Assembly Short, But Tedious
I can’t say that assembly is quick and easy. But, it isn’t that hard, either. There are a few quirks to be aware of when assembling.
First, put the battery in at the beginning. The housing for the battery that powers the seat’s vibration is hidden underneath, and it’s a pain to get to once everything is put together.
Next, be aware of the dreaded triple snap sandwich! This is what we are calling the portion of the seat fabric that has stacking snaps that require A LOT of hand/arm strength to snap together and stay together.
This snap problem will again rear its ugly head when you wash the seat fabric after an accident. Because it’s not a matter of if, but when your baby has an explosion of bodily fluid in the seat.
AC Power Only
The seat can run on just batteries, but the base has to have a power outlet.
For some, that’s not a big deal; for others (those of us in older, smaller homes) power outlets are a precious resource. They aren’t in the best spots, and they’re usually occupied by other things.
Plus, if you want to put this in the middle of the floor, like in your living room in front of the couch, you are going to need an extension cord, as the cord is only about 4 feet long.
Again, maybe not an issue, but it is something to consider!
Too Tall?
The height of this swing seems to be a point of contention.
On the one hand, it’s definitely taller than your average compact baby swing. This extra height is good because A) It keeps baby away from pets and siblings, and B) It is better for parents’ backs and moms with C-sections. Plus, baby is up higher and can feel like they are a part of things when they are awake.
However, the height does pose an extra safety risk. Baby swings are normally made to be close to the ground because babies can and will find their way out of the swing. As a mom who has personally seen my monkey child, who was buckled in at the hips, dangle out the side of a swing, some extra height is definitely concerning!
Graco Soothe My Way Swing vs. Graco Every Way Soother
When I saw this for the first time, I was like “isn’t that the Every Way Soother?”
The Graco EveryWay Soother
And while they do look totally identical and accomplish basically the same thing, there are some small differences:
- Soothe My Way is multidirectional. The EveryWay’s seat is fixed forward.
- The EveryWay Soother is even taller than the Soothe My Way.
And well, that’s basically it. From the price to the swing movements, everything else is the same. The Soothe My Way does seem to be an optimized version of the EveryWay Soother, which didn’t get great reviews due to motor problems and a short lifespan.
Final Recommendation
Overall, I would recommend the Soothe My Way Swing by Graco to moms and dads everywhere.
I like it because it does multiple jobs and it has a reasonable price tag. It’s reminiscent of the stellar-but-pricey 4moms mamaRoo Multi-Motion Bluetooth Baby Swing (we have a full MamaRoo review here on EM, by the way).
I think this will have a better motor and lifespan than the EveryWay Soother, which is the predecessor to this baby swing.
Overall, it is going to soothe your baby one way or the other. Free up your hands for some chores (or some sleep) and save space in your home. It’s a win-win!
