The Volvo of Strollers...And Reflections on Parenting

After I lost my stroller in an airline luggage accident, I have been painfully suffering with a cheapo stroller I picked up at Target in a rush. Lizzie's head only fits if the canopy isn't covering her, it doesn't steer well at all, and it is too short for me (I'm not that tall of a person so that's pretty small). After feeling like I was pushing a shopping cart with a bad wheel around everywhere I decided to research strollers. I wanted light weight. I also needed something that could accommodate a 34 pound, 35.5 inch tall little girl. I wanted to be able to steer it and be holding onto something else. After much searching, the kids and I hit Babies-R-Us yesterday and picked up this little number. I love it! LOVE. IT.
I tested it out like any smart mother would. I instructed Cooper to find something in the store that resembled the weight and size of a Grande Starbucks non-fat, no whip, 1 pump Mocha. After he had found something relatively close (a heavy bottle of suntan lotion), I tested several strollers with Lizzie sitting inside. A true test, in my opinion, of a stroller is whether you can steer it and hold onto your Starbucks without scalding yourself or your darling child. Then I let Cooper try pushing Lizzie around a little bit for those times when I would need him to push and steer while I wrestle with bags and possibly Nate. The Volvo was the best choice for the $.
Babies-R-Us was filled with pregnant women clutching their Consumer Report's Guides to Baby Products with multiple Post It notes sticking out. They were either with their darling husbands or their mothers and they were dutifully testing out strollers based on safety guidelines. There were no other women with three children instructing their oldest to find something that resembled her favorite coffee drink so they could test out the stroller. There were NO other women who were letting their eight year old son cruise around the store with their two year old daughter to see how well he could steer the stroller. These women politely smiled at me, but looked appropriately horrified that I would pick a stroller based on whether or not I could hold my coffee without spilling it or how well a child could steer it. I also would have been horrified WAY back in 1999 when I was in Babies-R-Us with my husband or mother carrying my copy of Consumer Report's Guide to Baby Products (color coded Post It notes sticking out mind you). But now, eight years and three children later, my parenting style has relaxed a bit. I've got my priorities in order. Safety Guidelines??? Bwah hah ha!!! Bring on the coffee!!!