Do you secretly judge parents by their strollers??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm laughing out loud that this thread has now surpassed (in length) even most of the threads on extended breastfeeding and WOH versus SAH!

Signed, a mom who pushes around an apparently wannabe status symbol that was picked out by her Honda-driving DH because it had all the features we wanted and is made by a mom and pop company.

Ideally, however, this thread would mention whether you leave your child's shoes on in the stroller.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

AdequateParent wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

AdequateParent wrote:I can't for the life of me figure out why we have only 17 female senators and 73 women in the U.S. House. Are there any sociologists out there who can explain this to me?

Maybe because men don't give a rat's ass about stroller brands.

And in answer to "why are you on this thread if you don't care," cuz it's an education.

So you're blaming the snobbery of women on the DCUM forum instead of institutionalized sexism for low female representation in the Senate? You're awesome.

Institutionalized sexism plays an important role. We've got to fight back. When women with an opportunity to do something that actually matters voluntarily opt back into middle school we make it worse. Do you think this helps the world take us seriously? Does anything for our daughters? Has even one microgram of worth? Makes the tiniest crack in institutionalized sexism? It abets and affirms sexism.

Someone accused me of being too PC a week or two ago. Enjoy this one. Back to work I go.

Please stop. You are turning a hysterically entertaining thread into something boring...much more fun to read about the person defending her UPPA baby stroller to the rest of us.

Ma'am, I wish I got commissions... All my pregnant friends bought one after watching us using it and I rec it all the time when people stop me to ask about the stroller.
I'm the first to have a baby among my friends and I did extensive research before purchasing it. I just love it! There's not one thing to complain about it. And I'm glad I'm making your day a bit brighter. Seems like you don't have much to laugh about in life...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:12:48, if you're really close to people, yes, you know if they are in debt or have a high net worth. I don't know numbers, but when you see people sell their $800,000 houses and build one for $1.7 million, and the wife quit her job, yeah, I think they're doing fine.

I am not sure I entirely agree. DH and I are friends with a couple that clearly thinks they make WAY more than us. I have a rough estimate how much friend's DH makes. They would stop speaking to us if they knew we made 3x what they make, judging from his reaction on another person salary as a medical resident. They bought a $1 million dollar house and have a City Mini and an UB stroller, btw. They budget every penny and no longer spend freely. If you aren't into conspicuous consumption it is really hard to judge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Additionally, it could be observed that 150 years of US feminists didn't agitate the social order so that y'all could use your dearly bought educations in order to be uber-catty to each other into your 40s.

Not exactly: very few feminists agitated to change the social class order; most wanted to be treated as equals to men of their same social standing, not be considered the same as women of lower social classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is a $600+ stroller needed for "urban streets". Are there strollers out there that can't handle sidewalks?

Have you walked in DC lately? Uneven bricks, tree root eruptions, old curb stones with no wheelchair cut: it's bad for just walking! The metro are just as bad; I hate getting stuck in the gap at the platform with one of those little wobbly plastic wheels. Maybe in the better parts of town they have wide, newly-paved sidewalks, and if you never take Metro then you'd be great. But not so in many areas.

I assume from your response that you are living in an expensive area of DC. Given that the majority of the city lives below the poverty line how do you think these people manage to stroll their little ones around the same uneven bricks?

I think they manage the way I did pushing all the other too-short, poorly-constructed, wobbly-wheeled, snapping-plastic-parts strollers: poorly, and in a way that gives them a lot of back pain.

I am not saying that people don't manage with products that are less than ideal for the circumstances, I'm just saying that I don't begrudge people the ability to buy things that are more ideal and make their lives easier. Honestly, I wish all strollers were well-constructed; I was saying to my husband when we were shopping for one, "I really don't know how regular people are going to be able to afford a stroller once they recall all the Gracos and their competitors." Not to even get into how average-income people will be able to afford a crib in the future!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is a $600+ stroller needed for "urban streets". Are there strollers out there that can't handle sidewalks?

Have you walked in DC lately? Uneven bricks, tree root eruptions, old curb stones with no wheelchair cut: it's bad for just walking! The metro are just as bad; I hate getting stuck in the gap at the platform with one of those little wobbly plastic wheels. Maybe in the better parts of town they have wide, newly-paved sidewalks, and if you never take Metro then you'd be great. But not so in many areas.

I assume from your response that you are living in an expensive area of DC. Given that the majority of the city lives below the poverty line how do you think these people manage to stroll their little ones around the same uneven bricks?

I think they manage the way I did pushing all the other too-short, poorly-constructed, wobbly-wheeled, snapping-plastic-parts strollers: poorly, and in a way that gives them a lot of back pain.

I am not saying that people don't manage with products that are less than ideal for the circumstances, I'm just saying that I don't begrudge people the ability to buy things that are more ideal and make their lives easier. Honestly, I wish all strollers were well-constructed; I was saying to my husband when we were shopping for one, "I really don't know how regular people are going to be able to afford a stroller once they recall all the Gracos and their competitors." Not to even get into how average-income people will be able to afford a crib in the future!

The sad truth is that products made from good quality materials (wood, metal, and durable fabrics) are now priced above the reach of most families. Which means they have to buy cheaper stuff that breaks or is recalled and needs to be replaced, costing more over the long run (in some cases) than if they'd been able to come up the higher amount in a single instance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I had to laugh on the inside when an acquaintance told me she was getting a $600 stroller but wouldn't spring $1000 for a doula (and was gung ho into a certain method of natural childbirth). I guess it's all about priorities. Personally, I'd rather have a successful childbirth the way I wanted it to go with whatever resources it took to help make it happen (not making a comment here about natural vs. mediated vs. anything in between) rather than a silly stroller that may not even be the right fit for my child and lifestyle. If I had to go back, I'd keep the $150 stroller I bought and spend any extra money I had on a doula - just to have kept my DH sane and calm during my labor & delivery. Would have been worth it weight in gold...

Wow, what a non-sequitur we have here! I paid 600 bucks for my stroller (that I never use, turns out) and declined to spend on a doula I knew I wouldn't need or want (didn't want someone else up in my face). I DID have a successful, natural childbirth, without a doula. Shocking, I know! (not really -- women have been doing it since the beginning of time, and a doula is a new trend, just like overpriced strollers).

[Anonymous]

14:03 sorry to break it to you but earlier years the trend was a midwife along with all your female relatives around telling you when to push

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:11:56, sorry you couldn't get a job interview on your merits.

you're just jealous because you have to apply and be in corporate setting to cause a good impression.

Well, 1323, I am pretty sure that I got the job interview (and the job) based on my merits...but I am glad that I had that lovely stroller to get the ball rolling. You never know where an opportunity will come from!

[Anonymous]

AdequateParent wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

AdequateParent wrote:I can't for the life of me figure out why we have only 17 female senators and 73 women in the U.S. House. Are there any sociologists out there who can explain this to me?

Maybe because men don't give a rat's ass about stroller brands.

And in answer to "why are you on this thread if you don't care," cuz it's an education.

So you're blaming the snobbery of women on the DCUM forum instead of institutionalized sexism for low female representation in the Senate? You're awesome.

Institutionalized sexism plays an important role. We've got to fight back. When women with an opportunity to do something that actually matters voluntarily opt back into middle school we make it worse. Do you think this helps the world take us seriously? Does anything for our daughters? Has even one microgram of worth? Makes the tiniest crack in institutionalized sexism? It abets and affirms sexism.

Someone accused me of being too PC a week or two ago. Enjoy this one. Back to work I go.

You contribute to sexism when you imply that men are vastly less snobby or judgmental. Have you ever spent time reading forums that are comprised of mainly male posters? I have, and though the topics are different, they can be just as judgmental.

[Anonymous]

we're STILL talking about this?!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:14:03 sorry to break it to you but earlier years the trend was a midwife along with all your female relatives around telling you when to push

Really? So your expert anthropological view tells us that the "midwives" (perhaps the "oldest profession" is not really what we think it is?) were around since the dawn of mankind? Fascinating. Now that's job security for you!

BTW, nobody had to tell me how or when to push. If everyone around you shuts the hell up, and you listen to your body, it tells you. But really, it was a non-sequitur to begin with. Back to the strollers! I like my phil and ted's. We got it because I figured we'd have number 2 soon after number 1 and I didn't want to spring for two strollers. Now number one is 18 months and we still haven't started trying for two, so maybe it was useless. Especially since he doesn't really dig the stroller so much. At first he was more of a carrier baby and now he wants to walk or be carried. We use the stroller for the zoo and for long hikes. Still, it was worth it, especially since the phil and ted's holds its resale value really well. What many of you are forgetting is that we can resell our higher (or in my case, mid-level) strollers and get back near what we put into it, AND have a good stroller. Of course, I'll probably give mine to my sister who is trying to get pregnant at the moment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm curious, are you judging me? I have a Phil and Ted Sport with a doubles kit/jump seat. I have a 2 old and an infant and bought it when I was pregnant. I love it. Before that I had an Inglesina Zippy for #1. I think they were both moderately priced and not too flashy.

I think of P&T as a middle-class workhorse kind of stroller. I live on Capitol Hill and there are tons of them, usually pushed by moms wearing LL Bean type clothes and Danskos. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.)

You don't think BOBs fall into the same category? I usually see granola types or "hip" types pushing them around. . .

Definitely same category, perhaps with a bit more of a conspicuous desire to seem athletic/outdoorsy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:12:48, if you're really close to people, yes, you know if they are in debt or have a high net worth. I don't know numbers, but when you see people sell their $800,000 houses and build one for $1.7 million, and the wife quit her job, yeah, I think they're doing fine.

...and can probably afford a Bugaboo too. This is relevant why?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Everyone in my whole entire neighborhood has a Bugaboo. I'm not kidding!

Especially red ones.

(My kids, thankfully, are too old for strollers.)

Where do you live? I would guess in DC and not in Ashburn. The exurbanites seem to have the SUV of strollers.

Georgetown. And I am not exaggerating. I hardly know one person without a Bugaboo. Some people have multiple strollers, so they'll have a Double Baby Jogger or something similar in addition to the Bugaboo.

Until I read this thread, I had subconsciously assumed that everyone in America had a Bugaboo!!!

If I was a stroller thief I would be hanging out in Georgetown.

As an American living in Georgetown-- I will defend my former 'hood! It is true the majority of moms over there had bugaboos....but it is also true that the vast majority of my mom friends over there were European. They walk everywhere. They walked everywhere in their hometowns/cities, etc. A good majority of them don't even own cars. They invest in the stroller as if it is their car because it essentially is their car.

I went through 3 Metrolites in the 3 years I lived in Georgetown...cobblestone, brick, tree branches jutting out of sidewalks. The bugaboos were great over that and they had the wonderful bassinet for the newborns. I used to knock them, but living that lifestyle I could see why they were popular. There is not the same need if you are on suburban sidewalks only a few minutes everyday and inside Tysons Mall.

I, personally, stuck with the Metrolite because I have yet to find a BETTER BASKET..in any other stroller on the market. I could fit 3 full WholeFoods safeway bags and a 1.5 liter bottle of water underneath. My BOB jogger that I used to run on the C&O trail couldn't fit one.

You should check out the UPPA

Fortunately, I am done with strollers! I had my first in 2005--and even since then I am amazed by all of these new models/styles. Back then-- the bugaboo was essentially it in the luxury stroller market.

I was fascinated by strollers...but always came back to that Metrolite. I do still have the same BOB SUV my co-workers bought me in 2005 since they knew I was a serious runner. My 2.5 yold sleeps in it on long runs.

I did try a double Zooper. It was so snazzy looking..but a complete piece of crap. It would collapse on one side any time you hit a bump. Horrible customer serivce---the company wouldn't return it. Then 2 years later they recalled it for this very reason. I had trashed it long before then.

I wonder if what we all drive is similar to what we push as strollers...hmmmm....I've always been a Honda girl...and is not at all correlated to our HHI. We are very frugal, but our kids colleges are paid for and they haven't reached Kindergarten yet and we are both on track for early retirement.