Whether or not you get it, Twilight is a ‘tween phenomenon.
Reflecting on my youth, I can not think of anything that can hold a candle to the nearly violent frenzy that young (and some not-so-young) people go into at the mere mention or Robert Pattinson (Edward Cullen) and Taylor Lautner (Jacob Black). Not only have these actors caused some sort of incestuous scandal publicly by blurring the lines between fiction and reality with their surly attitudes and speculated bed hopping, but they all seem reluctant to accept this fame as their fate. This makes the kids go even crazier.
I have to wonder what it is about the timeless story of forbidden true-love that universally seems to get our blood boiling? What sets this series apart from other Vampire novels and films is the religious/moral agenda of author Stephanie Meyer and that being a vampire is a secondary part of the film. The story’s power is definitely in the dynamic of the relationship between Bella, Edward and Jacob. Of course, this is all accentuated by the onscreen tension and chemistry between the actors who play each role.
New Moon, the sequel to Twilight and second in a series of four movies to be released, opens today. Tickets have been on sale for months. If I were you, I’d avoid the theaters. Most will be packed with teenage girls in their “Team Edward” shirts.
For the record, I happen to think that Robert Pattinson is pretty dreamy.
Have I mentioned our terrible commute to school this year? I must have! Let me refresh your memory. Unless I put on my brave face, buckle into the mini-van and accept the challenge of Center City driving and parking (which a parent at my daughter’s school recently told me is statistically more dangerous than smoking and skydiving) I walk between 4 and 8 miles a day. Of course, it all depends on the day and what I’m doing, but generally I walk 8 miles every Monday, Wednesday and Friday and 4 miles each Tuesday and Thursday!
Certainly you can imagine my horror on the first week of school when tires began blowing off of my Phil and Teds Double buggy in gigantic explosions that sounded a lot like gun wars or missiles or trains colliding on the F track. And if you’re a regular here on MTW, you’ll remember this review where I proposed marriage to both Phil and Ted who wooed me with their sensible design savvy. My husband and I did a little research, pulled out a scale and were horrified to discover that our children had far exceeded the weight limit for our little green stroller. Truthfully, I knew that we were getting close, but I wanted to push it as far as I could because I love it! Any stroller that we used was going to have some big tires to fill!
We briefly considered a utility bike or a bike with a trailer. Both of these seem like good options, but I can’t account for my comfort level on the busy, jam packed streets of Philly and it’s a huge investment when you’re uncertain if you’ll be cool-headed enough to do it every day.
After researching our eyes out, we decided to invest in the Baby Jogger City Elite Double Stroller. The deciding factor was this stroller’s weight capacity. It’s able to hold up to 100 lbs. I doubt that my children’s combined weight will exceed 100 lbs this year, so it works as a temporary solution.
Let me first tell you what I love about this stroller! Advertised as an “urban terrain stroller,” it’s got 12″ wheels and is only 30 inches wide. Though that’s still wide enough to feel awkward on the road and take up too much room in the grocery store, it’s small enough to fit through a standard door. For a side by side stroller, that’s all that you can really ask for.
One thing that worried me about having a side-by-side opposed to a tandem stroller was that my children would argue and pull at each other. The City Elite has individual rain shields and weather covers. This adjusts to several positions and allows each of my children privacy (from each other) and total protection from the elements. This weather cover has the smartest peek-a-boo flaps and sun roof that I’ve ever seen on a stroller. Instead of using Velcro or ties (who’s idea what that?) the City elite uses a magnet system to fold back the windows on it’s weather guard. This is tidy and superbly effective feature that makes using the stroller pleasurable and convenient.
Generally, my children are both very comfortable in this stroller. The seats are deep and they each have plenty of room to stretch their long legs. It is also the most easily fold-able stroller I’ve used.
The storage space on the City Elite is fine. I’d rate it as average. The basket is large enough to store book-bags and jackets, but the opening isn’t large enough to easily slip in a grocery bag or bulky item that would fit pretty easily in the basket itself. This wouldn’t be as big a problem if you could hang your bags from a mommy-hook on the handle, but there’s a little sign warning not to do that. How city-mom friendly is that?
One thing that I really like a lot about this stroller is that it is packed with whistles and bells… or rather, pockets and flaps. If you’ve packed 3 drinks for both of your children, thermoses of soup, bags of pretzels and a pineapple… no worries! Each snack and drink has it’s own little pocket and flap (with room left to store your keys!) Also, the lock break for this stroller is THE BEST I’ve ever seen. It’s practically effortless!
The only big complaints that I have about this stroller are fairly serious. Though it’s advertised as being only 34 lbs, I don’t believe it! The City Elite is the heaviest stroller ever! I’m a strong, healthy woman and I struggled to carry it up one small flight of stairs and into my daughters pre-school. Because the handles are horizontal rather than vertical, it’s awkward to carry it as well. There is no excuse for that.
Not only is it heavy, but you can feel each and every pound that you are pushing. I seriously feel as though I’m walking 8 miles and pushing 100 lbs of bricks in front of me. Philadelphia is a relatively flat city, so it’s not as problematic as it would be if I were pushing my children up hill.
All in all, the City Elite will work for us. It’s no Phil and Teds… and ringing up at (lowest price available) $650, I had expected a little more from it.
Hey MTW Readers!
We hope that you are loving the new look as much as we are!
In honor of the new digs we have created some new buttons for you to share the love on your blog or site!
No, we’re not having babies, right now, anyway…but we have added two rockin’ women to our little MumsTheWurd! family. These ladies share our passion for bringing you the best for children & parents. Be sure to give them a warm welcome!
Naomi grew up in Hawaii and lived in Texas, Washington and Tennessee before landing smack dab in the middle of Wichita, Kansas where she resides with her artist husband Bob. She is a stay-at-home mom to Roo and Jasper and six cats. She collects bakelite jewelry, mid century modern furniture and thrift store paintings (big eyes and oriental ladies), among other things. Typography and baking rank high on her list of cool. She put out the first Spoon 45 on her record label, Fluffer, and was once featured in Kutie magazine, but that was a million years ago. She blogs about covetable stuff at superdumb supervillain and is waiting for her kids to start a band.
Lisa is originally from San Antonio but now lives in Austin with her husband, Joe, their new twin daughters, Franny and Zooey and of course their furry children, Penny and Basil. She works full-time as a high school Athletic Trainer and when not playing with the girls she is usually glued to her iPhone and laptop.
Naomi & Lisa, we are SO HAPPY to have you. Welcome!!!
One of our favorite shows, The Banana Splits, is coming back with new shorts on Cartoon Network! We can’t wait! We’ll tell you more about it soon, but in the meantime, check out their fun, interactive website! It’s one of the best I’ve seen. The Splits have videos featuring Bingo, Fleegle, Drooper, and Snorky, and much more . It’s a kicky blast!
Are you savvy? Are you an auntie (or a godmother, or a mom who’s an auntie, or a friend of an auntie)? You MUST check out Savvy Auntie! Our gal Melanie has created such an amazing website. You just have to check it out for yourself! Savvy Auntie will help you network with other aunties, find fun things to do with your nieces & nephews, and of course, things to buy them!
ParentSphere is here. ParentSphere is an all-around informational site geared toward the modern parent. We have articles, blog posts, product reviews and giveaways. Book mark us at: http://www.parentsphere.net
(Amy and her husband, Eric, are the owners of ParentSphere). Now, you finally get a view from BOTH parents.
Right now, three boxes of My Fruit Roll-ups are up for grabs over at ParentSphere. Go enter to win!
Soon, very soon, there will be some cash up for grabs…to put toward your BlogHer registration. Oh yeah, there’s a lot more where that came from. Just you wait and see.
ParentSphere loves The Mums and The Mums love ParentSphere. Double the fun. Double the giveaways.
Our guests tonight were Katrina Michael, owner of Fairy Princess Clothing. Fairy Princess Clothing is our featured boutique this week. Our second guest was Dr. Scott Jens from Isthmus Eye Care. He played a big part in the development and launch of the AOA InfantSEE public health program for infants. We’ll post more about this program soon.
In the meantime, click HERE to learn more and find out how you can help promote InfantSEE.
You can subscribe to our podcast feed by clicking HERE.
We’re very excited to present a new feature at MumsTheWurd. Each week, we will promote a new boutique. Included in the feature will be an interview, in written or podcast form. Products from the boutique’s site will also be showcased as well as giveaways and discounts.
Our very first featured boutique will appear in this section on Sunday, June 1st and will remain for an entire week, until Saturday, June 7th. On Sunday, June 8th, a new boutique will be featured and appear in this section until the following Saturday and so on.
This is going to be really fun for us! We hope you’ll come by often to see who we’re talking about on a daily and weekly basis. If you’d like to be considered for our Boutique of the Week section, please fill out the contact form below or email us at featuredboutique [at] mumsthewurd [dot] com with “Boutique of the Week” in the subject line.
We promise a very fun year ahead with boutique features, giveaways and a lot more goodies to come your way. Thanks for reading us…we heart you!
annaholler on November 20th, 2009
Have I mentioned our terrible commute to school this year? I must have! Let me refresh your memory. Unless I put on my brave face, buckle into the mini-van and accept the challenge of Center City driving and parking (which a parent at my daughter’s school recently told me is statistically more dangerous than smoking and skydiving) I walk between 4 and 8 miles a day. Of course, it all depends on the day and what I’m doing, but generally I walk 8 miles every Monday, Wednesday and Friday and 4 miles each Tuesday and Thursday!
