I’ve been living a sociological suburban experiment for three weeks now, and it’s time to share some of my field notes on the way people get around. Here are some of my most astonishing findings about life as a country mouse:
Hitch Your Wagon
Master D and I took advantage of the balmy 72 degree weather earlier this week and went to the Columbus Zoo. Master D was most astonished by the outgoing gorillas, while I spent most of my time wondering why so many mamas were pulling wagons. I knew Bugaboos would be rare here because they’re a pain to fold in and out of car trunks, but I was surprised to see wagons as the preferred baby vehicle. Most of them were made of cartoonish plastic, like the hollow plastic playhouses they have in daycare centers, and lined with fleece blankets. Often two children would be stuffed into the wagon and their mother would walk slowly and awkwardly as she tried to pull them behind her. Are strollers uncool for older kids? If kids get too old for strollers, shouldn’t they just walk? Even 18 month-old Master D wanted to walk some of the way wearing his new monkey-on-my-backpack from Target, but he was the only young kid on his feet. Is this why there’s an obesity epidemic in this country?
Car Culture
I have always loved driving, and Master D has adjusted very well to this aspect of suburban life. He calls the car the “Beep Beep” or the “Honk Honk” and gets excited when I tell him we’re going for a drive. He cries sometimes when he gets into his car seat, and repeatedly asks for milk from the backseat when he’s hungry, but he mostly just looks around and bops along to the music on the radio. This is the best part of suburban life for me – the ability to get places without a struggle. Before baby, I loved walking around the streets on Manhattan, but after baby every errand felt like a chore because I had to hurry and push a stroller, a bad combo. Now I know why so many families move to the ‘burbs - sometimes it's easier to cart kids around in a car. I’m sure this is the slippery slope to wagon-pulling and walking aversion and amputation of my left foot, but that’s a risk I’m willing to take!
Stroller Shock
Mama N wrote about strollers a few weeks ago, and she is correct that the Bugaboo is the best for the city. Frugalista that I am, I experimented with several cheaper models of strollers before buying a used Bugaboo from a fellow downtown mama. Besides the faded upholstery that Mama V kindly described as “Nantucket Red,” the stroller is as good as new and I loved pushing it around Manhattan, mostly because I could face Master D towards me and look at his little sleeping face as we strolled.
Despite all the driving, I still put Master D in a stroller here whenever I can. We live about a mile from the little town center here, so we could walk there, but so far we haven’t gone into town without a car errand to run afterward. So, mostly we have to use the car stroller (one of the cheapies we got pre-Bugaboo, the multi-purpose Peg Perego Aria). I have a new appreciation for my Peg – it fold easily, it’s light, Master D loves it – but I miss my Bugaboo and being able to talk to Master D as we walk. Maybe I’ll have to start finding excuses to walk into town more often.
Hitch Your Wagon
Master D and I took advantage of the balmy 72 degree weather earlier this week and went to the Columbus Zoo. Master D was most astonished by the outgoing gorillas, while I spent most of my time wondering why so many mamas were pulling wagons. I knew Bugaboos would be rare here because they’re a pain to fold in and out of car trunks, but I was surprised to see wagons as the preferred baby vehicle. Most of them were made of cartoonish plastic, like the hollow plastic playhouses they have in daycare centers, and lined with fleece blankets. Often two children would be stuffed into the wagon and their mother would walk slowly and awkwardly as she tried to pull them behind her. Are strollers uncool for older kids? If kids get too old for strollers, shouldn’t they just walk? Even 18 month-old Master D wanted to walk some of the way wearing his new monkey-on-my-backpack from Target, but he was the only young kid on his feet. Is this why there’s an obesity epidemic in this country?
Car Culture
I have always loved driving, and Master D has adjusted very well to this aspect of suburban life. He calls the car the “Beep Beep” or the “Honk Honk” and gets excited when I tell him we’re going for a drive. He cries sometimes when he gets into his car seat, and repeatedly asks for milk from the backseat when he’s hungry, but he mostly just looks around and bops along to the music on the radio. This is the best part of suburban life for me – the ability to get places without a struggle. Before baby, I loved walking around the streets on Manhattan, but after baby every errand felt like a chore because I had to hurry and push a stroller, a bad combo. Now I know why so many families move to the ‘burbs - sometimes it's easier to cart kids around in a car. I’m sure this is the slippery slope to wagon-pulling and walking aversion and amputation of my left foot, but that’s a risk I’m willing to take!
Stroller Shock
Mama N wrote about strollers a few weeks ago, and she is correct that the Bugaboo is the best for the city. Frugalista that I am, I experimented with several cheaper models of strollers before buying a used Bugaboo from a fellow downtown mama. Besides the faded upholstery that Mama V kindly described as “Nantucket Red,” the stroller is as good as new and I loved pushing it around Manhattan, mostly because I could face Master D towards me and look at his little sleeping face as we strolled.
Despite all the driving, I still put Master D in a stroller here whenever I can. We live about a mile from the little town center here, so we could walk there, but so far we haven’t gone into town without a car errand to run afterward. So, mostly we have to use the car stroller (one of the cheapies we got pre-Bugaboo, the multi-purpose Peg Perego Aria). I have a new appreciation for my Peg – it fold easily, it’s light, Master D loves it – but I miss my Bugaboo and being able to talk to Master D as we walk. Maybe I’ll have to start finding excuses to walk into town more often.
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