$800 strollers, Gymboree and the bamboozle that is Baby Einstein

[Dr. Obvious 49]

I try to buy our toys second hand if possible.

Me too. Her favourite thing to do is free, which is going to the park.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

The original article is good and thought provoking.

She should look into some of the stuff marketed for twins. Ridiculous!

I've heard people say 'kids like the box more than the toy that came inside it' so many times that I expected it. I try to buy our toys second hand if possible. I check out books from the library rather than buying them. When people have asked me what our daughters favorite toys are, I always reply that they have no favorite toy. Their favorites are whatever we are doing with them. And they love to go out and see the world with us more than sitting at home in front of their toys. One advantage we have with twins is that our girls always have a playmate if we need to be doing stuff around the house.

But it's good to read articles like this from time to time because their are so many marketing forces which try to make you believe that you need to buy the latest and greatest for your kids.

Kristi

Hi Kristi! Happy Belated Birthday to your twins!

Just my observation, but it seems like strollers have become like SUV's...it's insane.

[GabiandVi 34]

Why would I want a f##k trophy? Ain't no way Mags and I are having a kid - we can't stand them.

Hmmm. It might have been interesting if your parents had thought that way.

[Fandango 1,439]

If parents don't buy a kid all this stuff, then clearly they don't love their child.

[mawilson 2,133]

I can't imagine how my parents raised us without such fancy, state-of-the-art gadgets.

Yet amazingly, most of us turned out fine.

Not really

[PlatyPius 5]

Why would I want a f##k trophy? Ain't no way Mags and I are having a kid - we can't stand them.

Hmmm. It might have been interesting if your parents had thought that way.

They did. I was adopted. Next time you have a thought like that, you might want to keep it to yourself.

[PlatyPius 5]

So, is the consensus that wearing seat belts is stupid now?

What kind of freedom is that if you don't wear one? I mean seriously, it's not like there's somewhere to go if you aren't wearing one, it's not like you could stride around the car and do an excercise routine or something, if only you weren't wearing a seat belt. All the studies that have been done prove conclusively that on most occaisons if one is in an accident wearing a seat belt will either save your life or seriously reduce the severity of your injuries or prevent you from killing or injuring someone else by stopping you fly into the front of the car and you would rather things were the same in the days when no one wore them?

I think the reason it was legislated for was because too many people seemed to think that seat belts were for sissies and didn't take wearing them seriously so the injuries kept increasing and increasing - ever more so as cars were faster and the growth in car ownership increased the likelyhood of having an accident. Mandatory seat belt wearing is a great law and doesn't infringe on one's freedom one iota in real terms.

The consensus has ALWAYS been that the government telling people to wear seatbelts is stupid.

Seatbelt laws infringe on my right to not wear a seatbelt. My right to depend on my airbag (Which I also didn't want) to stop me. My right to not have the side of my neck chafed from a seat belt. My right to not have all my ribs broken if I do crash. My right to NOT have a panic attack because of confinement issues. My right to do what I want when what I want to do will not in any way affect anyone else.

[Mags 112]

So, is the consensus that wearing seat belts is stupid now?

What kind of freedom is that if you don't wear one? I mean seriously, it's not like there's somewhere to go if you aren't wearing one, it's not like you could stride around the car and do an excercise routine or something, if only you weren't wearing a seat belt. All the studies that have been done prove conclusively that on most occaisons if one is in an accident wearing a seat belt will either save your life or seriously reduce the severity of your injuries or prevent you from killing or injuring someone else by stopping you fly into the front of the car and you would rather things were the same in the days when no one wore them?

I think the reason it was legislated for was because too many people seemed to think that seat belts were for sissies and didn't take wearing them seriously so the injuries kept increasing and increasing - ever more so as cars were faster and the growth in car ownership increased the likelyhood of having an accident. Mandatory seat belt wearing is a great law and doesn't infringe on one's freedom one iota in real terms.

The consensus has ALWAYS been that the government telling people to wear seatbelts is stupid.

Seatbelt laws infringe on my right to not wear a seatbelt. My right to depend on my airbag (Which I also didn't want) to stop me. My right to not have the side of my neck chafed from a seat belt. My right to not have all my ribs broken if I do crash. My right to NOT have a panic attack because of confinement issues. My right to do what I want when what I want to do will not in any way affect anyone else.

Actually, not wearing a seat belt DOES affect other people. If you die due to your truck rolling over your death would affect your wife.

If someone in the back seat of a car does not wear a seat belt, and that car rear ends someone else, then the person sitting in front of that unseatbelted person will actually be killed by the force of an unrestrained body slamming into the back of their seat.

I may be your wife but your argument sucks, luvvy.

[PlatyPius 5]

It still doesn't make it the government's responsibility. PERSONAL responsibility. People seem unwilling or unable to accept personal responsibility. Having a Nanny-State government just further removes the concept of personal responsibility from society.

[Peikko 1,575]

Is that your excuse for not accepting your personal responsibity for wearing one? That's just a bullshite argument. Just because there is a law requiring you to wear one, doesn't mean you cease to have the personal responsibility required to make the choice as to whether or not you will wear one. People don't get in the car and put on their seat belt by auto pilot because it's a legal requirement.

People can and do choose to not wear a seat belt (by your own admission, you don't) - and so long as they are not caught by a police officer they can continue to do so and indeed even if you are caught you can continue to disobey the law so long as each time you are caught you accept the consequences of what that means which is paying a fine. The fine is the penalty for not accepting your responsiblity to yourself and other people by not wearing one. There are consequences that go beyond your personal safety for not wearing a seat belt and getting involved in an accident, whether you choose to accept that or not.

[Fandango 1,439]

Who gives a good sh!t about whether some stranger wears a seatbelt or not? Geez!

PS & btw....if you hit someone and they get really hurt....if they are not wearing a seatbelt, your level of responsibility is diminished.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Seat belt laws = nanny state. That's a new one.

Surely the reason we have fines for things like that is to apply some consequence for not taking appropriate responsibility.

You don't need to look very far beyond the public safety videos to see the results of not wearing seatbelts. Human body weight multiplied many times during a sudden stop or an impact - so if you get hit in the rear or in the side you're likely to do quite substantial damage to the person in front or to the side of you.

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

I can't imagine how my parents raised us without such fancy, state-of-the-art gadgets.

Yet amazingly, most of us turned out fine.

Not really

Yeah - some people have deep-seated issues that can't be solved by buying loads of expensive gadgets and bragging about them.

[GabiandVi 34]

Why would I want a f##k trophy? Ain't no way Mags and I are having a kid - we can't stand them.

Hmmm. It might have been interesting if your parents had thought that way.

They did. I was adopted. Next time you have a thought like that, you might want to keep it to yourself.

Hmmm. I'll say it again. It might have been interesting if your parents had thought that way. Biological and adoptive. Maybe next time, you'll keep your insulting thoughts to yourself.

[Tiane 0]

Why would I want a f##k trophy? Ain't no way Mags and I are having a kid - we can't stand them.

Hmmm. It might have been interesting if your parents had thought that way.

They did. I was adopted. Next time you have a thought like that, you might want to keep it to yourself.

Hmmm. I'll say it again. It might have been interesting if your parents had thought that way. Biological and adoptive. Maybe next time, you'll keep your insulting thoughts to yourself.

I couldn't agree more Gabi. He really needs to be able to take what he dishes out. Why would we want to consider his feelings when he clearly doesn't consider anyone else. I mean, he came into a baby thread of all things stating he'd never want a kid in a rude way. Just because you don't want one, doesn't mean you should be overly critical about american parents and have a self-perceived "nanny-state" idea that you spew garbage about. Makes you wonder why even be in America at all if you dislike it so much? There is having an opinion which is one thing and there is just being overly pessimistic and critical to the point of extremely annoying everyone else and sounding stupid which is his problem. Thankfully, being ignorant and loud and un-intelligent only really hurt him so we don't even need to point it out- just point him kindly out of the thread where he has clearly stirred up drama for attention.

As far as the seatbelt thing- NO it is NOT a consensus that most people don't want to wear seatbelts. Everyone I know has no problem with it. I am thankful that car manufacturers are required to install them because it means the government cares about our safety. Also, when is the last time someone actually got a ticket for not wearing one? It isn't strictly enforced, but you sure do look dumb not wearing one. It's so easy to just click it and save your life. Is he REALLY complaining about it rubbing on his neck? hahaha. That is grasping for straws. And, I mean honestly, broken ribs which don't happen even close to every crash are much better than being ejected from a car or into someone in the car and killing them or yourself. I assume people who don't wear seatbelts do natures work for us and weed themselves out of the society thereby keeping our intelligence level up instead of lowering it.