LilSugar

Strollin': Win a phil & teds Vibe!

LilSugar — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 01:00:00 -0700

One lucky mama is about to get a brand new set of wheels! Our friends at Right Start were nice enough to give us a black sleek and chic phil & teds Vibe ($700) so one lucky mom and her tot can get strollin' in style!

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Strollin': phil & teds Vibe

babysugar — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 13:00:04 -0700

I won't say that I saved the best for last, but the phil & teds Vibe is pretty darn sweet. Lightweight aluminum frame strollers have been dominating the market in recent years. New to the party is the fabulously sleek and functional Vibe. Much like the other phil & teds predecessors, the Vibe offers the dual-ride capabilities. But the Vibe has got a whole different, well vibe.

The sleek $700 pushchair is comfortably padded with cushy seats in a tandem position. The second seat attachment costs another $110. Each chair can recline for on-the-go napping or relaxing - whatever floats your wee ones' boat. And by wee, I mean newborns through four-year-olds. Older tots take the top seat with a maximum capacity of 55 pounds while smaller babes sit underneath. The bottom seat can handle up to 33 pounds making the entire load capacity 88 pounds.

To see a video and learn what else there is to know about the Vibe, read more.

Having talked to some mamas who have tested out the ride of the Vibe, the biggest complaint is the break. Instead of having it down by the feet, parents can stop the pushchair with a simple push of a button on the height adjustable handlebar. It seemed pretty ideal when I tested it but others find it irritating as they accidentally push the button jolting them to an unexpected stop.

Like the phil & teds Dash, the Vibe also has the updated plastic foot board. The plastic resting spot keeps tots from wearing and tearing a fabric type patch that could endanger their lil feet.

During my demonstration at Right Start, Kristi showed me how quick and painless the stroller is to fold. Bonus points were rewarded as you can fold it with the second seat attached into a compact package - sun canopies and all. Adding more credence to the Vibe, it is a clear winner in the weight category as it weighs only 22 pounds. That's even lighter than the Maclaren Twin Techno XT! But, it's more than twice the price - do you think it's twice as nice? Tell me what you think about the phil & teds Vibe.

We will be finishing off our mini season of original stroller
reviews with a special giveaway in October. Stay tuned for more details.

Strollin': Double Seaters

babysugar — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 05:00:11 -0700

On a personal quest, I was especially fired up to explore the world of double strollers. Thanks to Right Start, I've got a pretty good idea of what's out there and hope that I can pass on some of what I learned to you.

I found it daunting to find the perfect single stroller two years ago. Now here I am seven-months pregnant looking for one that will suit my 23-month-old and her future sibling. I've seen the beastly duos that take up the width of grocery aisles and others that seem suitable for heavyweight lifting competitions. This week I'll show you some of the best and give you my two cents on the two seaters.

We will be finishing off our mini season of original stroller reviews with a special giveaway in October. Stay tuned for more details.

Strollin': Jogger Roundup

babysugar — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:00:57 -0700

Hopefully mothers who like to get a workout enjoyed the write-ups of the three fabulous jogging strollers I reviewed from Right Start. While there are still more on the market, some of which I hope to test in the future, I can hardly see the downside of any of these sporty options. Tell me which one you prefer?

BOB Revolution

Baby Jogger

phil and teds Dash

We will be finishing off our mini season of original stroller reviews with a special giveaway in October. Stay tuned for more details.

Strollin': Lightweight Strollers

babysugar — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 13:00:00 -0700

Last week I reviewed five of the top travel system strollers on the market. This week, I'm taking it down a notch and honing in on more reasonable lightweight strollers from Right Start.

Often used for travel, quick trips to the park, a stroll to the local eatery or in the trunk of the car, lightweight buggies often help moms get from point a to point b without much hassle or concern. As practicality is the name of the game, the price tag often reflects that. Stay tuned this week to see which pushchairs are up for the test!

We will be finishing off our mini season of original stroller reviews with a special giveaway in October. Stay tuned for more details.

Strollin': Bugaboo Cameleon

babysugar — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 14:00:23 -0700

First up on my Right Start stroller review - the multi-terrain Bugaboo Cameleon! Born in 1999 in Holland, the best-selling Dutch stroller has quickly become a favorite for families all over the world. The beautifully crafted travel system can work for a baby from day one through their toddler years.

Configured with an adapter, the base of the Bugaboo Cameleon ($899) fits many infant car seats (Graco Snugride, Maxi-Cost Mico, and Peg Primo Viaggio) which makes it easy for moms to transfer the child from the car to the stroller with one simple snap. While most car seats are safe and cozy havens for wee ones, many doctors advise parents not to let the child spend too much time in the seat as they need to develop their muscles and stretch out their body. For parents who plan on spending lots of time on the go with their newborn, the bassinet feature of the Bugaboo Cameleon is an added bonus.

To find out more fun facts about the Cameleon and see a video of it in action, read more.

Many parents find the bassinet reason enough to buy the expensive stroller. Suited for a newborn, infants can sleep easy while mommy runs errands or lunches with the ladies. Back home, some parents choose to lock the break and keep the stroller stationary making the bassinet the baby's actual sleeping place for the first few weeks of life. This eliminates the purchase of a Moses basket or co-sleeper.

Once the child graduates from the bassinet stage, they move into the bucket seat that pops onto the original base and can grow with a youngster until 40 pounds or four-years-old. When parents opt to have another lil one, they can add a wheeled stepping board for the older child to coast on while his lil sidekick rests.

Some of the benefits of the Cameleon are that you can move the adjustable handle bar (great for height differentiated families) back and forth so you can watch your tot snooze or choose to let him soak in the sights. The foam filled tires make for a smooth ride and less stops at the air filling station. Additionally, parents can pimp their wee one's rides by customizing their colors and fabrics, which are also machine washable - a huge perk for moms of messy youngsters!

As a multi-terrain stroller, the Bugaboo Cameleon can take a family anywhere. The downside is that most families end up buying another lightweight stroller in addition to the Cameleon as it is not the easiest stroller for travel. It is on the heavier end of the scale weighing 21 pounds and breaking it down is not a simple task, as you have to remove the seat or bassinet before folding it up for storage. However, like most strollers, many moms I know agree that you just get used to it and it becomes second nature.

Tell us what you think about the Bugaboo Cameleon.

We will be finishing off our mini season of original stroller reviews with a special giveaway in October. Stay tuned for more details.

Strollin': lilsugar's Stroller Reviews

babysugar — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 12:00:00 -0700

One of the toughest baby gear decisions a mother-to-be has to make is which stroller to buy. With all the options available, it's near impossible to test drive every ride. So, I took the liberty of reviewing a vast assortment of buggies for all of you mommies in a stroller quandary.
Right Start graciously showed me some of their inventory covering various categories - travel systems, lightweight, jogger and double strollers. In the next few weeks, I will spotlight each stroller. At the end of all the reviews, we'll be giving away one stroller to a lucky lilsugar reader! So stay tuned and get ready for the onslaught of stroller information. First up, travel systems!

We will be finishing off our mini season of original stroller reviews with a special giveaway in October. Stay tuned for more details.

Kit Kittredge: An American Girl: Interview with Chris O'Donnell

LilSugar — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 08:00:25 -0700

He caught our eye as Charlie Simms, the kind hearted collegian, playing opposite Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman and young ladies swooned when he broke up a Circle of Friends as Jack Foley. Chris O'Donnell is the quintessential American male with conventional good looks, smarts and the friendly disposition of the boy, now man, next door. He's the kind of guy that men and mothers like. And, he's the only actor that made us believe that Meredith might pass up McDreamy.

The real life father of five - Lily, 8, Chip, 7, Charlie, 4, Finley, 2 and Maeve, 6 months - who is married to wife, Caroline, is spending the summer on the silver screen as Mr. Kittredge in Kit Kittredge: An American Girl starring Abigail Breslin. The scenes between the dapper dad and his precocious daughter who face hardship during the Great Depression leave a lump in your throat. We recently had a chance to chat with the actor about his latest film.

There are two moments in the film, when Kit spots her dad in the soup kitchen and the ensuing conversation they have by the tree-house, that have an incredible impact on the audience. It's that notion of a parent not being able to provide for his children. How did you prepare for the scene?

I've got kids of my own; We all love our parents and we love our spouses, but until you have your own kid you don't really know what that kind of love is. It's where you would put yourself in front of a moving train for your kid and I think that you understand what that must have felt like. Mr. Kittredge's trying to protect his daughter as most parents do and not have her worry about the hardships of what was going on in their time. And when she sees him in the soup kitchen, he's forced to tell her a little bit more about what the realities are and what they are going to have to do. He tries to put the best spin on it or prepare her for it by telling her that story about his car - don't let it beat ya, and as parents that's about all you can do. It's a situation where he has to go off to find work.

To see the actor's fears as a father, read more.

In that same vein, as the father of five who found early success much like Mr. Kittredge, is being able to provide for your children a legitimate fear of yours, or do you have others?

What's tough for me is when I'm away on location because in my business it's feast or famine when it comes to spending time with my kids. I either have more time than I know what to do with or I don't have any time with them, so I try to maximize my time when I'm with them. But when I'm away on location, thank God for Apple iChat because I can see them on the computer. It's scary - part of being a parent is trying to teach the kids the lessons they need to learn. And sometimes, the kid comes home and asks you a question and you're kind of stalling thinking what's the answer that I am supposed to give here. I'll be calling my older brothers or sisters and asking what do we tell them about this again? Because you realize they are coming to you for all this information and most of it is instinctual, but every once in a while they'll come up with something and you'll think that's a tricky one. You know, let me get back to you on that one.

It's been said that you did Batman for your sons and this movie for your daughters? Is Lily a fan of the American Girl series?

She is a fan and I knew about it because I'm from Chicago and I had visited the store before with my nieces and now with my daughter and we've got a lot of the dolls and that sort of thing. I was highly aware of the whole American Girl phenomenon and I think that for people that do know about the dolls they are going to be so excited about the movie. And, for everyone else that wants to take their kids to a movie on the weekend, they are going to be really pleased because there's so many times that kids want to go to a movie and I can't tell you how many bad family movies I've sat through. This one really works; It's a great ride. It teaches kids a great lesson and they don't even realize they are being taught a lesson. When I left the theater with my daughter, she started asking me all about the people who lost their houses and it was great to have brought that subject up especially now - it's going to be so timely.

Do you think there's a difference between the way kids are said to grow up fast today versus the way they did during The Great Depression?

We've had an incredibly successful run in the economy for the last however many years. I mean obviously it's stalled and heading in a recession now. Then, the economy starts to get tough and that trickles down and you kind of get back to basics. Certainly anyone who lives through a depression and my father did, they don't forget the lessons they learned the same way that the men and women that fought in WWII don't. People don't always have an appreciation of what happened unless they were there and I think that's what's so great about films and books. If you saw Band of Brothers you have such an appreciation for what these guys went though in that generation. And not to compare this to Band of Brothers, but I think it's a great way for kids to get some understanding of what the depression was about, what people went through in a way that they will be excited to see and learn about it.

You've gone from being the naive character in Scent of a Woman to the father in American Girl. Is that transition hard to take or a natural transition?

It felt like the role was easy for me to relate to because I've got an 8-year-old daughter and the emotions that Mr. Kittredge is feeling for his daughter - I just understood and connected with that. But it was the first time I played a parent and I've been doing this for a long time and you start to play different roles. I'm not the kid anymore and I'm a dad so it's just kind of a natural evolution.

The Kittredges lived by the motto, "Don't let it beat you." Do the O'Donnells have a motto?

I don't know that we have a motto. That's a pretty good one right there.

So you'll adapt that one?

We might have to.

We're celebrating Kit Kittredge: An American Girl with a special giveaway next week. Stay tuned for more details.

Source and Cylla von Tiedemann