Friday, November 09, 2007

Is it just me?....

Or does life just keep getting more expensive? Here are two of the upcoming "necessities" in my life. :)

The Phil and Ted's sport buggy (jogger) with double seat attachment: Anyone have it? It just seems brilliant to me to not have to jog pushing something wider than most European cars. First concern is always whether the kid in back will mind his view. All I've heard is that they love it and usually fight over the back seat... apparently the peripheral view is plenty.

Other cool features: One of the seats can lay down flat for sleeping baby or car seat can attach (that one might now allow the second seat to be on at the same time- not sure.) I'm sold though. I just wish I'd bought it with Sophia so my first jogger wasn't completely wasted.



And the Nikon D40:I'm going to need some kind of education on the machine before I can work any magic I'm sure. But I'm dying to be in the gorgeous-photos-of-your-kids club, and I figure I may as well get it sooner than later so we can get our use out of it in those first months when I'm still ridiculously obsessed with snapping endless photos of my quickly changing newborn and maturing little girl. We're thinking perhaps a family Christmas present. Cross your fingers for me.

21 comments:

Audry said...

I've seen the jogger. A mom had it and she had her baby (maybe 3 or 4 months) in the back sleeping. Seemed cool to me.

Lindsay Griffeth said...

Totally agree that life is just expensive...especially with the kiddos.

I just bought a single jogging stroller and while the checker was ringing it up...I thought...."shouldn't I be buying a double jogging stroller because eventually this is just going to go to waste." This one looks really cool and since you are the work-out QUEEN, you will get every penny out of this one.

And, the camera is also a must have. You need to be able to have a faster shutter speed so you can just snap away instead of missing everything waiting for the camera to take the picture. You will love it. It's a perfect family Christmas present.

Look at it this way. Neither of these are unnecessary items. Jogging is healthy and you obviously have to take two kids along and the camera will help you capture wonderful moments with your kids. I'm a good rationalizer. :)

chloe said...

I have the Nikon D-40 and absolutely love it. My only recommendation would be to hold off on getting a 50 mm lens (which is my absolute favorite) until they make one that has an internal auto-focus (the difference with the D-40 is that lenses have to have their own systems...I don't really know what that means, but whatever). I take pics of the nieces and nephews and it's really hard to focus manually with how fast kids move. That said, it is my favorite lens for portraits and with digital, you can take 200 shots to get one good one and it's no big deal.

And, as kit lenses go, the D-40 is fantastic! I couldn't be happier with my first SLR.

One more thought. I purchased the fastest memory card I could get and it has been so great with fast moving kiddies.

Ambyr said...

Lillie! I have the Phil & Teds! I registered and got it (thanks to Tyler's generous Aunt) when I was prego with Luke. We have gotten 2 great years out of it and are ready to have another little monster and add the second seat. Thats exactly why I got it with Luke. I couldn't stand the thought of wasting a whole stroller not to mention the cost. Since then I have convinced countless others that it is the best on the market...and it is! All of my friends have them now. Seriously, I can think of 7 friends off the top of my head. Everyone LOVES it.

AND I also want the Nikon for our family Christmas present! I died when I saw your post. I'll tell Tyler to convince Ross if thats what you need. Say the word. It worked when you were ready to try for Sophia!!!

Love ya!

Michelle said...

okay, I'm totally tempted my this jogger vor the same reason you were about it not being so wide. I am VERY close to the purchasing stage of my jogger-need, so I must know...do you know anyone with one of these who loves it? missy, can you help us out here at all? is it grea? everyone around here has BOB ones..I'm used them jogging, and the shocks plus the turny front wheel make them FABULOUS...but they are wide wide wide. I would LOVE this alternative if it's just as good. how big can the kid get who sits in back? this might be a phone call conversation. :)

anyway, maybe you could craig's list your single, and use some of that money to help?

LuCDay said...

Hi...I'm a friend of Sara Smylie's. Anyway, I saw your question you asked her on her blog about the Nikon D40. I'm been researching it a lot and here's a great review on the D40x:

http://kenrockwell.com/nikon/d40x.htm

I got the D40 here (not the D40x) here:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Nikon-D40-Digital-SLR-Camera-Lens-SB-400-Flash-NEW-USA_W0QQitemZ160177904651QQihZ006QQcategoryZ43456QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem

For a great price and it came with lots of extras like the SB-400 flash. Just make sure you are getting a factory direct product and not a factory demo.

Don't know why I'm writing you all of this, just excited about my new camera!!!

Michelle said...

by the way, what was with my typing on that comment of mine? proof read michelle, proof read!

Anonymous said...

Hi, you don't know me and I'm not sure how I got even to your blog...? But, you caught my attention with your stroller. I just bought one last night after much research and hope I like it. I was very close to getting the one you posted about, but I decided against it because my girls have always loved sitting side by side so they can talk, hold hands, share books/snacks, whatever. So I opted out, even though it is much narrower.

PS... you are the most gorgeous pregnant gal. Gorgeous family...

The rlmmmmcaress family said...

It never gets cheap. I kept thinking about all the money I would save once they got out of diapers. Trust me diapers and formula are cheap compared to everything else. But go for it. Both will make you a better parent. Just kidding. But they will make you happy and a happy person is a better parent and I'm not kidding about that. One is an investment in health. The other will give you beautiful pictures for those of us who are addicted to looking at your children (notice: I am already giving you plural)to post on your blog.

Heidi McMillan said...

We have this stroller and love it. Tyler is usually happy lying flat and Scott is happy in front. We had the BOB with just Scott which runs a little smoother and protects the older child better, but in my opinion this is the most convenient double out there. The only negative thing friends told me is that the child underneathe sometimes starts kicking when they are big, but isn't it time for baby 3 by then??

Heidi McMillan said...

I have issues posting. When i went to try this out in a store, I hit the seat with my stride when jogging in the store. I asked the salesman and he told me it isn't a jogging stroller...go figure. Go to the store and try it out to see if it works with your stride. I contiplated getting the double BOB after my discovery, but realized I never jogged with my single BOB. the BOB is a much better jogging stroller in my opinion for serious joggers.

Missy said...

Get the camera. My sister-in-law has it and it takes the best photos.

Honestly, it depends what kind of jogger you are. I'm with Heidi McMillan (commenter above) in that it doesn't work for me. I need the BOB to actually run and I LOVE it. I know the double is wide, but when I get to that point, I won't hesitate buying the BOB double. Saying that though, I have a good friend that loves her Phil and Teds (though she doesn't run...).

snlbarney said...

Sign us up for that camera also! We are just going to DO IT! just think, you'll have two kids on the Income Tax Return:) can't get any better than that - that will be your gift from the new baby:) Good luck with your new purchases!

Erin Marriott said...

Lillie, I'm in the same boat as you. I have a jogger, but it's so wide, and I feel like it was such a waste because now I'm really into these new ones, (I actually had my eye on a different one than the one you posted), but I'm loving that the seat in the back is detatchable. The other one I saw was still wider and detatchable. Anyway, Im going to do my research on these, because I'm so frustrated I didn't have this one from the start! I don't run, though, I'm a walker all the way. Do you remember when we were like 15, and you took me on this treturous run, and I started dry heaving on the football field, and I almost passed out? I was totally trying to keep up w/ you, pretending like I wasn't the least bit winded...and you were able to have an entire conversation while running! I've never been a runner.

Gladys said...

Hi Lillie! I hope you get your camera. I love taking photographs and I have the D-100 and absolutely love it. I am still learning how to use it, but I've gotten some great pictures out of it. Tell your Mom hello!

Kelley Hauck said...

So Lily, I have to tell you, I don't normally comment on blogs so you probably didn't even know I read your blog! But I do, and I love it. You even inspired me to get rid of Masons Binki! Yeah! But on to more important things... Phil and Teds! We love it. It works great for shopping and casual walks. At first Emily was on the top in her carrier car seat, and Mason rode below. Now Mason rides in front and Emily sits in the back seat. They say you can't do that... but you can buy a strap and it works great. My only complaint... no where to put the shopping bags. You have to keep your purchases to a minimum or have the older one walk and put the bags on lower seat! Probably more than you wanted to know... but I think you should get it!

Oh yeah, and the Nikon is on my christmas list too! Good luck with new baby- we are so excited for you guys.

Love,
Kelley (ryan, mason and emily too!)

Taylor said...

Lillie -- just thought we'd add our experience to the pile of comments. We thought this stroller was incredible when we first saw it too, until we tried it.

Reasons we decided against it:
1) it's not super easy to get the 2nd seat off, AND you have to remove the 2nd (lower) seat every time you want to collapse it -- bummer.
2) it's not really a jogger -- it's a stroller. First website I found when google-ing this stroller: "Bad news first: this stroller is NOT for serious joggers/runners or for families with twins..." The wheels are too small to be a jogger; but if you're just looking for a stroller, great.
3) Brooke didn't like the weight balance -- it was a lot harder to push the stoller up and over obstacles (such as a curb) than our current jogger which is balanced over the wheels making it much easier to maneuver.
4) Nowhere to put your stuff! not only is the 1 pocket small, it's also where the 2nd kid ends up putting their feet.

Like I said, we loved the idea of it until we tried it (our neighbors have one). Hope you get to try one out before you drop the ~$500. Best of luck!! Can't wait to see the little one!

Becky said...

I know nothing about joggers, but it sounds like you have an army (17 comments!!! you are way out of my league:) of knowers to help. I also know nothing about this Nikon that everyone wants, but it does sound like a great investment for how many pictures you take, and how many subjects you'll now have for your shots. I can NOT believe you are one week away!

I am here in AZ w. Becky right now. We were just talking about how pretty you are pregnant - she used the word supermodel.
xo - Miss you!

Unknown said...

Life just keeps on getting more expensive. It's like when you first bought a disc man and suddenly, you had to buy CDs. Let's talk in four years, I'll be anxious to hear what I should do for a double jogger. Oh who am I kidding. No, I'll probably not care about jogging strollers in four years since I don't care about running shoes now. But still.

Melody said...

I'll volunteer to take your old jogger! Maybe it will give me good luck and help me get pregnant. Not that we're really trying. You know I'm the oldest and don't have any older sibings to give me their cool hand me downs, so I hope this makes you feel like your old one would not go to waste :) just kidding.

Heidi McMillan said...

Lillie, I haven't ran with our Phil and Teds and don't know if I ever will. Right now with the baby lying flat, I think it would be hard to run with because you hit the back seat when running. I am a bad person to ask about running, because I haven't even attempted running. I personally think that once you figure out putting the back seat on and off it isn't that bad. It is way more collapsable than most double strollers and fits in your car a lot easier. In my opinion that is not a huge drawback. I believe that you can get a car seat attachment for the stroller, but look into it. I just lie the baby flat. I guess it would be nice to put the carseat in and out, but it it easier for me to just place the baby flat since that is what he likes. I debated whether I should get the BOB for jogging, but I decided I don't jog that much and would be fine not jogging at all. I got it because I realized I will use this way more for walking around, shopping and transporting the 2 kids, not running. I think that if I ran a couple days a week I would have liked the double bob better. It just depends, if you are going to jog more than use this for a stroller to stroll around in or not. When I was debating, Danny and I prayed about it. We pray about everything. We both felt this would be the right stroller for my family and not the BOB. Try it. Heavenly Father knows what would be best for your family. It is a big purchase and one you want to be happy with.