Catch the Moment: Week 17

A picture a day, for one year.

 So many things to love about this picture. I'm not a huge Mariner's fan, I mean - I'm from Seattle, have lived here most of my life and I will go to a game for the food and company. There, I said it. However, the grandparents are sports fans so every once in a while I oblige and send them a picture like this one. But seriously, when did my baby grow up? She's wearing K-Swiss sneaks, for gosh sakes.

 These are a few of my beautiful sister in laws. We celebrated a couple birthdays at the local trampoline park, which ended with two glamorous injuries (including yours truly) thanks for a moms vs. dads dodgeball. Yes, on trampolines. It's a long story, but basically an 11 year old sprained my ankle and it was so awesome because the next morning we flew out for our trip to Dallas! Yay! Because babywearing 2 kids and hauling a stroller with carseats and carry ons isn't hard enough to do; we needed to add a sprained ankle into the mix to make it interesting.

 Our trip to Dallas was flight #2 in the last year with both kids - and we have our third trip planned in December to fly across "The Pond" to see my parents over Christmas. Our first trip was to Long Beach in October, which was a mere 2 hour flight from Seattle. Seattle to Dallas is about a 4 hour flight, so we learned a few more lessons about how to fly efficiently and sanely with two littles. One huge travel tip came from That Mama Gretchen, who had recently flown to Texas with her littles too, and that was to put the ticketed non-lap child in their carseat for the flight. Penny was comfortable and calm for the flight. She's used to sitting in her car seat for sometimes hours at a time, so this wasn't that different. Miss Ruby, on the other hand.. well, she was a wiggly 15 month old who wasn't allowed to adventure like she wanted to. Again..more lessons were learned, but this was the exciting start for our super fun week in Dallas, which I will share more full details with you soon!

 Due to that (im)perfectly timed sprained ankle, I had to take it easy for the first part of our trip. But that wasn't going to stop me from taking the girls up to the infinity pool at the Omni hotel. How did I manage a 3 year old and a 1 year old in the water, by myself? Babywearing, of course. 

 Ok, I seriously lucked out on the hotel's restaurant. Texas Spice rocks my socks. The breakfast buffet was to die for. My glutinous, eager fingers made this photo come out embarassingly blurry, but what you'll find on that plate are eggs, breakfast potatoes, breakfast veggies, bacon, bread pudding, rice pudding and waay up there at the top were blueberries and raspberries. Why don't I just eat like this every day??

 More poor quality, but this was taken with a cell phone in a pretty much pitch black room so you'll forgive me. Both girls nap for 2 hours in the middle of the day and I was very thankful for their flexibility in our routine. I wasn't sure how it was going to go down with putting them to sleep in our hotel room each day, but it worked perfectly. Watching them sleep together on the bed made me dream more about them one day sharing their bedroom and perhaps even trying out sibling co-sleeping if that suits either of them. 

This picture won't do it justice but I hope you can get a good look. This is a pano of the view from the Giants of The Savannah view point at the Dallas Zoo. I actually ended up visiting the Dallas Zoo on two separate days because there was so much to see on the first day that we didn't get through everything. Thankfully I have an annual membership at the Woodland Park Zoo, which gave me reciprocal membership benefits of discount tickets. Zoos are kind of my thing (here's a list of zoos I've visited), so keep an eye out for what we thought of the Dallas Zoo. 

Catch the moment archives

These aren't on Instagram, but most others are!

GB Evoq Review

I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for GB. 

I received a GB stroller to facilitate my review as well as thank me for my participation.

Now that Ruby is almost a year old I've been looking more closely into tandem stroller systems. There's tons on the market but the designs seem to be limited to either the seats side by side ("2 wide"), "sit and stand," and strollers with glider board options.  I was excited to try out the glider board style stroller because it offers a little of flexibility for the older child, which is what I need at this stage!

So when I got the opportunity to try out the GB Evoq travel system, I jumped on it! The GB Evoq is a 4 in 1 stoller system. You can use the stroller frame with the Asana35 car seat, rear facing with the stroller seat, forward facing and finally the option of having a toddler "glide" along on the back. 

This stroller system appealed to me because I have an almost 3 year old and an almost 1 year old. We go on walks regularly and my toddler wants to walk most of the time, but there are times where she gets tired, is stopping a little too often to smell the roses or I need to keep her close for safety sake. I was intrigued by the glide on board as an alternative to those bulky "sit and stand" style stroller systems. I have a different stroller that also has the option of purchasing a separate glider board, but that's an additional $50, which is mainly what's discouraged me from even trying it out. I was pleased to see that the glide on board was already built into the GB Evoq. Because of this, the GB Evoq system is well equipped for the family that has two children fairly close to each other in age, because it can be easily adapted for a newborn, infant or toddler and can be used in tandem. 

When I first received my stroller I tested myself to see if I can put it all together without having to read the instruction manual. I was happy to see that I was able to assemble the stroller within a few minutes and it was fairly intuitive on how it works.  My husband has a degree in plastics manufacturing so his attention to the details on commercial products has rubbed off on me and I like that all the parts feel sturdy and I don't see very many pieces that would break or wear quickly. The materials are quality and quite a bit of thought went into the design. Switching between having the car seat or the stroller seat on the stroller frame was simple and easy. Nothing feels too heavy or cumbersome. As a mom with an infant and a toddler, you can guarantee that my main requirement for any child-gear is that it does not take a lot of time for me to put together or adapt. At any given moment either child needs to be held, isn't happy with something or just wants a closer look. It was a big relief to me that I could switch between the 3 different seat options without too much fumbling or adjusting.

 
The Asana35 infant car seat's quality matches the stroller. Ruby looked comfortable in it and enjoyed riding in the car in it. My husband installed this seat into his commuter for me and he reported that the Firm Fit Arm and Harness features are really helpful. This feature makes sure that the car seat is installed safely into the car. Even though car seats are an integral part of childhood, unfortunately there are so many incorrect ways of installing a car seat or putting a child into a car seat, so additional safety features that "take the dummy" out of installation are much appreciated. Again, picture the parent who has 2+ kids battling for their attention while they are trying to install a car seat. Any little bit of extra engineering goes a long way in my book!

Now that you know what I like about this stroller system, if someone were to ask me what I didn't like about it, I would have two areas of improvement:

• Unfortunately no matter how we adjusted the stroller seat (as you are able to switch between forward and rear facing as well as height up and down) there just wasn't a good way for my toddler or her much taller friend to be able to ride on the glide board and not have her face be completely obstructed. 
• I also wish that the hood on car seat were larger. In comparison to the 2 other infant car seats that I've used, the Asana35's hood is very small and doesn't do much to block out light from any direction except for directly above. 

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Disclosure: I received product in exchange for my honest review.

Evenflo Symphony LX Carseat Review - Pretty awesome if you ask me!

When researching car seats, what are the most important features to you? Safety rating, style, size, accessories, longevity of use?

Wouldn't it make sense if stores offered a "try before you buy" program?  After all, as a new mom you rarely know what exactly it is you're looking at when shopping for and you have to buy it before baby is born. Between children #1 and #2 I can definitely say that what I look for as changed a lot!

For Penny we bought an infant car seat and stroller combination that worked out really well for us because Penny was such a wee, slow growing little girl. We transitioned her out of the infant seat when she was probably 14 months old and somewhere in the vicinity of 19 lbs. It was absolutely essential to us to keep her rear facing as long as possible so our toddler seat is able to go both ways. At 26 months and 23 lbs she is still rear facing. It is the safest direction for her as research shows that toddlers do not have the strength to control their head during an impact and can suffer devastating injuries even in low impact accidents when facing forward.

But it's amazing to me as to how siblings can be so different. Ruby at 9 weeks old is already almost 13 lbs and I know that she will not last in her infant seat as long as her sister did. Theres almost been  no similarity in sizing between these two girls (cloth diapers, clothes, babywearing and  now car seats). This had me researching other options and I learned about the Evenflo Symphony™ LX.

The Evenflo Symphony™ LX is a car seat that accommodates babies from 5-110 lbs. That literally sounds like a car seat that grows with the child! With 2 kids (and definitely more in our future) its a priority for me to keep it simple by limiting multiples or surplus items. So having a car seat that Ruby will use until she is big enough to safely ride without one is awesome!

What sets the Evenflo Symphony LX apart from other car seats?

• Outlast technology (developed by NASA) for heat distribution. You don't have to live in a hot climate to know about how uncomfortable a poorly ventilated seat can be. a few weeks ago I had Ruby in a loaner car seat and was shocked to find her sweaty and uncomfortable...but it was a mild Pacific Northwest day. The fabric used on the Symphony DLX battles this problem by distributing the heat evenly across the seat to help keep baby at a comfortable even temperature. The picture to the right is comparing a child after 30 minutes in a car seat with Outlast vs 30 minutes without Outlast.
• Robust supports for side impact protection and exceeding the federal crash  requirements for car seat safety standards.
• Ease of use features like buckle pockets to keep clips from getting too hot, no retreading needed as your child grows and cup holders.

My favorite part about this car seat is how easy it is to install and use. Evenflo prides itself on having a 60 second installation and I put it to the test. I was able to install it into my Suburban in about 73 seconds (first try). That's pretty impressive for anyone, but pretty much a feat of awesomeness for me! The latch system also comes out of the bottom of the seat like a seat belt (retracts like one too), rather than the stupid tighten / adjust system that other car seats use. So the fit is perfect every time. 

The Evenflo Symphony DLX is part of Evenflo’s new platinum protection collection and is available at Babies R Us. 

If you're looking for a single car seat that will grow with your child, this is the one. I've paid more for our other car seats and the quality really doens't compare. 

Disclosure: I participated in this sponsored campaign on behalf of One2One Network. All opinions stated are my own, but I wouldn't share about it if I didn't like it!

The #Urbini Touri Travel System #mc #sponsored

"I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting (#MC) for Urbini. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and as a thank you for participating”

When Penny was 8 weeks old, we traveled to Birmingham Alabama for my brother's graduation in Tuscaloosa from 'Bama. Being a new mom, I took a blind shot and packed our big heavy stroller and car seat because I wanted to be prepared for anything. As it turned out, it was more of a hassle than anything else. Getting through security, making sure that it wouldn't be broken during transport and then there was transferring it into the back of the rental car.. OY. 

Now as a seasoned mom I know where to cut out the extra heavy weight, so to speak. Though we haven't flown with Ruby yet, I know that any upcoming trip with include a soft carrier and our Urbini Touri Travel system. 

I have a cheapie umbrella stroller and it's exactly that - cheap. It's so cheap it might as well be disposable! It has zero storage, is difficult to collapse and isn't adjustable. I love the Urbini Touri  as a baby stroller travel system because it combines the ease of an umbrella stroller but also allows you to click in the Petal carseat (which is approved for air travel) and also adjust the recline of the main child seat.

I like this travel system because I've been able to use it for both of my kids. I can have the option of keeping Ruby in the carseat and having Penny walk next to me (if she has some energy to expend) or I can have Penny sit in the stroller and I can have Ruby in a carrier.  The storage under the stroller is OK, but I couldn't ask for much more since this stroller is meant to be more of a travel stroller versus a "hauling" stroller. The front wheels have a really easy lock mechanism to allow you to set the wheels to lock or swivel, they also remove easily for travel.

We put the Petal infant car seat into our Saab 9-3 and it fits really well too - our other infant car seat made it a really tight squeeze.  The car seat fits Ruby well (at 9 1/2 lbs, 22" and 1 month old). It was easy to install into the backseat of our Saab and didn't require us to move either of our front seats forward (as is the problem with many rear facing car seats and smaller sedans). There are a couple areas of improvement that I can see with this car seat. The adjusting strap to tighten / loosen the straps is difficult to use. I had to pull really hard to get it to tighten, whereas with our other car seats it doesn't take that much strength to pull the strap to tighten. I also don't really like the chest buckle, I would have liked the clip button to be more robust and for the chest plate to be a little broader.

I believe that the car seat will do its job in case of an emergency but the two ease of use features could use some revamping. Otherwise it's a very affordable system for parents on a budget or if you're looking for a lightweight secondary system.

The Urbini Touri Travel System features: 
• Includes Petal Infant carseat (holds children up to 35 lbs)
• Lightweight
• Multi-position reclining stroller seat
• 5-point harness for both the car seat and stroller
• Tuck-away sun visor
• Removable cup holder (I wouldn't recommend more than a 16 oz cup in it though)
• Front suspension wheels

You can buy this travel system at Walmart. Connect with Urbini on facebook and twitter

Disclosure: I received a Walmart gift card to purchase an Urbini stroller in order to facilitate this review and all opinions are my own.