Green Treehouse

A couple of years ago, a friend (and mom of three children) introduced me to the MeToo Portable Seat by Phil & Teds.  Finding the seat was a bit harder back then.  I vividly remember dashing store-to-store looking for the seat–now, the seat is available online, like at BabyEarth.com. 

The baby/toddler chair ranks near the top of my personal Best of the Best Baby Gear Purchases.  The MeToo is a practical portable high chair.  Perfect for bringing along to restaurants.  Lightweight, yet rugged, aluminum makes carrying the chair, along with the diaper bag and baby, a breeze.  I especially appreciate the MeToo when I go out to restaurants that prohibit the use of a real high chair at a booth due to fire code (hey, weren’t booths made for families in the first place?).  I simply attach the MeToo to the table within the seated booth area, and voila, my little one is at the same level as the rest of the family.

If you have a small home or need to conserve space, the MeToo is also a good substitute for a traditional high chair.  Some parents even use the MeToo on eat-in kitchen bars or islands.  Relatively speaking, the MeToo Chair is not that expensive given the potential frequency of use.  In my household, the MeToo is used everyday–at breakfast, lunch, dinner, among other times.  Talk about a good value.

If you’re looking for a great gift for expecting parents, or a gift for parents of a young child (the seat is designed for up to 40lbs), the MeToo is the perfect, ultra practical gift.  Given that the seat takes up little space, compared to a bulky, traditional high chair or tray-seat, and uses little packaging, I give the MeToo high marks in the eco-friendly department, too.

Is the MeToo one of your overall best baby purchases?    

This evening while walking with my children through an airport terminal to catch a flight, I overheard a woman making much ado about the assortment of restaurants at the airport. She was truly ecstatic about the variety. I can still see her waving her hands at the eatery display board and hear her voice reciting the list to her child. Subway. Pizza Hut. McDonalds. Starbucks. Yada Yada…. I couldn’t help but wonder “what’s the big deal?” Even my two year old wouldn’t get this worked up about these places–okay, I admit most of them are old hat–especially Starbucks.

Then while on the plane, I found myself thinking again about that woman’s reaction. Maybe she simply never eats out–with or without her child. I know there are plenty of families who don’t eat out much, if at all, due to finances or food allergies, among other reasons. Maybe I just eat out way too much. After all, my preschooler already recognizes the differences between Caribou’s cocoa and Starbuck’s, and the differences in sub preparation at Quiznos and Subway. My toddler even knows what restaurant tables work best with the Phil & Teds Me Too Chair.

So, now I’m really curious. How often do you eat out with your children? And…what’s “normal”?

Yesterday, I took my children to one of the coolest playgrounds on the planet.  The scene reminded me of a mall on Black Friday.  It was packed.  Children everywhere.  Moms.  Dads. Grandparents.  Nannies.  

Besides people, there were a ton of strollers–and lots of bulky ones that made navigating through the crowd visibly challenging. 

Although I didn’t wheel a stroller to the playground, I did arrive with one of my favorite loves, the Ergo.  As I stood (with baby happily and comfortably nestled in the Ergo) watching my preschooler play on playground equipment, a mother pushing the coolest double buggy approached me. 

“It looks like we’re the smart ones,” she said pointing to my Ergo and her Phil & Teds Stroller Buggy.  I quickly agreed.  There is nothing quite like having baby gear that gives you incredible maneuvering power, comfort, and convenience.

Had I brought my old WIDE double jogging stroller (like so many parents at the park had done), it would have been impossible to keep up with my child at the playground.  Phil & Teds Sport Stroller Buggy actually gives you seating for two–but only takes up the space of a single stroller.  If this product had been on the market just a bit earlier, I would have put it on my own baby shower gift list.  Buying it would have been a no brainer.

Plus, if you add that the stroller comes in a variety of colors, including the shade of green that is perfectly sporty and hip, there’s no doubt in my mind that Phil & Teds makes the coolest double buggy on the planet.

If you’re looking for a little extra incentive to buy your dream buggy today, check out BabyEarth.com, which has teamed up with Phil & Teds to offer you an amazing deal–a free doubles kit with the purchase of a special sport stroller, PLUS free shipping.      

“Wow, exercise is so much fun!”  Those are the words my preschooler uttered when we finished a “run” around the block.  I couldn’t agree more, especially when exercise involves my children. 

As a mom of three, I know that finding time for myself during the day is a rare event–certainly too rare to steal time for a predictable exercise routine.  At least, so I thought until I realized that exercising with my children is entirely possible with a little planning and the right equipment.  For me, planning includes integrating a walk or run into ”afternoon outside playtime”–and setting aside appropriate fitness clothing sometime during the day, so I have fewer excuses to get moving.  Equipment includes good walking/running shoes, but most importantly the double jogging stroller.  I pack my two youngest into the stroller–who usually fall into a deep sleep as soon as I get going–and my preschooler walks or jogs alongside me.

While I know my preschooler gets the bulk of her enjoyment from the energy release of moving about, we add more fun to our exercise activities by engaging in fun conversation (think, “I Spy” games on the run) and learning activities (like shouting out directions, “left” or “right,” and steering the stroller together in the direction called).  My enjoyment comes from knowing that I’m doing something good for “me” (yeah!) and for my children, while spending quality time with them.  Thanks to my children, I’ve learned that exercise really can be so much fun!