It was just another typical weekday at 2 o'clock. I was doing my dutiful flipping through a (rather) recent issue of Cookie magazine while my kid was playing with a hammer and Matchbox cars while sitting on the small plastic potty, when the words jumped off the page and shook me out of my normal mommy moment on the bathroom floor. There it was, tucked into the corner of all the boutique advertisements and notices: an ad for stroller consultants. STROLLER CONSULTANTS. And the chipper pink tag line read, "Let us help you pick your perfect stroller!" What the hell?
Let's Go Strolling, a consultant business for the baby gear now apparently considered as vital and expensive as your family car or a small aircraft, "has helped thousands of customers find the
perfect stroller and accessories to fit their lifestyle and needs" using their "knowledge and experience." I'm curious what kind of knowledge and experience is required to find the perfect stroller? I mean, other than pushing it? It isn't clear if or how much a consultation with an expert costs, and I can't help but wonder if that person's resume includes having lots of babies of their own or if it's just an ability to push "the best quality strollers" that are generally recommended in the price range of $200 and up, as well as really do a bang up job of pushing those strollers themselves?
I guess I acted as my own personal stroller consultant as I tooled around Toys R Us, test driving everything from the cheapy models to the Burberry-styled Peg-Peregos. Sure, I got advice from my mama friends about cup holders and blow-up wheels and why the $21 umbrella strollers are so much better than the seven dollar deals, but it came down to how fast and agile my husband and I could get those bad boys through the aisles of the store. Oh, and how easily it folded up. But no one else could have told me what level of handlebar felt right or upsell me on a trayless variety. But then, I wasn't about to unload a year's worth of kindergarten college tuition on my stroller either. When it comes down to it, are we really that lazy or revere the stroller that much that we need to turn to a professional to tell us if a bigger basket or purse hanger would benefit us if we're more if we're living in Cleveland than NYC? Seriously, isn't this something we can handle all by ourselves on the way to having a baby? And if we're investing so much money or concern that we need consultants to pick out a stroller (a STROLLER people, not a new home or private school), are we maybe obsessing about the wrong stuff?
