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Having just had a kid I'd like to comment on the SUV etc comments. I'm shocked at the amount of space a kid seems to take up. Especially the car seats. .
Right, because the handle has to be down AND it can't be touching the front seat. OK, car seat manufacturers! I remember when we installed our twins' car seats, DH looked at me and said "this car just got a whole lot smaller" - we had a minivan before the year was out.
If you ever have a kid, you will find that packing up the baby and said baby gear gets a tad overwhelming.
If you ever have a kid, hopefully they won't become involved in sports that require you to lug gear.
If you ever have a kid, hopefully they will choose a small musical instrument which will fit in your vehicle.
Now add another kid or two to the mix.
You might not opt for an SUV, but you could very well end up with a minivan or crossover to carry little Petunia and Throckmorton as well as their things.
I am all for people buying whatever kind of vehicle they want, and I am personally in favor of owning massive, impractical, gas guzzling vehicles whenever possible...
BUT - just for the sake of playing devil's advocate...
When I was a kid, our family car was a 1980-something Cavalier. Two door. Me and my brother both played every sport, every season. When we were in school, he played the drums and I played the TUBA! I'm sure my mother's biggest thrill in life was not trying to stuff a partially disassembled hockey net and 30lbs of gear in the trunk of that thing (which required shutting the car off and actually opening the trunk with a key - of course!) but I also know that if I asked her, she'd find it hilarious that anyone might need a vehicle slightly larger than a phone booth to haul a few snot-nosed kids around in.
I agree - why NOT have more room? Just saying... in between the time most of the geezers () on here grew up in the Vista Cruiser land yacht generation and then had kids in the CUV/SUV/Minivan generation - lots of parents stuffed their brats and brat equipment into tin cans and were no worse for the wear because of it!
I am all for people buying whatever kind of vehicle they want, and I am personally in favor of owning massive, impractical, gas guzzling vehicles whenever possible...
BUT - just for the sake of playing devil's advocate...
When I was a kid, our family car was a 1980-something Cavalier. Two door. Me and my brother both played every sport, every season. When we were in school, he played the drums and I played the TUBA! I'm sure my mother's biggest thrill in life was not trying to stuff a partially disassembled hockey net and 30lbs of gear in the trunk of that thing (which required shutting the car off and actually opening the trunk with a key - of course!) but I also know that if I asked her, she'd find it hilarious that anyone might need a vehicle slightly larger than a phone booth to haul a few snot-nosed kids around in.
I agree - why NOT have more room? Just saying... in between the time most of the geezers () on here grew up in the Vista Cruiser land yacht generation and then had kids in the CUV/SUV/Minivan generation - lots of parents stuffed their brats and brat equipment into tin cans and were no worse for the wear because of it!
I don't believe you're playing Devil's Advocate, simply because this was your mother's actual experience. I hope you give her an extra hug when you see her for having to shoehorn in all your sports stuff!
My experience -- when I was driving a 2 door Wrangler exclusively -- was that when the washer went on the fritz, it was a huge PITA to haul a family's worth of laundry to/from the laundromat, fitting the week's groceries in was an artform, DD's performance dress bags could never lay flat, and the kids musical instrument of choice was in a case which was several inches longer then the width of the rear seat area. As much as I loved the Wrangler -- there were days when I was ready to trade it in.
I am all for people buying whatever kind of vehicle they want, and I am personally in favor of owning massive, impractical, gas guzzling vehicles whenever possible...
BUT - just for the sake of playing devil's advocate...
When I was a kid, our family car was a 1980-something Cavalier. Two door. Me and my brother both played every sport, every season. When we were in school, he played the drums and I played the TUBA! I'm sure my mother's biggest thrill in life was not trying to stuff a partially disassembled hockey net and 30lbs of gear in the trunk of that thing (which required shutting the car off and actually opening the trunk with a key - of course!) but I also know that if I asked her, she'd find it hilarious that anyone might need a vehicle slightly larger than a phone booth to haul a few snot-nosed kids around in.
I agree - why NOT have more room? Just saying... in between the time most of the geezers () on here grew up in the Vista Cruiser land yacht generation and then had kids in the CUV/SUV/Minivan generation - lots of parents stuffed their brats and brat equipment into tin cans and were no worse for the wear because of it!
Brat equipment? LOL! I bet you didn't wear a helmet while riding your bicycle as a child.
Can't stand passive aggressive people that call the cops at the drop of a hat rather than talking to you and asking to keep the noise down. Grew up in Garden City and my neighbor across the street called the cops on us constantly.
Lived in the New Orleans suburbs for awhile, that was a trip. Our neighbor next door was this old bag who called the cops on us once when we weren't even home. So of course when we had a party, she called in saying she heard gunfire. Couple of swamp men in uniform showed up, and start asking questions. I tell them I don't even own a gun, none the less would I be firing it off in my house.
Fat redneck cop ***** his head, says, "well now bah, it ain't nuttin to be ashamed of. I get myself liquored up, I'm liable to pull my piece out and shoot a few rounds off in the air."
I don't believe you're playing Devil's Advocate, simply because this was your mother's actual experience. I hope you give her an extra hug when you see her for having to shoehorn in all your sports stuff!
My experience -- when I was driving a 2 door Wrangler exclusively -- was that when the washer went on the fritz, it was a huge PITA to haul a family's worth of laundry to/from the laundromat, fitting the week's groceries in was an artform, DD's performance dress bags could never lay flat, and the kids musical instrument of choice was in a case which was several inches longer then the width of the rear seat area. As much as I loved the Wrangler -- there were days when I was ready to trade it in.
I don't agree with the "grrr why do these g-d soccer moms need such big effing tank SUVs??" argument, but at the same time I guess I also think it's kind of silly that the rationale for owning such a mammoth truck equates to "I need to transport a 50lb. child and it's too physically demanding to fold a stroller."
I'm not criticizing, though! I think people should buy whatever they want for whatever reasons they want. I agree it obviously must save a lot of headaches. It just seems slightly humorous to me, and also my mom is (still) the best
Quote:
Originally Posted by I_Love_LI_but
Brat equipment? LOL! I bet you didn't wear a helmet while riding your bicycle as a child.
HELL NO - and I was a child when the concept of bicycle helmets were first introduced. We "LOL"ed at them heartily!
you can also raise your kids without indoor plumbing. But why make things harder on yourself if you don't have to?
It comes down to needs, wants and personal choices.
SUV is to raising kids ... as fine china is to serving good pizza... , i.e. somewhat irrelevant.
SUV is a want and a personal choice, not a need. Even indoor plumbing is not a need per se. But there are some perks of civilization that we all embrace .
The SUV-kids connection is really something very suburban.
I grew up in a city and went everywhere by walking, biking or public transportation. Since I was/am the opposite of a soccer mom, my poor kids had to find creative solutions in the suburban setting. They turned out OK.
It's an amusing sight to see young moms balancing 2-3 kids plus an umbrella on a bicycle in Japan. I was very impressed. That's an extreme.
We did a cross-country road trip some years ago, with teenagers, in a mid-size sedan... I thought, we may kill each other...considering the time spent together in the small space. But turned out to be one of the best and most memorable trips.
I think is important to have the freedom to choose whatever suits you best. What we actually need is amazingly little.
When I was a kid, my parents had a '73 Nova, 2 door no less, then when we became a 2-car family, my mom got an '83 Chevy Celebrity. Dad, mom, 3 kids, we fit fine, fought, but fit fine. Hell, the Nova was replaced with a Pontiac T-1000 (basically a Chevette), and when the other car was in the shop, we all shoehorned into that. I can even remember an instance where we had to borrow my uncle's 70 VW beetle!
Now my wife an I have an Impala & a Town & Country. We 'needed' the van I'm sure. Only plus I really see is we can tow the camper without having to borrow my fathers jeep.
People who park on the wrong side of the street, we have an entire block where myself and 1 other neighbor are the only ones who seem to know it's right side to curb. Turn down my block and you would swear you are going the wrong way on a one way street.
I came from Nassau and almost no one did this the PD would ticket, Suffolk does not seem to care
Guilty of this, I never was because it was a sure-fire ticket in the city, but when I moved out here, I was surprised. I adjusted to it.
My mother says Staten Island WAS the same way when they moved there in the 70's
SUV is a want and a personal choice, not a need. .
It may look that way. We have two kids but my wife and her friends are constantly dragging my kids plus their friends to activities which requires the good old Third Row. I originally challenged her on this need but I have seen it over the past few years. Having the dreaded SUV out there many times eliminates the need for a second vehicle on the road.
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) on here grew up in the Vista Cruiser land yacht generation and then had kids in the CUV/SUV/Minivan generation - lots of parents stuffed their brats and brat equipment into tin cans and were no worse for the wear because of it!
