Geek in Heels - Page 71

Oct 11, 2011 • In Baby, Claire, Motherhood, Reviews

Pognae Baby Carrier Review

Baby carriers are big in Asia. This is especially the case in urban areas where there is limited space and the majority of the population choose to take public transportation rather than drive.

And where there is demand, there is supply. A great variety of quality supply, I might add.

The Pognae is one such baby carrier. Made in, and popularized in Korea, the Pognae is currently one of the most popular soft structured baby carriers in Asia and Europe.

I had read about the Pognae in various mommy boards even before Claire was born. Many mothers touted the Pognae as a cheaper alternative to the popular Ergo, without sacrificing the quality. Not only that, the Pognae offers an additional feature: a mesh cooling vent which is great for those summer months, or if you have a baby who overheats easily.

However, I decided to go with the BabyBjörn because it was more accessible at the time (ie, we could add it to our baby registry). And while I used the BabyBjörn with Claire, I didn’t love it, and I admit that my shoulders would start to hurt after about 15 minutes of use.

So when my friend Donna recently asked me if I would like to try the Pognae, I jumped at the chance. You see, Pognae has recently expanded to the U.S. with the launch of the website www.pognaeusa.com. Go check it out for yourselves — I guarantee you’ll be absolutely delighted by the 7 adorable designs!

I decided on the “Mild” design and my Pognae arrived within just a couple of days. Almost immediately, I fell in love with its cute carrier bag:

Inside the bag were: the Pognae carrier, the attachable headrest, and an attachable pouch which can be used to store small personal items.

One thing I immediately noticed about the Pognae were the exceptional quality and materials. The 100% cotton fabric is soft and breathable, the foam is soft yet resilient, and there is reinforced cross-stitching in all areas that would require additional support.

I unfortunately could not try the carrier myself because of my overly pregnant belly (perhaps the optional waist extender would have worked?), but other members of the family used it on Claire with limited success. I use the word “limited” ONLY because my daughter does not like carriers in general — she loves to be held, but once she is in your arms, she will whip her upper body back and forth, flail her arms about, and try her best to guide the person carrying her to where she wants to go. Carriers restrict her movement so she will only stand them for about 15 minutes at a time. (And no, she will NEVER fall asleep in someone’s arms, carrier or not.)

But in the 15 minutes during which Claire stayed docile in the Pognae? I would say it was a great success. 🙂 Here is she, comfortably resting in the Pognae with J and my MIL:

Like the Ergo, one great benefit of the Pognae’s design is that the majority of the weight does not rest on the carrier’s shoulders. Rather, the weight is evenly distributed between the shoulders and the waist, so that the person doing the carrying gets tired less easily.

While it is unfortunate that Claire does not like carriers, there’s always a good chance that BebeDeux will, so I will be eagerly awaiting the day when she will be large enough for the Pognae. (According to the FAQs, the Pognae can be used for babies and small children weighing between 12 lbs and 45 lbs. With the optional infant insert, your baby can weigh between 7 lbs and 12 lbs.)

Now, for the best part. For a limited time, the Pognae can be purchased at www.pognaeusa.com for $89 (regular price is $110).

Additionally, for the entire month of October, you can use the coupon code PinkPognae and Pognae USA will donate 5% of your purchase to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, in addition to giving you a 5% discount on your purchase!

What are you waiting for? Go purchase your own Pognae today! It would also make a great gift for an expecting friend, or a new mother!

Disclaimer: I received a free Pognae for purposes of reviewing it on this blog. I was not compensated in any other way. Every word of this review is 100% my honest opinion.

The Seven Deadly Keys

Simply brilliant! (And 5 points for anyone who can tell me the Mac equivalent of Ctrl+Alt+Delete!)

Via Sticky Comics.

Claire’s Ham Face

I have a sore throat and a slight fever. Keeping myself healthy in these last remaining weeks of the pregnancy is high priority, so I will be taking it easy today. Here’s something to make up for the lack of posts: an animated GIF of Claire’s ham face:

How can you look at this and not smile? 🙂

How I Curb My Sushi Cravings (Gag!)

It’s confession time again, boys and girls!

And the big shocker for the week is: I have eaten sushi with both pregnancies.

😮

When you think about it, pregnant women in Japan must eat sushi every day, no? And after having done my own research on the subject, I do not see how having some raw fish once in a while, from a good, reputable restaurant, can be so detrimental.

As is the mantra for most pregnancy-related issues, I believe that moderation is key.

With this in mind, I have cut down on my sushi intake considerably with both pregnancies. And while I may not have a very adventurous palate, I do enjoy raw tuna, salmon, yellowtail, and uni tremendously.

And whenever I crave sushi more than I know I should, I just think back to this incident from four years ago…

Via Wulffmorgenthaler.

One Saturday, while lounging around the apartment, J and I spotted something white — something that normally isn’t present — in his fishtank. I decided to take a closer look, and discovered that it was a fish skeleton.

Which led us to the only possible conclusion: one of his goldfish had died, and the other one had eaten it. The fish itself was about 5 inches long, so it was a fairly large skeleton. A fairly large, DETAILED skeleton.

I could barely glance at it; it was that disturbing. Of course, J had to add to that by saying, “He even ate the eyes!”

Then, with perfect timing, the doorbell rang. It was a delivery man, who had arrived with our dinner. And what had we ordered? Sushi.

Oh, the irony.

I usually love sushi and I tried to eat. But after just a few pieces I almost threw up.

Why Cleavage is Bad for Crime Fighting

Internet cartoonist Aaron Diaz explains…

Claire and Phil Dunphy: Our On-Screen Selves

J and I have loved the hit ABC show Modern Family ever since my sister introduced us to it mid-first season.

And over the past summer, as we patiently waited the new season by re-watching reruns, something began to dwell on us…

“Hey, isn’t…?”

“Phil Dunphy acts a lot like you!”

“And you’re exactly like Claire!”

And the more and more reruns we watched, the more the similarities became uncanny. Phil’s goofy, sometimes-immature self, his desire to please everyone (even sometimes at the expense of his wife), his wanting to be hip and cool for the kids, and even the way he procrastinates on the various to-do items that Claire lays out for him are exactly like J.

And Claire? Her OCD-nature and the tendency to FREAK OUT over minor things, her desire to make everything and everyone perfect (even if they are, in their own ways, already so), her needing to have complete control over all aspects of her life and being too hard on herself when things do not go her way…

Yep, that’s me in a nutshell.

With every interaction they have, with every memorable scene they are in together, we can totally see ourselves doing the same exact thing, or we have done the same!

The funny thing is, we decided on the name Claire for our firstborn right before the show began to air. Another coincidence? Claire and Phil have three kids: two girls who are close in age and a third, a boy, who is younger by a few years. Will we end up having a third child, a boy, some years down the road?

(And I know that if we end up naming the boy Luke, J will make sure that the first words that Luke hears out of the womb are, “Luuuukke. I ammmm your father…” JUST like Phil did.)

The similarities between this TV couple and ourselves are so striking that J’s brother continually tells his wife, “Ohmygawd, I feel like I’m watching my brother and Jenny!” whenever they watch the show.

What about you? Are there any fictional characters — on television, in movies, or in books — that you and your significant other resemble?

Cloudy: The Good and the Bad

Remember Cloudy?

No? Let’s see if this picture of Claire crotch-punching Cloudy rings a bell:

I keep forgetting how TINY Claire used to be! She is now more than twice Cloudy’s size.

You can read all about Cloud’s origins here, including the hilarious story behind her name. 🙂

Lately we have been keeping Cloudy near Claire’s diaper station as a means of distracting our little girl while we change her. And, because sometimes just holding Cloudy isn’t enough, we will usually squeeze Cloudy’s left paw to play the theme from Star Wars.

The good news is that Claire has grown to love the theme from Star Wars. 😀 She will smile and clap as the majestic melody swells through the room. (I know! We couldn’t be more proud!)

The bad news? We think Claire is now starting to associate that same melody with dirty diapers!

Crap. (Literally.)

The Ladies of Madison Avenue: Playboy Edition

Tauntr, the site behind the fake Ben & Jerry’s pop culture ice cream flavors you’ve been seeing all over the web recently, has created four faux vintage covers of Playboy magazine featuring characters from the AMC hit show Mad Men.

Now, I know at least some of my readers will be offended by my featuring Playboy covers here, fake or not. But there is a reason behind my madness: the fourth cover is graced by none other than our favorite, no-BS-taking, now-deceased secretary, Miss Blankenship! Enjoy!

Via Best Week Ever.

The Rise of the New “Super People”

A few days ago, the NYTimes ran a op-ed piece titled “Super People” that left me pondering its implications and reactions. If you have a few spare minutes, I highly encourage you to read the article. If you do not, this paragraph sums up what “Super People” are:

A brochure arrives in the mail announcing this year’s winners of a prestigious fellowship to study abroad. The recipients are allotted a full page each, with a photo and a thick paragraph chronicling their achievements. It’s a select group to begin with, but even so, there doesn’t seem to be anyone on this list who hasn’t mastered at least one musical instrument; helped build a school or hospital in some foreign land; excelled at a sport; attained fluency in two or more languages; had both a major and a minor, sometimes two, usually in unrelated fields (philosophy and molecular science, mathematics and medieval literature); and yet found time — how do they have any? — to enjoy such arduous hobbies as mountain biking and white-water kayaking.

The essay goes on to theorize the rise of the new Super People (evolution, better nutrition, etc.) and wonders if this trend is a sign of the growing income inequality in America such that wealthy parents can invest in their children to an unprecedented degree. The author also asks if the phenomenon is partly an illusion, spurred by resume-padding and trophy-collecting rather than genuine passion and commitment.

I have varying thoughts on the rise of the new Super People. The first, and foremost, being that I actually know a few Super People and they all seem to be well-rounded, well-adjusted individuals who are content with their lives and continually enrich the lives of those around them.

The second is worry. My sister used to work for a prestigious tutoring academy and tells me that parents are spending hundreds of dollars per hour — and sometimes even thousands of dollars per session — just to bump their kids’ grade from an A- to an A, or to help a 740 grade on an SAT score reach the perfect 800 mark. She also says that some of her students’ schedules were so jam-packed with activities that the only time they could meet with her for their private tutoring sessions was at 9 or 10pm on weekends.

Isn’t an A- good enough? (This question seems timely considering the latest episode of Glee, where an A- is called an “Asian F.” :-D) Shouldn’t weekends be reserved for — oh I don’t know — taking a break? Should not the main goal of childhood and the tumultuous adolescent years be to learn about life and prepare for adulthood, not to pad your resume or college application?

My third concern also comes from a parenting perspective, but it is in a completely opposite direction from the previous. When you look through the comments on the original NYTimes article, a clear trend emerges: criticism of the Super People. Citing the commenters themselves as better and happier people for not being “super.” Calling Super People’s achievements to be nothing more than trophies, and assuming that they are all uncreative, uncaring, and unhappy.

When did mediocrity become something to be celebrated?

Can’t these commenters be impressed by Super People and look up to them? Is it so hard to admit that Super People are better than us?

Like all parents, I want the best for my children. I want them to excel in all aspects of life. I want them to get straight A’s, to be good athletes, to be musical and artistic, to be compassionate, and not only that, rise above and beyond others when doing so.

But at the same time, I know that their being ALL of these things is unlikely. Maybe one or two, but all? I would be happy, for sure, but I would not hold it against them if they were to simply suck at certain things.

And I would not love them any more or any less for their achievements, or lack thereof.

BUT I refuse to celebrate mediocrity. I believe that one of the biggest problems facing our nation today is the snowflake syndrome, the belief that everyone should made to feel extraordinary for ordinary achievements.

It will be tough balancing act. I hope that I can do it.

What are your thoughts on the new Super People?

Eternal Flame

I remember that the first computer I ever used was a Mac.

I remember learning Photoshop on a Mac.

I remember buying my first Mac.

I remember lining up for Apple OS X “Panther,” and how this was the very first geek-related launch party I ever attended.

I remember squealing like a little girl when I saw Steve Jobs at the opening of the Fifth Ave Apple Store.

Today, lots of people are rightly talking about Steve Jobs’ creative vision. But vision is nothing without rightful execution.

Thank you, Mr. Jobs. You will be missed.

Today’s xkcd, aptly named “Eternal Flame.”
When you hover over the comic, it reads, “There’s always the hope that if you sit and watch
for long enough, the beachball will vanish and the thing it interrupted will return.”