A couple of years ago I lamented about toddlers and strollers. Traveling with my then fickle 2-year-old was a challenge because I was constantly debating whether or not I should bring the stroller with us. It was always a toss-up as to whether she would ride in it or spend the day running circles around it.
I thought about that blog the other day when I read a post by another blogging mom railing on Gwyneth Paltrow. Said blogging mom wrote an open letter to Paltrow chastising her for allowing her 4-year-old daughter Apple to ride in a stroller while the two were at a local Farmer’s Market a few weeks ago.
The letter included lines such as:
“Gwyneth, stop confining Apple to a stroller like a baby veal and make her walk!”
and
“I’m not sure who I really need to blame here. Does the blame lay squarely on Gwynnie’s pin thin shoulders because she automatically throws her Apple into a cart whenever they go out? Or is it little Apple I need to blame for being so gosh darned lazy that she can’t even walk around a farmers market. Hmmm?”
and
“Why wouldn’t you make Apple walk when you have the chance? Do you want her to be a big fat sloth?”
Ouch!
The raging mom goes on to say that she has a child Apple’s age and she firmly believes in a “no free rides” policy; that kids need exercise just like adults, yada, yada, yada.
Not for nothing, but I too have a daughter Apple’s age and I still use a stroller from time to time, and believe me, my daughter is no fatter for it.
I think the blogging mom should have considered the circumstances before unleashing on Paltrow.
Personally, if I were taking my daughter to a Farmer’s Market I would have brought the stroller along as well. A trip to the Farmer’s Market includes a lot of stops and starts. It’s not like a trip to the park where the point of the excursion is to promote exercise and your kids can run free. Farmer’s Markets are crowded places and strollers come in handy to tote your purchases and provide a seat for a hungry child to sit and munch on a banana or a fresh slice of bread.
What’s more, the photo at the center of the blogging mom’s tirade features Apple sucking on her thumb. If you’re going to pick on the girl for something I’d hone in on that fact, instead of her decision to stroll.
How old was your child when you decided to retire her stroller for good?
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