C&D I'm not buying a minivan test

[Submariner]

How can a family of four not find enough room in a GL? 

My parents easily packed for a weekend trip with my infant brother and I in an E320 convertible.  A GL is like a motorhome by comparison. 

[Lebowski]

How can a family of four not find enough room in a GL? 

My parents easily packed for a weekend trip with my infant brother and I in an E320 convertible.  A GL is like a motorhome by comparison. 

Kids now come with a lot more accessories than when we were little. Bouncers and pack n play type things, more elaborate car seats and strollers etc and in some cases crazy diets (he usually packs a cooler full of god knows what, probably the gluten and dairy free version of various packaged junk food) . But I agree, so much stuff that you can't take the GL is absurd and I regularly make fun of him for it. It's more my sister in law that's the over packer than him, though.

[Soup DeVille]

How can a family of four not find enough room in a GL? 

My parents easily packed for a weekend trip with my infant brother and I in an E320 convertible.  A GL is like a motorhome by comparison. 

What Lebowski said. Car seats are incredibly huge space wasters. The strollers we used- little spindly things like umbrellas with wheels- are gone as well; replaced by enormous contraptions with multiple configurations, tires the size of dinner plates, lunch trays, and multiple stage cup holders.

[giant_mtb]

What Lebowski said. Car seats are incredibly huge space wasters. The strollers we used- little spindly things like umbrellas with wheels- are gone as well; replaced by enormous contraptions with multiple configurations, tires the size of dinner plates, lunch trays, and multiple stage cup holders.

Lots of storage on newer strollers for beers.

[Lebowski]

Congratulations on your son. Now get a Land Cruiser

Congrats man. I love off topic big life announcements.

Wifey and I realized long ago a lot of people are terrible at logistics, which prompts shit like a Sequoia for a family of 4. After spending 3 years in that tiny ass NYC apartment I think we'll be able to make our cars work.

Thanks.


Land cruiser is too big and too expensive as much as I like them.

Fortunately my sig other is a much more efficient packer than my sister in law, we usually travel reasonably light.

[Submariner]

What Lebowski said. Car seats are incredibly huge space wasters. The strollers we used- little spindly things like umbrellas with wheels- are gone as well; replaced by enormous contraptions with multiple configurations, tires the size of dinner plates, lunch trays, and multiple stage cup holders.

Have things really changed that much since 1996?

I remember his stroller taking up half of the trunk, with the remaining half going to luggage (and that car didn't have a large trunk!)  The car seat was large, yes, but I can't picture them being any larger today.

When my parents finally got an SUV, they had to look for ways to fill it up with luggage, and even then, they never did.

[giant_mtb]

I think some child seats are definitely larger today...shit, people are putting their children in car seats until they're 9 years old, so they have to be bigger.  I don't have any memories of ever being in a car seat, personally.  I have memories of being allowed to sit in the front seat occasionally around 6 years old.

[Soup DeVille]

Have things really changed that much since 1996?

I remember his stroller taking up half of the trunk, with the remaining half going to luggage (and that car didn't have a large trunk!)  The car seat was large, yes, but I can't picture them being any larger today.

When my parents finally got an SUV, they had to look for ways to fill it up with luggage, and even then, they never did.

Yes.

[Lebowski]

I am told there is significantly more today even than when my step son was born in 2008. How much is necessary I don't know, though the car seat related stuff you don't have much choice.

You should see the amount of shit we had coming in from her registry, literally a room full of baby stuff in boxes that I get to assemble. A lot of it looks redundant to my untrained eyes, but I am told it's all "needed" ... yet somehow the species once survived without it.

[giant_mtb]

I don't remember ever having such an abundance of shit to play with as a kid...it's no wonder kids are so ADD nowadays. 

[Raza]

I think he means vs a sedan (edit apparently small CUVs).


Up until this point, 4Runner has had plenty of room for us.  Now that we are officially a family of 4 (son born this past Wed) I think the 4Runner will still have plenty of room with the exception of a ~once a year week long trip where we take the dogs (for shorter weekend trips with the dogs like to my parents 4Runner should still have enough room), I think for now it probably makes the most sense to just rent something for that one week a year.  I have no desire to be one of those parents who takes so much shit to go with a child they need a full sized SUV for a weekend ... my brother for example has a GL450 and a Sequoia and 2 kids, and I recall said couldn't fit all their baby related shit into the GL for a few days at the beach.

4Runner is now approaching 100k miles so not sure what eventual replacement will be or when (not in a rush).

Congratulations on the son--I mean that sincerely. What did you name the little guy?

[Lebowski]

Congratulations on the son--I mean that sincerely. What did you name the little guy?

Thanks ... Quentin. Will probably call him Quinn.

[veeman]

Congratulations!  My two kids are older now (10 and 6) and so everything can be packed in a few suitcases and I no longer carry strollers and play pens etc. When they were smaller honestly everything could fit for a week long trip in my Sonata which had a huge trunk.  My wife just preferred the higher seating position of an SUV and so we usually took the Rav4.  When we got rid of the Rav4 for an Enclave, I really began to appreciate driving a living room for long trips.  So much space, so cush and serene a ride, and I loved how it looked. 

If they could make yesteryears Ford Econoline or ChevyVan drive like a modern day large SUV or minivan, I'd be all over that.

[Raza]

Thanks ... Quentin. Will probably call him Quinn.

I like it.  Quinn's a cool name. 

[SJ_GTI]

A great deal of people don't know how many doors their car has

Mine has 4!.

Wait, I meant 5! 5 is my final answer! 

[r0tor]

I don't remember ever having such an abundance of shit to play with as a kid...it's no wonder kids are so ADD nowadays. 

This

My entertainment was looking out the window while my parents were driving.  Just try and tell that to a kid these days.

[Raza]

I don't remember ever having such an abundance of shit to play with as a kid...it's no wonder kids are so ADD nowadays.

When I was a kid, you'd sit in the back seat, where it was safe to not wear your seatbelt, with a lit cigarette and a martini, and you'd entertain yourself.

[giant_mtb]

When I was a kid, you'd sit in the back seat, where it was safe to not wear your seatbelt, with a lit cigarette and a martini, and you'd entertain yourself.

Man, I grew up in the wrong generation.

[FoMoJo]

Thanks ... Quentin. Will probably call him Quinn.

Congratulations re Quentin.  May you spoil him with good judgement.

[Laconian]

This

My entertainment was looking out the window while my parents were driving.  Just try and tell that to a kid these days.

Slugbug *punch*

[Rich]

I'm wondering if kids developed in the smartphone age will have a higher capability for intelligence. That there's so much stimuli, maybe if they are programmers it will make them more productive

I grew up with not much as a kid so now I'm happy to just have nothing and close my eyes for a bit and to just chill outside and people watch. I can't imagine a younger kid wanting or being able to do that and would be more productive than me

[CaminoRacer]

I'm wondering if kids developed in the smartphone age will have a higher capability for intelligence. That there's so much stimuli, maybe if they are programmers it will make them more productive

I grew up with not much as a kid so now I'm happy to just have nothing and close my eyes for a bit and to just chill outside and people watch. I can't imagine a younger kid wanting or being able to do that and would be more productive than me

Thing is, they don't want to do any productive. They want to sit and play candy crush.

I looked out the window or read a book as a kid.

[Lebowski]

I'm wondering if kids developed in the smartphone age will have a higher capability for intelligence. That there's so much stimuli, maybe if they are programmers it will make them more productive

I grew up with not much as a kid so now I'm happy to just have nothing and close my eyes for a bit and to just chill outside and people watch. I can't imagine a younger kid wanting or being able to do that and would be more productive than me

I'm no child psychologist but I feel the opposite is true. All this overstimulation and multitasking I worry risks the ability to focus on a single task. I feel like my own attention and ability to focus has suffered since the smartphone.

[Raza]

Slugbug *punch*

Slugbug?  Don't you mean punchbuggy?

[Laconian]

Is this like soda versus pop?

[Raza]

I'm wondering if kids developed in the smartphone age will have a higher capability for intelligence. That there's so much stimuli, maybe if they are programmers it will make them more productive

I grew up with not much as a kid so now I'm happy to just have nothing and close my eyes for a bit and to just chill outside and people watch. I can't imagine a younger kid wanting or being able to do that and would be more productive than me

Who knows?  The overstimulation has led to an insane decrease in attention SQUIRREL span.  People can't sit still SQUIRREL long enough to complete a thought, let alone a SQUIRREL full task.

[Raza]

Is this like soda versus pop?

Where did you grow up?  I've never heard slugbug, but I've definitely heard idiotic people say "pop".

[Lebowski]

It's "spud".

[12,000 RPM]

This

My entertainment was looking out the window while my parents were driving.  Just try and tell that to a kid these days.

Not even books? Or did those not exist when you were a kid?

Thing is, they don't want to do any productive. They want to sit and play candy crush.

I looked out the window or read a book as a kid.

And what did you want to do as a kid? Solve world hunger?

"Back in my day people were better human beings " You guys are like 35 years old, cut it out

[shp4man]

"Slugbug" was a game played while traveling. The first one to see an air cooled Type 1 VW Beetle yelled "SLUGBUG" and socked the person next to them in the shoulder. What am I, the fucking historian around here?