ImaginativePRO Blog

THE TAGA BIKE TRANSPORTS KIDS EASILY AND CAN CONVERT FROM A BIKE INTO A STROLLER

I’ve written about our Taga Bike before, and how it can convert in under a minute (even with me doing the converting) from a bike to a stroller. Taga sent us their wooden double seat to review, and it has gotten a lot of use carting Lily to and from preschool!

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This sturdy seat has a rain cover, which is also great for keeping the kids warm on chilly mornings. You can either hook it together quickly with the elastics on the ends (what we usually do for cold weather):

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Or you can zip the sides securely shut for when you really need to keep the rain out. In a full-on rainstorm, a little water will get in through the wooden handles you see in the photo above – but only in a real downpour.

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When the weather is nice, Lily and Anna prefer to ride with the sides rolled up. They wave and yell hi to random people (and cars) that we pass on the street. About half the time people ask what kind of nifty contraption they are riding in.

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Taga also offers a second seat that attaches to the blue seat at the end of this post (which was featured in my first post about the taga bike). You can still use the Taga in stroller mode with the second fabric seat, but not with this wooden seat. I still prefer the wooden seat since it allows enough space to fit backpacks or other items in addition to kids – and because it has the rain cover for wet or cold days. Right now, Taga is even offering the wooden seat for free when you purchase a Taga Bike-Stroller!

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This seat was a little challenging to put together – I put the hood on backwards (the pocket should be facing the rider) – but we left it that way because it fits (although that’s why the fabric is wrinkled) and it allows more room for taller riders like Mike – who at 6’2” is definitely on the taller end for riding this bike. He makes it work, though! I’m about 5’7”, and the seat is about perfect for me when it’s at its tallest height. Here is a video clip of it in action:

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I also wanted to add a few photos showing how the bike transforms from bike to stroller mode with the single seat. Here it is in bike mode.

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You can lift the seat off without having to unstrap your child, and sit them on the ground – so they remain strapped in (and unable to run off into the street). Then you lower the seat:

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Lift a handle with the press of a button, flip the back wheel into the front, and snap the handle back in place. Notice that this happened so quickly (even with me photographing the steps) that Anna isn’t remotely worried about sitting on the ground.

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Snap the seat back into place, and you’re good to go. This works if you have the single mode basket on, also (see the photos in my original taga review post) – but I had taken it off to use the wooden seat, and didn’t bother to put it back on to photograph these steps. Anna prefers using the bike in bike mode because she likes to go fast, but she prefers riding in the Taga in stroller mode over our actual stroller, so the seat must be pretty comfy.

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What is your favorite way to get around with kids?

COMMENTARY:   Love the Taga bike.  I have a feeling that it will be very popular with moms and dads.  It's a great way for parents to get a good workout and have fun with their young kids. BTW, Taga bikes are priced at $1,495.00.   Accessories are extra.  Click HERE to order one.

Courtesy of an article dated March 12, 2014 appearing in MamaSmiles

THE OSTRICH PILLOW: THE WORLD'S GOOFIEST DEVICE TO HELP YOU NAP, NOW IT'S AVAILABLE FOR KIDS, TOO!!

THE OSTRICH PILLOW - What's that thing on your head? It's the Ostrich Pillow and Ostrich Pillow Junior, portable, wearable sleeping devices designed to catch sleep on the go. (Or even when you're just at home.) (Click Image To Enlarge)

THE OSTRICH PILLOW JUNIOR GIVES CHILDREN A NAPPING OUTLET WHILE BUILDING THEIR IMMUNITY TO TEASING.

Wear it, and you may risk being mistaken for a fanboy or possibly a (cranio)pod person. Neither is particularly desirable or socially advantageous--after all, you end up cutting a figure quite similar to a clarinet-playing and unfortunately cleavaged Bith. But the Ostrich Pillow, which met with incredible success upon its Kickstarter launch last year, is designed expressly for intense repose and introspection, to the point of blinding you to your immediate surroundings. Block out others, and you block out their ridicule, too.

A new, pint-sized edition now makes the Ostrich experience available to children, a throwback to kindergarten naptime and innocent Halloween costumes of yore.

The pillow, which is shaped like a scaphandre and squid head, is easy to slip on over your head when the mood for a snooze strikes (Click Image To Enlarge)

Until recently, the product was exclusively marketed for adults. Grownups in need of an escape, either sleep-deprived and gradually wasting away in front of their desktop screen or simply waiting for a flight to board, could bury their heads in the helmet-pillow and catch some quick shuteye.

For kids, there are arguably more moments in life open to the Ostrich experience. Shaped like a plush, cushioned scaphandre, the pillow is a portable sleeping device that little ones can easily slip on whenever the urge for a catnap strikes. A front opening prevents asphyxiation; holes on either side draw heat away from the interior and double as hand receptacles. Conspicuously missing are eye cutouts, the deletion amplifying the pillow’s amniotic appearance.

The beanbag-like cushioning enables you to doze off in just about any location, including, for some reason, a stack of books on the library floor (Click Image To Enlarge)

The features between the two models are identical, though the kid version sports a large mouth and nose hole for improved respiration. The design homology was intentional, says architecture and design studio Kawamura-Ganjavian. The firm conceived of the pillow as a way for designers, colleagues, and all-around busybodies to get some “sleep on the go.” They collaborated with Studio Banana to realize the prototype, which was released on Kickstarter in September 2012, ultimately racking up $200,000 in support and sales.

The Junior model is a recent addition. It re-creates the form and function of the original Ostrich Pillow, only smaller (Click Image To Enlarge)

The Ostrich Pillow Junior was an answer to the pleas of the project’s first customers. “Our fans were posting pictures of their children wearing the Ostrich Pillow,” the Kawamura-Ganjavian office tells Co.Design.

“Of course the design does not lend itself to be used by a child, so we created a version which is inspired by the original ... however, the opening for the mouth is rather larger, which enables most of the child’s face to be exposed whilst feeling cocooned, cozy, and seriously comfortable.”

The designers were surprised when much of the first wave of satisfied Ostrich owners later bought additional pillows for friends and family. "Our nappers love the Ostrich Pillow," they say, adding that they petitioned the designers for the kiddie version. The update, which comes in two sleepy flavors (Berry Snooze and Dreamy Waves), just made good business sense.

The kids' version features a larger mouth hole that will allow child Ostrich users to breath more easily (Click Image To Enlarge)

The development also points the way for future and possibly more zoological iterations. The goal, according to Kawamura-Ganjavian, is to combine aspects of fun and function "into simple everyday actions," one endearing beanbag critter at a time.

You can pick up an Ostrich Pillow Junior for $75. Or outfit the whole family in Ostrich gear here.

The two models side by side. The original Ostrich Pillow was a huge Kickstarter success, garnering upward of $200,000 in funding (Click Image To Enlarge)

COMMENTARY:    There are some days that I wished I owned an Ostrich Pillow before I doze off as I prepare my next blog post.  Don't you just hate it when you fall asleep and keel over, then wake up hours later with a sore nick?  The solution: The Ostrich Pillow.  Bye, bye sore neck.  

Courtesy of an article dated October 3, 2013 appearing in Fast Company Design

4MOMS "ORIGAMI" STROLLER, A BABY STROLLER FOR TECHY MOMMIES

4Moms Origami Stroller (Click Image To Enlarge)

Strollers are all the same and haven't changed for decades. That's why 4moms developed the Origami power-folding stroller. At the touch of a button, it folds itself. It's also a cell phone-charging, mileage-counting, LCD-sporting stroller, with generators in the rear wheels that charge it as you walk. Plus, the Origami has daytime running lights, pathway lights for low-light conditions, and sensors that detect when a child's in the seat (so it'll never fold by accident).
From power folding to cell phone charging, the Origami is what strollers should be.

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COMMENTARY:  Now that's what I call an incredible baby stroller.  It's one cool looking stroller for today's modern parents. If you can afford a new iPhone or iPad, then you can afford an Origami stroller.  Besides, it's for your baby.    Origami strollers sells for $849.99.  Origami stroller seats or kits come in five colors (black, hot pink, blue, green and red) and sell for $99.99.  The Origami stroller comes with an optional Origami Graco SnugRide® Series Car Seat Adapter so you attach your baby's car seat to the Origami stroller.  All three can be ordered through the Shop 4Moms online store  Origami stroller's are very pricey, but they are not your ordinary stroller as you can see from the above video.  Reviews for the Origami stroller have been excellent.

Courtesy of an article December 14, 2012 appearing in Mashable