Become a Patron!Support our reviews, videos, and podcasts on Patreon!
Cool tools really work.
A cool tool can be any book, gadget, software, video, map, hardware, material, or website that is tried and true. All reviews on this site are written by readers who have actually used the tool and others like it. Items can be either old or new as long as they are wonderful. We post things we like and ignore the rest. Suggestions for tools much better than what is recommended here are always wanted.
I’ve used this kid-carrier backpack from Kelty, called the Pathfinder, nearly every day for the past year. For instance, just today I took a bird-watching hike with my 16-month-old son, Ivan, who loves traveling in the pack. Previous to the Pathfinder I was using an expensive Phil-and-Ted Backpack for a few months, but it was inferior. It is attractive and stylish and it has what seems to be a more comfortable seat for the child, but the adjustments are limited for positioning the child. It’s essential when using one of these packs that the kid’s weight is well-balanced over the wearer’s hips, and not too far back. I find that the Phil and Ted’s pack isn’t adjustable enough, so that my child becomes cantilevered too far off of my back. In contrast, the Kelty pack’s adjustments allow me to place my child in such a way that his weight rests on my hips and doesn’t put too much strain on my back and neck.
The previously reviewed and recommended Ergo Baby carrier is an outstanding product, if not the best overall child carrier. It’s great for wearing young infants in front, and it can—like this Kelty— be used to wear a larger toddler on your back. However, the kid is directly against your back, so any type of serious hiking would be out of the question because it would be too uncomfortable and sweaty. I like to get a workout in while I’m out with my son, and with the heat he generates having him directly on my back would be miserable.
Like the other packs in this class, the Pathfinder is designed to balance a lot of weight (up to 44 lbs.), so that it feels comfortable for the wearer and for the child while you are really hiking. The pack itself is lightweight, and comes with a very useful sun/rain canopy. The padding on the back and the positioning of the child both keep my back from getting hot and sweaty. The Pathfinder has two hip pockets accessible while you’re wearing the pack, and the main storage compartment that rests behind the kid detaches as a small daypack, diaper bag.
What sets the old Pathfinder apart from the top-of-the-line Ortlieb and Deuter models — and the current Pathfinder 3.0, Kelty’s current top-of-the-line version — is simply its low price. Functionally it’s the same as, or at least very similar to, the high-end newer models, but with out-of-style colors.
You can get these classic packs cheap on eBay because parents receive them as gifts but then never use them. It requires some effort to adjust them properly, and more importantly it’s simply hard to carry 32 pounds (my kid + cargo + the pack itself) on your back if you’re not used to it, especially hiking uphill or on uneven terrain. So there’s an abundance of high-quality inexpensive used backpacks in excellent condition. I bought mine unused for $65 through Craigslist, versus about $275 for the new Pathfinder 3.0. — Elon Schoenholz
New parents don’t want your advice unless they ask for it. Trust me. Nothing invites unwelcome advice like having a baby. And nothing in my life has confronted me with a steeper learning curve than becoming a father. Of the many resources my wife and I turned to in the first couple of years after our daughter was born, this one’s a favorite. William and Martha Sears (M.D. and R.N., respectively, and parents of eight) are the Dr. Spocks of the current generation, and they seem to have been influenced by his favoring increased parental flexibility and affection over an emphasis on discipline and character building. The Sears’s sage and sober advice always feels friendly, even-handed; their joint perspective is broad.
There’s nothing revolutionary to their approach: Attachment parenting is their emphasis. And simply put, attachment parenting as they define it means being very involved and engaged and responding to who your child is and what she needs. And enjoying parenting in the process, of course. Makes sense.
If you’re about to become a parent, you’ll be well-served with this exhaustive guidebook. If someone close to you is a soon-to-be parent, share your wisdom only if it’s sought and buy him The Baby Book. The Sears’a Discipline Book is a worthwhile read, too. — Elon Schoenholz
The Seven Baby B’s of Attachment Parenting 1. birth bonding 2. belief in the signal value of your baby’s cries 3. breastfeeding 4. babywearing 5. bedding close to baby 6. balance and boundaries 7. beware of baby trainers
Beware of Baby Trainers Be prepared to be the target of well-meaning advisers who will shower you with detachment advice, such as: “Let her cry it out,” “Get her on a schedule,” “You shouldn’t still be nursing her!” and “Don’t pick her up so much, you’re spoiling her!” If carried to the extreme, baby training is a lose-lose situation: Baby loses trust in the signal value of her cues, and parents lose trust in their ability to read and respond to baby’s cues. As a result, a distance can develop between baby and parent, which is just the opposite of the closeness that develops with attachment parenting…The basis of baby training is to help babies become more “convenient.” It is based upon the misguided assumption that babies cry to manipulate, not to communicate.
Best Fats for Babies Not only should infants get 40 to 50 percent of their calories from fats, they should eat the right variety of fats. In addition to breast milk, the best fats for babies (and also for children and adults) come from marine and vegetable sources. Ranked in order of nutritional content they are: - seafood (especially salmon) - flax oil - avocados - vegetable oils - nut butters (because of possible allergies, delay peanut butter until after two years)
Discipline Begins at Birth Discipline begins as a relationship, not a list of methods. The first stage of discipline -- the attachment stage -- begins at birth and develops as you and your baby grow together. The big three of attachment parenting (breastfeeding, wearing baby, and responding to baby’s cues) are actually your first disciplinary actions. A baby who is on the receiving end of attachment parenting feels right, and a person who feels right is more likely to act right. An attachment parented baby is more receptive to authority because he operates from a foundation of trust. This baby spends the early months of his life learning that the world is a responsive and trusting place to be.
When our son was born, we were living in a tiny one-bedroom apartment in central London, and were about to move back to America. We wanted something minimal but effective, and we thought the Phil & Teds chair would be a stopgap measure until we had a bigger house.
Now that we have the bigger house, we still love the P&T chair. Our baby can sit at the table with us, and because he has the whole table in front of him much less food ends up on the floor than when he’s in a traditional high chair. We can also clamp the chair to the breakfast counter in the kitchen, so he can eat while we cook. And in some small way our house is less “babified” than it would be with a real high chair.
Some disadvantages: The specs say it can support up to 40 lbs, roughly a child 3 years of age. When our son is a bit bigger, we’ll have to find another solution. Also, the chair uses metal C-clamps that open about 2″ at most, and sit in about 1″. That limits the types of tables we can use it with: obviously no glass table tops, but also no tables with a wide lip.
The model that we have is called a MeToo. P&T have recently begun selling a model called the Lobster with a plastic ratcheting claw clamp. That model may be faster to attach, but could be less robust than the aluminum screw clamp on the MeToo. I haven’t used any other travel high chairs, but we prefer the P&T chair to the many traditional high chairs we’ve tried. For small-space living, it’s an excellent solution. — Ashish Ranpura
After a year of experience using Phil and Ted’s E3 stroller, with two-kid kit, we think it’s simply amazing.
The handling on the E3 stroller is superb. Unlike side-by-side strollers, the width on the E3 is no problem, and the front wheel pivots so you never have any trouble negotiating the tightest areas. Medium sized real tires mean it’s no trouble to move over uneven terrain (dirt paths are easy). Construction is excellent, and the whole unit moves with the smoothness and solidity of a well made machine.
It’s not the lightest stroller you can buy, but we bought the travel bag accessory and have checked it on multiple airplane flights with no trouble at all. Folds well enough to fit in the back of our car when we take day trips as well.
Of the various ways you can set-up the stroller (see their website) we’ve had, by far, the most experience with it setup for two seated kids. My wife was concerned that the back seat would be a tough sell on for the kids, but our 3 year old seems to prefer it, which was a surprise.
At $380 for the basic unit, we thought hard about spending that much money on a stroller. But to this day, we remark on how GOOD that purchase looks in retrospect. We use it daily — well worth the extra money in our view. — Brian Fleming
Once a week we’ll send out a page from Cool Tools: A Catalog of Possibilities. The tools might be outdated or obsolete, and the links to them may or may not work. We present these vintage recommendations as is because the possibilities they inspire are new. Sign up here to get Tools for Possibilities a week early in your inbox.
