A Rambling Post About My Stroller

April 15th, 2003- Tax Day

I met Noah at Deming Park in Terre Haute, IN.

He was on a lunch break from school (he had a lot of breaks).

I had the day off (I had lots of days off)

We ate Jimmy Johns.

We played disc golf (maybe?)

I told him we were pregnant.

I walked a lot in Indiana. What else was I supposed to do? Working 12 hour shifts gave me lots of days off. So I walked.

The most important thing that we put on our new baby registry was the Graco Travel system. A car seat with a matching stroller.

We didn't register for a crib.

We didn't even buy the poor kid a crib.

We didn't buy baby monitors.

The poor kid didn't even have a baby monitor.

But he had a stroller.

We had a stroller.

After he was born. I walked. We walked.

We moved back to Minnesota and we walked some more.

I hit the stroller with my car.

But it kept working, although one wheel was never quite right after that.

Deacon and I put countless miles on that stroller.

And then Roman was born.

I got a double stroller.

But still, oftentimes I would just stick both of them in my old stroller.

And we would walk.

I discovered that if you laid the seat down, 2 small semi-buckled children fit perfectly.

And it was easier to push than the double.

Lincoln came and more miles were put on those wheels.

And crumbs on the seat.

And stickiness in the tray.

And the sunglass holder broke off.

But still it rolled on.

Berean was born. I asked Noah if he thought the stroller had another summer or two left.

He said, "maybe".

We pushed Berean in it. I thought it might make it.

Sometimes the wheel would fall off. But I would put it back on.

And then we took the fateful trip to Duluth.

We went to see the Tall Ships.

And we stayed another night.

At a park on a sunny day in Duluth I told Noah I was going back to the van for the stroller.

He told me to be careful opening the back gate, as it was packed quite fully.

I opened it carefully, but not carefully enough.

My stroller fell out.

There was a lady standing at the van next to me.

"been there, done that" she laughed.

Then,

a minute later,

"Your wheel is rolling away".

I looked down.

My stroller wheel was rolling away across the parking lot.

I caught it. And I told the woman,

"Thanks. It does that sometimes. I just have to put it back on and it will be fine". (does that line remind anyone of anything?)

And I did.

But when we got home we looked at the stroller.

It was not really fine.

The wheel was cracked.

The stroller had strolled it's last.

It is now in a garbage dump somewhere.

And we now have a new sit 'n' stand.

But I will always remember it fondly.

I went to my archives to find a picture. I thought it would be hard to find one.

The first file I randomly chose- from June of 2008- had this picture:

I loved that stroller.