The Volvo XC60: A New Revolution in Safety
This is a compensated review from BlogHer and Volvo.
Eight years in the making, the Volvo XC60 is the launch of a new crossover category for the Swedish automaker. Everything from the muscular body, the coupe-like, sleek top with a panoramic moonroof (a free option, by the way), and the redesigned grill are symbolic of Volvo’s future: power and boldness of design. This is not your mom’s mini-van; rather, it is a new car for a new type of soccer mom.
The Volvo XC60 is for a woman who wants a car that can handle the functionality of hauling kids to school, practice, and play dates and all the gear and groceries that are needed to keep the day to day running. With an electric trunk and a 20-40-20 split for storage there are enough options for whatever the day brings. As a standard feature Volvo also included dual stage booster seats in the second row seats. The seatbelts and airbags will automatically activate according to the weight and height of the child. No more switching booster seats in and out of cars or not being able to drive kids around because of a lack of a safety seat. With the VC60, Volvo has really anticipated everything a driver would want if she could custom design her own car.
The Volvo XC60 is for a woman who may need her car to be part taxi service but also still appreciates the finer things in life. The all leather interior, including an ultramodern limegrass green and black option, automatically lend a sophisticated feel to the XC60 and, in turn, the driver. There is even a floating console that is angled towards the driver, which allows the driver to place an item, or items, in the open space. Good-bye spilled purses and crawling around for misplaced lip glosses and cell phones!
The Volvo XC60 is for a woman who cares about the environment. Volvo operates its manufacturing plants with stringent environmental guidelines. The XC60’s engine eliminates 95-99% of carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and nitrogen oxides that would normally be emitted through the exhaust. The car itself is 85% recyclable, so many, many years from now, if you can bare to part with it, rest assured that the XC60 will not end up in a junk heap to rot away and further pollute the environment.
The Volvo XC60 is for a woman who, above and beyond everything else, is concerned with the safety of her loved ones. The XC60 far exceeds federal safety mandates, which comes as no surprise since Volvo has been an industry leader in safety systems since it invented the three points harness system. Sleek design and luxurious standards aside, Volvo is a company that believes the safety of the driver and the car’s occupants are the number one priority. In fact, Gustaf Larson, co-founder of Volvo, said this with regards to the company’s obsession with safety: “Cars are driven by people. The guiding principles behind everything we make at Volvo, therefore, is and must remain safety.”
It would be easy to read that quote and be quite cynical; automakers are all about making money, right? Perhaps so, but after looking over the XC60 and its safety features, talking with the Volvo demonstrators, and then actually getting to test drive the safety features myself, I believe that Volvo really means what it says: safety matters.
Safety matters so much to Volvo that for the past eight years they have developed a safety system called City Safety, which comes as a standard feature in all XC60s. City Safety allows the car to apply 100% of the brake to avoid low speed collisions. Statistics show that 70% of all car accidents occur below 20 mph, so Volvo invented City Safety to completely stop the car if an accident is imminent between 2-9 mph and to mitigate the impact if an accident is imminent between 10-19 mph. A front windshield mounted laser projects 20’ ahead of the car and is always scanning for potential accidents. The City Safety system runs a calculation 50x/second to determine exactly what braking speed is needed to avoid a potential collision. The system is always waiting for the driver to apply the brake, but if its calculation show that he/she will be unable to apply enough braking power it will alert the braking system to brake for the driver; thus, avoiding a collision. Watch video of the Volvo XC60 in action
Think about how many times you’ve reached for something in the other seat, on the floor, in a bag, in the back seat, changed the music, or applied makeup while driving only to look up and realize you are about to slam into another car. Those annoying little fender benders that still end up costing thousands of dollars would virtually be eliminated through Volvo’s City Safety technology.
I was curious to know how easy it would be to allow a car to take over and to squash my own instinct to brake when about to collide into another object. The demonstrators at the Volvo event I attended happily allowed me to test out the XC60’s City Safety feature. After getting the car to about 10 mph I was told to take my foot off the gas and do absolutely nothing else as we headed towards a barrier at the end of a driveway. As we got closer and closer I was positive that at the last second I was going to have to do something to help the car stop, but just as it looked like we were going to crash into the barrier the car stopped on its own. The force was no greater than when you hit the brakes because of a sudden change in driving conditions and just like that we had avoided a crash.
If first impressions really do mean everything then Volvo got it right with the new XC60. Its sleek design features, advanced safety systems, and luxury standards are drool worthy in any soccer mom’s book.
Check out other reviews of the Volvo XC60. Link to the sponsor.
DIY: Salon Quality Hair Color
As I’ve mentioned before Brian and I are working hard to cut costs where we can. One of our goals is for me to stay at home with Isabella and any future (no, I am not pregnant right now) children, which will obviously mean a huge change to our current lifestyle. Cutting costs now will help us save money for then, but will also prepare me for the day I can no longer buy everything I want when I want it. I’ve always been a big fan of saving money on big ticket items, but there are certain things on which I’ve always been willing to spend the bucks.
One thing I’ve grown quite accustomed to, and really have always believed is worth every dime, is going to an upscale (or at least upper scale) salon for a good haircut and color. In the past I’ve frequented places that would get me in and out from anywhere from under $80 to as high as $130, but I’ve always left there feeling like the cut or the color could have been a little better.
If I could find the right salon, stylist and colorist I would leave looking a little more like the celebrity whose picture I had taken in as a guide for the cut and color. (Note to anyone who is thinking of trying the same tactic: IT DOES NOT WORK! ) To actually look like said celebrity would require thousands of dollars to cover the cost of the celebrity hair and makeup artists, wardrobe stylist, an eating disorder, plastic surgery and an odd blend of uber-ego and insecurity…and possibly a major drug and/or alcohol addiction…or perhaps simply an appearance on MTV’s, I Want A Famous Face.
Since none of those things are in my future, I am stuck with the decision that those of us who reside in true reality face: pay for the cut and color, do both at home or pay for cut and do the color at home. I have never thought of myself as one of those girls who is gifted in the arts of makeup and hair styling, so I am comfortable with the idea that I will never purchase a flowbee 
or a home clipping/trimming kit. Saving money is one thing; ending up looking like let my one year old cut my hair is another! But, I have toyed with the idea of coloring my hair at home and paying for a decent hair cut. I could then still get the high end salon experience, come out with a much better style than the chop I would be able to give myself and still save about 50%.
I’ve been a tad trepidacious, however, because I’ve heard the horror stories and seen the photographic proof of hair home dye jobs gone awry. (My own mother attempted to color her hair once and ended up with day-glow orange; the only solution was to dye her hair blond. NOT GOOD; NOT GOOD AT ALL! Her natural color is a dark brown, espresso if you will, bordering blackish.) So even though I’ve considered coloring my hair at home, I’ve always chickened out and shelled out another $100+ to get the color and cut.
Recently, I’ve started reading Whoorl’s Hair Thursday; one of her recent posts was about Feria’s (by L’Oreal) newly improved home hair coloring line. I’ve found through reading Whoorl’s various blogs that I usually agree with most of the advice she dispenses, and since she herself has great hair, I took her recommendation seriously. Plus, the before and after pictures of the guinea pigs girls who tried the product were very convincing, especially Holly’s.
So I went to the L’Oreal site to get more information about the product. There I discovered a $2 off coupon for any Feria product, which I confess made me even more excited about potentially trying the product. FYI: if you want to print the coupon you must first register for the site, which involves answering a few questions and providing some personal information. You will, however, get to print the coupon after doing so, but will also continue to be notified of new products and specials!
Once I registered I proceeded with the Find My Shade questionnaire. I knew if I was going to follow through on coloring my hair at home I wanted to be sure I was armed with as much information as possible. The questionnaire was very thorough and the advice/explanatory videos along the way really helped to keep my pulse rate low! (Even if you don’t color you hair at home or would never consider it, the questionnaire would help you determine an optimal hair color before heading to the salon.)
At the end of the Find My Shade questions I was given a range of colors, including my dream color, from which to choose. Armed with that information and my $2 off coupon I hit Target (didn’t have my color) and then Wal-Mart (sadly, they came through for me, but I think that just further indicates that Target’s clientele takes care of themselves, whilst Wal-Mart’s let themselves go…they’re too busy rounding up their feral kids and animals before CPS stops by for the latest in home visit.)
I still wasn’t sure if I was going to follow through on my decision to go for it, but I figured even if I spent the $5 and didn’t end up dying my hair at home I wasn’t going to be out too much. During all the hemming and hawing I did call my mom to seek her advice, but as fate would have it she was not home, so I was left to weigh the pro’s and con’s with my go-to person for anything fashion and style related: Brian. His only response was, “It seems to me my mom and sister were always coloring their hair.” Ah, spoken like a true sage!
Ultimately, I decided to proceed with coloring my hair because I kept going back to the money thing: if I hated it I was only out an extra $5, but if I liked it I had just saved myself about $80 and could then use that money elsewhere like feeding my kid this month. (What a rare treat indeed!)
Here are the before shots:
After reading the directions, which are divided into four easy steps, I called upon Brian, who is the very definition of a Renaissance man, to help me. He put on the gloves, applied the dye, and helped me rinse my hair once the color was set. He begged me not to publish the proof; “It’s gay for a man to do this!” is what I think he said. But, I countered that most women would find it endearing that a man would stand in the garden tub and apply dye to his wife’s hair. Of course, doing so put a lot of pressure on Brian for he feared the worst and that if my hair turned ugly that I would blame him; I assured him I would not, but that I would still cry.
Brian also offers up this shot as proof that he is not gay: 
I think the only thing it proves is that he is juvenile. (He took several of these shots!)
Here I am about midway through the 25 minute dye processing; I am terrified terrifying at this point!
See, even Isabella thinks so:
Could I look any more like “Horse Face”? I submit that I could not!
And after a quick rinse, conditioning treatment (two minutes) and some styling here are the after shots:
For $5 I think the color, shine and highlights are great. Brian, Isabella and I were pleasantly surprised at the non-scary outcome:
The products I used: Feria #40 (color) and L’Oreal’s Studio Heat Seeker (product to help w/ straightening)
If you’ve considered/are considering dying you hair at home L’Oreal is the way to go! I will definitely use their products in the future and happily spend my $80 savings elsewhere! Happy dying!
Filed under Blogs, DIY, Hair products, Websites | Comments (6)It’s Like Crack…Only Legal!
Hi, my name is Jennifer and I am addicted to Starbucks. I am not proud of this and for many years I have been in a state of denial about this, but one road to recovery is to admit you have a problem and then deal with that problem.
I didn’t always like the crack coffee; in fact, I spent most of my formative years avoiding anything remotely close to a coffee. Hot tea was pushing it, but then I got my first teaching job with a 90 minute/day commute at a school with no textbooks and no curriculum. In other words, anytime I wasn’t in the car I was busy grading and planning for the next day. I stayed up late and got up early and realized I was going to either have to try speed or caffeine. Wisely, I chose the substance that was least likely to result in my termination and the revocation of my teaching certificate…although, I do teach in a predomintaly Mormon state, come to think of it, so speed might have been the wiser choice.
That first year I taught downtown and so tried to keep my coffee consumption truly urban by only frequenting locally owned coffee shops. Why are downtown areas the only places for these? And why is Phoenix, a HUGE metropolitan area, only recently buying into the idea of locally owned/grown? I digress once more…
I did not start drinking from the Devil’s cup until my second year of teaching. I landed a gig on the same side of town on which I lived, so I suddenly found myself with limited options for my burgeoning habit. I avoided Starbucks as long as I could, believing them to be the epitomy of big business naredowells. I first broke down when a student presented me with a gift card for Christmas; who am I to look a gift horse in the mouth? So I resisted for all of about ten minutes and promptly drove myself down the street to a Starbucks where the sweet, sweet nectar of Beelzebub washed down my throat forcing me to sign a blood oath to never, never stray. And so, it came to pass that for the last 7 years I have tried various forms of self-intervention: buy my own coffee and coffee pot, only go on certain days, only go when I have a gift card, only drink it if someone else bought it, etc. All of which has resulted in your stock going up if you happen to own Starbucks’ stock; as I have sinned over and over again for I am weak!
It isn’t even like Starbucks’ coffee or speciality drinks are even that fantastic. I’ve actually had far better at lesser known coffee shops. However, there is something about the Starbucks’ package that appeals to my asthetic. I love the feel of the warm drink in my hand as I lead a discussion in my literature classes or when flipping through the latest Vogue. Not only am I an addict, but I am also, apparently, a snob, which is a different topic for a different day.
My husband and I are really trying to more concious of where we spend our money this coming school year; it kills us to look at our online bank statements and realize how much money we are throwing away on silly things like coffee when we could be saving that $40+ a week to buy a Mac Book or take a vacation. We’ve vowed to only buy Starbucks on the Fridays of pay weeks, which equates to twice a month. I just got the DT’s writing that since as early as May we were going EVERY. SINGLE. DAY!
We recently purchased a new espresso machine in an attempt to move away from buying our drinks out. We have had an espresso machine for a few years now, but it was a fairly inexpensive one Brian bought on the fly once while grocery shopping. (Seriously, men are far worse with the impulse purchasing!) We used it occassionaly, but it was always a complete afterthought. This summer we started using it more as a way to ease ourselves into the rehab; no way could I face a new school year going cold turkey!
After using it a few times, we realized that if we wanted to truly get serious about breaking our ties to Starbucks we were going to need a machine that could make more than one drink at a time and in a more efficient, less noisy and messy way. To that end, we did some serious internet searching and found that opinions and price points widely varied, but we kept coming back to a Cuisinart model that was moderately priced and got great reviews.
Last weekend Macy’s had a great sale, which included an extra 40% off a ton of already reduced kitchen applicances like…ESPRESSO MACHINES!!! Early Saturday morning we hauled ourselves out of bed and made a beeline for the closest store to begin the first day of the rest of our lives.
Meet our savior: 
We’ve made a few dozen coffee drinks since last weekend and each has been tasty and the rival of anything I’ve ever had at Starbucks. It could be that Brian is a master barrista or that each drink he makes is made with love (yeah, I just threw up a little in my mouth as well), but I did have a Starbucks yesterday (pay week) and while it pains me to admit this, it was just mediocre at best. Could it be that I am on the road to recovery? Did I really just need to get a decent home machine in order to throw off the shackles of my bondage to big business coffee?
Another bonus of the Cuisinart model over our former, is that it is easy to clean and is relatively quiet. I no longer fear Brian whipping up some yummy lattes and waking Isabella in the frenzy. It also has a water resevoir (see earlier paragraph about being a snob) that holds enough water for 20+ coffee drinks, which nearly made Brian weep for joy for he is a man who does not enjoy tasks that require more than a few steps. It was beginning to cripple him that our old mahine required the addition of water each. time. he made a drink (for shame!). Another bonus for Brian is that it is really easy to clean in ONE wipe of the cloth!
And oh, goodness me, the drinks themselves are heavenly, smooth and just the right combo of bitter and sweet. I am seriously considering buying another machine to leave at school because one/morning is simply not enough. The only problem is I have not actually used the machine yet…Brian has made them all so far, and while he keeps threatening to stop until I attempt one I cannot bring myself to try it out. Not because I fear the machine (I did work in a coffee shop right after college), but because I cannot give up the idea that really good coffee is made by someone else, and even though I am no longer spending $20+ a week for it, I still want the same quality of service I have come to expect when I drink my coffee. Is that too much for a girl to ask?
Filed under Coffee Addict, Cool stuff, Stores | Comment (0)A fairy tale retold!
I am an avid reader and love to find unique books that contain stories that draw me back over and over again. One of my favorite books, The Solace of Leaving Early, is highlighted and dog-eared from numerous reads over the years.
Both my husband and I are keen on fostering a love of books in our daughter, so we’ve read to her every day since we first learned I was pregnant. The dedication has paid off as she spends upwards of thirty minutes at a time leafing through her books and “reading” to herself. Because she is so clearly into books I am always on the look out for books that contain not only a riveting story (hey, why can’t we be entertained too?) but also visually interesting pictures. If the book doesn’t meet my standards (listen, my kid is only 10 months old, she doesn’t get a say…yet!) then I don’t bother bringing it home.
Recently, I became aware of the English author Lauren Child. (For those of you with older children you might know her from the Disney series, Charlie and Lola.) Her stories are exceptionally well written, clever and penned with just the right amount of sarcasm and wit to keep adult readers enthralled while young readers howl with delight. I checked out four of her books from our local library and have read them to my daughter. Each book is twenty pages+, which is hard for a little one, let alone my husband, to sit through, but the cadence of the words and the unique illustrations kept her in my lap, and my husband on the couch, eagerly awaiting the turn of each page.
Of the four books we’ve read thus far, my favorite is The Princess and the Pea. (What girl doesn’t like a good princess tale?) For this retelling of the classic Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, Child partnered with portrait photographer, Polly Borland, to create a 3D world (miniature scale). Child has done a great job of contemporizing the tale with humor and the illustrations (all hand crafted) are clearly a labor of love.
The “sets” were created by first cutting out panels from cereal boxes and then painting them; the furniture in each set was either dollhouse furniture or made by Child. Each character was an elaborately fashioned paper doll. Borland then photographed each “set”, which lends a special air to each page. (You can read more about the book and how it was created on Lauren Child’s website.)
I can only imagine the love affair I would have had with this book when I was a child; it would have definitely become a staple in my bedtime reading! If you know of a little one obsessed with princesses The Princess and the Pea is a must for Her Highness’ personal library!
Filed under Children's books | Comment (1)Reason 5,999,999 why I HATE Walmart
On a recent trip to the Midwest I decided to pack lightly, and by packing lightly I mean that we checked four bags between the two of us just to have room to haul home the loot our daughter scored from her grandparents. In the interest of not over-packing I opted to take a small amount of diapers and then purchase some upon our arrival.
Given that we were visiting a sort of backwater town the only giant retailer around is Walmart, which is just SO not my shopping preference. It is made worse by the fact that the town we were visiting has an inordinate amount of redneck/white trash to begin with who love nothing more than going into town to hunt down a deal at WM. On the night we arrived we stopped at the NEW Walmart on the east side of town only to witness what must be a burgeoning past time of the locals: jumping the posts at the front of the store while emitting a rebel yell and then grabbing your best girl and giving her a great big smooch while pinching her butt. What else can one do after such an exhilarating display of bravado?
I am not too picky when it comes to the diapers I use. Generally, we stick to Pampers or the Costco brand, which my sources tell me are actually manufactured by Huggies. However, the Walmart brand was $14 for 104 diapers, so given that I am trying to be a bit frugal given the hearty decline of our economy and the 1/2% of a point pay increase I am going to receive this coming school year (Please, you don’t even want to know what that amounts to per paycheck! Let’s just say that given the price of gas these days that minuscule “raise” will essentially end up costing ME!) I figured why not? And really why not? Doesn’t Walmart pride itself on its quality, American made products? Wouldn’t I actually be better serving our economy by buying “local” so to speak?
You can imagine where this is going: the budget friendly, American economy supporting diapers were a complete disaster. So long as I was willing to change my kid’s diaper every twenty minutes things were glorious and I could bask in my frugality, but if we went oh, I don’t know, a couple hours without a change it was like Niagara Falls. Both my dad and I were peed on; me on the plane coming home…good times, Walmart, good times!
And forget about your child making it through the night without a leak. Granted, my little one sleeps a good solid 12 hours/night and pees a lot through the night, so a diaper has to be of pretty good quality to withstand her bladder’s action. I discovered on the morning after our second night that it was best to deprive her of any liquids lest I should find myself doing a load of laundry EVERY.SINGLE.DAY! And goodness knows my parents’ washer/dryer set circa 1970 is not that energy efficient, so the diapers would end up costing me and the environment. A hex upon you, cheap Walmart products!
As I slathered on some butt paste to thwart any possible diaper rash that might crop up due to the fact that my baby girl had been immersed in her own pee for hours I realized that you can’t trust a product that has been created under fair labor laws. Oh no, if you truly want quality it must come from some third world nation where the two year old crafting your product never sees the light of day and is fed some unrecognizable gruel whilst “the man” stands over him threatening to kill his mom and baby sister if he doesn’t work faster. That kid understands the necessity of a job well done, which means my kid, living it up in the States, won’t have to sleep in her urine covered pj’s and sheet anymore.
Filed under Baby stuff, Stores | Comment (1)Bathing Suit Bliss
A few weeks ago I wrote about how shopping for a bathing suit is akin to having bamboo shoots shoved under you nails while undergoing a root canal with no anesthesia. I have probably tried on about twenty million suits since that time and have been really disappointed in the image staring back at me in the three-way mirror, which is surely a distortion due to the fluorescent lighting. And at the ungodly price of $75 or more for a few pieces of fabric and thread I should realistically expect that suit to tuck, hide and disguise every.single. FLAW! What I repeatedly noticed was that the suits were not, in fact, making me look any less out of shape; rather, they seemed to accentuate the muffin top, flabby thighs and well, everything other thing that seems to have gone to pot since having a baby nine months ago.
I was thrilled when my BFF told me about a cute suit she found at Ann Taylor Loft. I rushed to the store to check it out for myself figuring it couldn’t be any worse than the thousands of mini-tortures I had already endured at the mercy of the Lycra gods. (It’s a slow death really.)
I tried on both the tankini 
Both the tankini and halter top fit really well and were very supportive without making me feel like I was corseted in or had suddenly grown breasts under my chin. The bottoms are fabulous; they cover the right amount of my posterior region without making me feel as if I am wearing Granny Panties.
I opted for the bikini/halter top because I have a short torso and looked a little large in the tankini. You know the halter top and bottom are a good combo if I could realistically walk out of ATL with a two piece suit given my body image of late! The suit also happened to be on sale and by taking advantage of an extra 30% off (seriously, ATL has the best sales and promotions; sign up for their email notices! You can sign up at the bottom of the homepage.) I paid about $20 for the suit!
The bathing suit has been through a test run as well. The halter top stayed in place as my nine month old clutched to me and moved all around trying to better spy on the bigger kids at the pool. The bottom did not sag with water weight nor did it bunch up in any unmentionable places! All in all, the suit performed well from a Mommy and modesty stand point.
$20 for a bathing suit is money well spent; I will definitely start any future bathing suit searches at ATL!
Filed under Clothes | Comment (1)
