EVERYTHING IS EXPENSIVE

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Carpool with Kelly and Lizz – Episode: EVERYTHING IS EXPENSIVE

Release Date: February 11, 2025

In the episode titled "EVERYTHING IS EXPENSIVE," hosts Kelly Stumpe and Lizz St. John delve into a variety of topics that resonate with millennial parents navigating the complexities of modern life. From financial decisions and home improvements to parenting challenges and car industry insights, Kelly and Lizz provide an engaging and relatable conversation filled with humor, practical advice, and personal anecdotes.

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1. Streamlining Tax Filing with H&R Block

The episode kicks off with Kelly sharing her recent switch to H&R Block for handling taxes. She emphasizes the simplicity and efficiency of the process:

Kelly [00:01]: "I just switched to H&R Block in about one minute. All I had to do was drag and drop last year's return into H&R Block and bam."

Lizz echoes the sentiment, highlighting the ease of upgrading their tax game:

Liz [00:24]: "It's better with Block."

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2. Navigating Homeownership and Pool Maintenance

Kelly and Lizz transition to discussing the challenges of maintaining their newly purchased home, particularly the pool. They describe the pool's initial poor condition and the decision-making process involved in its renovation:

Kelly [02:31]: "We bought a house that was in bad condition... the problem with this pool is it was a liner pool, which isn't great for longevity."

The sisters explain their solution to install a fiberglass insert, aiming to make the pool functional by summer:

Kelly [04:00]: "We decided to get a fiberglass insert... our goal is to be swimming by summer."

Lizz commends Kelly's patience and dedication to making their dream house work:

Liz [05:02]: "I'm so impressed by the patience that you have."

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3. The Current Used Car Market and Pricing Concerns

Shifting gears to the automotive industry, Kelly expresses her concerns about the stabilizing inventory of new cars juxtaposed with the scarcity in the used car market. She reflects on her past predictions about this trend:

Kelly [07:17]: "It's crazy to see inventory stabilize on the new car side and still be so slim on the used car side. And like, I'm not an economist, but am I?"

Lizz adds her observations on the inflated prices of used cars, citing specific examples:

Kelly [08:04]: "Grayson sent me a video of a 2016 Ford Explorer... it was still like $18,000. I think that should be $10,000."

The discussion highlights the ongoing struggle parents face with rising car prices and limited options.

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4. Parenting Challenges: Kids' Development and Household Management

Kelly and Lizz delve into the nuances of parenting, particularly focusing on their children's developmental stages and household organization. They share personal stories about their kids' play habits and developmental milestones:

Liz [16:13]: "Sloan is progressing at the normal state of a baby her age. I think that Libby's just on a different planet."

Kelly humorously reflects on her own parenting experiences, highlighting the differences between her children:

Kelly [18:53]: "Fred still can't talk. He just grunts."

The conversation underscores the importance of avoiding comparisons among siblings and embracing each child's unique pace.

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5. Budget-Friendly and Healthy Eating Tips

Addressing the financial strains of dining out, Kelly and Lizz discuss strategies for maintaining a healthy diet without breaking the bank. They critique the high costs of drive-through meals and emphasize the benefits of home-cooked alternatives:

Liz [09:10]: "Why am I paying $15 for a drive-through?"

Kelly shares her approach to simplifying meals:

Kelly [10:23]: "We're having ground beef… like we're having ..."

They also provide a listener-submitted ground beef bowl recipe, offering a cost-effective and versatile meal option:

Liz [42:20]: "Here's a favorite ground beef go-to… Korean beef bowl."

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6. Car Safety and CPST Certification Insights

A significant portion of the episode focuses on car safety, specifically the role of Certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians (CPST). Kelly recounts her experiences with CPST certification and community events:

Kelly [24:18]: "I had to go get my recertification for being a CPST."

She discusses the rewarding aspects of helping families install car seats, especially those in need:

Kelly [30:48]: "It's seriously rewarding to see a child driving safer than when they came to us."

Lizz shares her excitement about pursuing CPST certification, aiming to expand her knowledge and support:

Liz [31:40]: "I'm excited to be more knowledgeable and help out more."

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7. Consumer Reports and Car Seat Safety Controversy

Kelly brings attention to a controversial Consumer Reports test on car seats, sparking a debate within the community about safety standards:

Kelly [33:09]: "Consumer Reports tested two infant seats, and the results were not great."

She questions the validity and implications of these tests, especially when they contradict NHTSA guidelines:

Kelly [35:22]: "Consumer Reports' tests aren't the same as NHTSA's... it's concerning."

Lizz emphasizes the importance of informed decision-making, urging listeners to consider multiple perspectives:

Liz [36:36]: "You have to have that information and make a decision for yourself."

The hosts aim to empower parents with knowledge rather than induce fear, fostering a balanced approach to car seat safety.

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8. Car Mom Car of the Year Finalists

Highlighting a community-driven initiative, Kelly and Lizz announce the finalists for the "Car Mom Car of the Year." After engaging their audience's votes, the top four finalists are revealed:

Kelly [38:31]: "Top four finalists are the Chevy Traverse, Kia Carnival Hybrid, Lexus GX, and the Honda Odyssey."

They explain their rating system, focusing on individual car features rather than direct comparisons:

Kelly [39:31]: "We're looking at each car's individual capabilities and giving it a score based on that."

Lizz praises Kelly for embracing confidence and growth by taking on this significant endeavor:

Liz [40:26]: "I am so happy to see where the car mom has come."

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9. Cooking Segment: Ground Beef Burger Bowl Recipe

Concluding the episode, Kelly and Lizz share a practical cooking segment featuring a ground beef burger bowl recipe submitted by a listener. They walk through the preparation steps, emphasizing simplicity and versatility:

Liz [42:20]: "Prepare white rice... whisk together soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, and red pepper flakes with garlic and beef."

Kelly showcases her enthusiasm for ground beef-based meals, aligning with her preference for budget-friendly and adaptable dishes:

Kelly [43:07]: "I'm such a ground beef girl… literally a Korean beef bowl."

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Conclusion

Throughout "EVERYTHING IS EXPENSIVE," Kelly and Lizz offer a candid and engaging dialogue that addresses real-life challenges faced by millennial parents. Their blend of personal stories, expert insights, and practical tips provides listeners with valuable takeaways, all delivered with their characteristic humor and sisterly camaraderie.

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Notable Quotes:

• Kelly [00:01]: "I just switched to H&R Block... my information is automatically there so I don't have to go digging around."

• Liz [00:24]: "It's better with Block."

• Kelly [07:17]: "I'm not an economist, but am I?"

• Kelly [08:04]: "That should be $10,000."

• Liz [31:16]: "I'm getting certified in Feb. I'm very excited to know more."

• Kelly [37:56]: "I'm always going to empower you. That's the information."

• Kelly [43:07]: "I'm such a ground beef girl."

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This episode of "The Carpool with Kelly and Lizz" encapsulates the blend of automotive expertise and parenting wisdom that listeners have come to love. Whether you're navigating tax season, managing a household, or seeking the best car for your family, Kelly and Lizz provide insightful and relatable guidance every step of the way.

Transcript

[Kelly]

Um, I think I just won my taxes. Yeah, I just switched to HR block in about one minute. All I had to do was drag and drop last year's return into H and R Block and bam. My information is automatically there so I don't have to go digging around for all my old papers to switch. Nope. Sounds like we just leveled up our tax game. Switching to H and R block is easy. Just drag and drop your last return.

[Liz]

It's better with block. Welcome to the carpool podcast with Kelly.

[Kelly]

But it's just crazy to see inventory stabilize on the new car side and still be so slim on the used car side. And like, I'm not an economist, but am I?

[Liz]

And Liz, I didn't sit down.

[Kelly]

I didn't sit down.

[Liz]

I didn't sit. No one came and took my order. No one refilled my water. Like, why am I paying $15 for a drive through your mom time starts now. Welcome back to the carbo podcast with Kelly and Liz.

[Kelly]

Hey, Leahs.

[Liz]

Kel. Relistening to our last episode, the Candle in Tyler, with the blowtorch scenario. I still am over it.

[Kelly]

It gets. I. I relistened and it was. It's. It's shocking for me even to hear.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

And I lived it and have retold it.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

The question is, I haven't repurchased my candle.

[Liz]

Well, and you know what? That's kind of the annoying thing about being married is it's like if someone breaks something of yours and they're like, oh, I'll pay for it. Like, it's not coming out of your.

[Kelly]

No, I would have so much rather have you broken it.

[Liz]

Then I would have to pay for it. But it's like, okay, he broke it. Okay, well, now I still have to pay for. Like, you still have to pay for it.

[Kelly]

So I think my plan is I'm not that hella. And I like, give each. We. We don't really do gifts anyway. But I'm certainly not going to get him a birthday present. I'm going to get him a candle.

[Liz]

Get him a big ass candle.

[Kelly]

That's kind of my way around this.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

I don't know what else to do because they're expensive.

[Liz]

I mean, it was a Christmas gift.

[Kelly]

No. I was so excited about it. Yeah.

[Liz]

I'm not over. Yeah, me neither.

[Kelly]

So I'm not over it.

[Liz]

I know. Has he broken anything else?

[Kelly]

Has he broken anything else? No. He's actually been, like, incredibly helpful and handy, which is, like, not what you want to hear. He's really working on our pool a lot right now.

[Liz]

I cannot believe I feel like you haven't given people like a full update on your whole pool pool.

[Kelly]

Let's just to bring everyone up to speed, we bought a house that was in bad condition.

[Liz]

Bad, rough. Like, first time we went there, Hattie cried because of the smell.

[Kelly]

Like there was like it was real. Like it was. It was really bad.

[Liz]

It was bad shape.

[Kelly]

It was a bad shape. But the house had all these like, things to it. Like it had a horse barn and it had an in ground pool. So like it was the epitome of like the bones were there. The problem with this pool is it was a liner pool, which isn't a very. I don't say not a very good pool, but like, it's just not a. It's. It's not like one for longevity. Like, you have to replace the liner every once in a while. And liners can be expensive. And like liners. Liners come with some maintenance. We also have no idea when last time this pool had been opened. Like, it could, it could have sat for years. We don't know. Like, so all the equipment was shot. So, so also say like, we got it with like a big question mark of like, we're not even going to try to tackle it the first summer we live here. Like, it's. We're kicking the can down the road. I almost wanted to kick it one year, but it is an eyesore and it does attract an insane amount of frogs the way that it was. So we like took the COVID off, drain the pool. We had like so many pool companies come out. Oh my gosh. Everyone was giving us bad news essentially. Like, we don't have a pool right now. We have a hole in the ground.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

And it was the question of, like, do you want to fill in the hole or do you want to get a pool? Because like, the only money, like, don't think we, like the only money we saved was no one had to dig a hole. Like, everything else has to be replaced. We have to redo the concrete. New equipment. And we decided to do. So we decided to do it and we are getting what's like a. It's called a fiberglass insert. So like we like bought a pool and they're just gonna it in our hole. Oh, this sounds a little strange. In our, in our hole. And then we're gonna like, fill in the concrete because we got a lot smaller of a pool.

[Liz]

Oh, okay. I see.

[Kelly]

So anyway, things to come. Things to come.

[Liz]

Things to come.

[Kelly]

But we should Be swimming by summer. That's our goal.

[Liz]

That's exciting. Yeah, that's very exciting. Yeah. Your whole house thing has just been so. I'm so impressed by the patience that you have. Yeah. Person.

[Kelly]

Well, we waited a long time to move here and we've, we've gone through so many lives. I mean, at one point we were doing an addition. It's like we've scrapped the addition, which I think was a good move. Like looking back and just like, because the house technically had like an office and a dining room, so we like lot we made those children's bedrooms instead, which was a good move. We're not missing the square footage, but yeah. You know, like it's kind of. It's kind of like our dream house though. Sometimes you just gotta make it. Make it work. Has to be a make it work moment.

[Liz]

Totally. And you know what? What Maddie and always said when we were looking at homes, you can change a house, you cannot change a lot. And like your lot is so nice. And the horse barn was so nice and to have acreage is so nice. So you can, you can really. I mean you might be spending a lot of money on it, but you can change anything about a house. You can knock a house down and rebuild it. So when we moved, we were looking at the lot. Not so much the house.

[Kelly]

Totally.

[Liz]

So anyway, your house is stunning and I'm really, really happy for you. But Kel, we have an episode to get to.

[Kelly]

Totally.

[Liz]

And lol that we recorded last week on one day. And it was with the tariffs. And then like literally by the afternoon the tariff thing was like all done and over. So I appreciate everyone's understanding that we're just like not responding quickly.

[Kelly]

It was fun to listen back to.

[Liz]

Yeah. It's like, oh, those girls, they knew so little.

[Kelly]

But here's, here's the unfortunate thing I fear. I fear as though we're in the same boat because I. There's not been. We have a 30 day extension. So like now we get to do this whole song and dance over until like a new. So all to say I'm personally like. And I think it's also important to remember things I can do about it. None. I'm actually, I'm not in government. I don't know. So I'm choosing to move on and I'm going to really just. I'm gonna pay attention to what's my reality. And my reality is I don't know what's happening right now. And when, when there's an update, I'll I'll update you.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

But for now, your car prices are safe.

[Liz]

For now, your car prices are safe.

[Kelly]

It's actually just been so interesting. Like, well, well, one. I mean, the feds didn't lower rates, which, like, kind of was kind of a. Which kind of hurt a bit. But it's just crazy to see inventory stabilize on the new car side and still be so slim on the used car side. And like, I'm not an economist, but am I? Because how many times was I, like, during these Covid years when we're just like little girlies on a mic? I'm like, well, what's going to happen in three years when everyone's looking for used cars?

[Liz]

Like who?

[Kelly]

Like someone. Like, I said that and no one said that. Well, I'm sure some people did, but it just feels really. Well, it feels sad. It's. It's one of those things, like, I don't like that I was right. But yeah, the used car market is still suffering.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

And like, Grayson posted that. Grayson sent me a video of a Ford Explorer the other day, and it was a 2016 Ford Explorer. So it's a nine year old car. It had. It had like less than a hundred thousand miles on it. It was fully loaded, but it was still like $18,000. And I'm not mad at Grayson. I'm not mad at BMW of West St. Louis. Like, I tr. I honestly, I. I trust their market pricing enough to know, like, I mean, I think that's what they cost. I mean, of course, of course there's always room to negotiate, but it's not like that car to me. Should. I feel like that car should be $10,000. I mean, it's a 2016. It's a nine year old car.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

I want that car to be $10,000 and it's 18.

[Liz]

I know.

[Kelly]

And I'm just like, what?

[Liz]

What? Things are just everything is just so expensive.

[Kelly]

I know. I went to Chick Fil a today and granted I got like, kind of like, I guess I got two meals, but it was 21.

[Liz]

The drive through will really shock you when I'm just like trying to get like one thing for myself and it's every bit of 15. And I'm like, I didn't sit down.

[Kelly]

I didn't sit.

[Liz]

I didn't. No one came and took my order. No one refilled my water. Like, why am I paying 15 for a drive through?

[Kelly]

Well, that's like the debt free mom of it all though, when she talks about like we all complain about the Price of groceries. They got nothing on eating out, though.

[Liz]

Totally.

[Kelly]

And it does make me feel so much better about my grocery budget when I realize it costs, like, $5 a day to feed Tyler. Like, when you think of it like that.

[Liz]

Yeah, man. I really need to get better on when. When I make not only my grocery or my dinner list for the month, but also making sure I'm buying, like, the same ingredients. Because I'll sometimes go to the grocery store and it's like 75, and I'm like, I actually don't have anything to, like, create an entire meal.

[Kelly]

No.

[Liz]

I. I don't even know how I got to this point, but it's just, like, ingredients that don't actually add up to anything.

[Kelly]

Yeah. That's where the freezer full of meat's really helpful.

[Liz]

Totally.

[Kelly]

I'm also done, like, which this is, I guess, more like ditch the drive through adjacent. But I'm done with the notion that, like, sometimes it's just not a full meal, and sometimes that's enough.

[Liz]

What? What do you mean?

[Kelly]

So, like, tonight for supper, we. I have. I have two pounds of ground beef thawed. I'm either gonna go taco or sloppy. Like, those are the directions we're going. There's nothing else, though. It's. It's. We're having.

[Liz]

Oh, I see. Yeah.

[Kelly]

Like, I don't have to go to go along.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

And I think that's okay.

[Liz]

Yeah, I think that's okay too.

[Kelly]

If I have, like, a raw veggie and some ranch, I'll pull it out.

[Liz]

I'm a chance.

[Kelly]

I'll put that on my plate, though, to be honest.

[Liz]

You know what I'm only doing for me? I'm only doing that for myself because James isn't gonna eat, you know, the accoutrements. My husband isn't. So I just am really doing it for myself. And if I can just get away with it, I'm doing it for show. I mean, I know because he's gonna throw it on the ground.

[Kelly]

It's because the stupid plate comes with three compartments.

[Liz]

Totally.

[Kelly]

That's toxic. I'm done with children's plates having three compartments. Give me one compartment, and then if I. Then let me choose my own adventure. When you give me three compartments, you know how hard it is to give a child a plate? One of their dinner plates has four compartments. Shut up.

[Liz]

Oh, four is ridiculous.

[Kelly]

I need to. I need. Honestly. I honestly need to purge those because you know how hard my kids are just like, well, mom, nothing's in this one. And it's like, well, you.

[Liz]

A third could be a dip. Like, we could do the main. We could do a fruit, and we could do a dip. A four. A four compartment.

[Kelly]

Liz. I'm telling you, though, I struggle with even a three. Like, today for breakfast, we had ham and cinnamon rolls. Okay, look, first of all, kudos for me for doing a protein. I didn't have a third.

[Liz]

Well, you could have done a fruit.

[Kelly]

Yeah.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

Speaking of food, I. I don't know if it was a DM or a post in the carpool Facebook page, but someone was like, I just wish somebody would tell me, like, three things to, like, cut out to, like, just be like. Like, talking about, like, the chemicals and the toxicity and the X, y, and Z of it all, and it's like, yeah, totally. Like, it's. It's getting everything thrown at you that I think then people, like, put up their blinders and don't do anything instead of just focusing on, like, getting 1% better. So I'm gonna share two things that I have and three things that I have done that, like, I will never go back. Like, this is what I buy now, and, like, this is. Helps me put my head on my pillow peacefully at night. Okay.

[Liz]

Okay.

[Kelly]

Number one, I only buy the Costco peanut butter because it's all natural, nothing added. It's, like, just peanuts.

[Liz]

Peanut butter is a good one. Yeah.

[Kelly]

So, like, that's me. Like, we're not a Jif family anymore. We do the Costco. You buy. I buy four at a time. That's what we do. We only do 100% real maple syrup. Mrs. Butterworth doesn't have. She does not. She does not have a home here.

[Liz]

Mm.

[Kelly]

And I only do ketchup with no sugar added. Like, the Primal Kitchen Ketchup.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

Or if I can't, like, find that one, then I'll do, like, the one with no sugar or less sugar.

[Liz]

I think that's. I think that's excellent. I do the same thing. I do the peanut butter. I do the maple syrup. I have been trying to get on your ketchup train, and it's a me problem because I don't like the taste of the Primal Kitchen one as much as I do Heinz.

[Kelly]

Have you done the one that's the Primal Kitchen that's sweetened with honey?

[Liz]

No.

[Kelly]

Okay, so they have a one that's not sweetened. That is a little tougher. There's one sweetened with honey. That's better.

[Liz]

I need to try that. Yeah. Yeah, I agree. And you know what? Just talking about everything in moderation too. After we talked about that on that. On the last podcast, I saw this reel and it was like one of those people who goes into Costco and pulls up, it goes in the grocery store and like, holds up a thing of Diet Coke and says, this is why Diet Coke is killing you. And this person was like, if you, if they took the example of if you smoke a pack of cigarettes a day, you will take seven to 10 years off of your life. If you walk past someone who's smoking and taken secondhand smoke, it's not going to affect. Take any years off your life if you drink. So that's like the same thing when they're like, the Diet Coke has this one specific chemical in it. If you drink 20 of those a day, eventually that chemical will take seven to 10 years off your life. If you take. If you drink one a week, it's not. It's not enough to actually have that effect on you.

[Kelly]

Yeah. It's like that chemical can in this scenario and this amount.

[Liz]

Yeah. And it was also. He also said, he was like, if you drink a liter of water every hour, you will drown, like, from the inside out. And so his point was like, if, if you had to drink so much of this Diet Coke for this chemical in it to affect you, you would actually drown from, like, you have to drink that much. Like, you would actually drown from drinking before that chemical, like, killed you. So I mean, I think we should all be conscious about certain things and what we're putting into our body. And I, I'm, I'm happy that it's a conversation that's going on right now, but I just think that there's so much fear mongering around it and everyone is on social media is. So there's no room for moderation. There's no room for being 1% better. It's all just, you absolutely cannot have this. And that's very overwhelming. And it's hard.

[Kelly]

Yeah.

[Liz]

For people. And then you're just not going to do it at all. But I'm with you. I like those three things. I think that's a good. Like, those are just my place to start.

[Kelly]

And my next one.

[Liz]

Oh.

[Kelly]

I also, I buy clean laundry soap.

[Liz]

Mm.

[Kelly]

But I have candles. So, you know, like, that's just where I'm at. Like, it's just. It's just what my next big thing.

[Liz]

Oh.

[Kelly]

I do a natural toothpaste for the kids, not for myself. Whatever. We don't need. We don't need to do the Hubba Blue but that's what I wanted to say on that topic.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

Okay. What else were we going to talk about? I said let's save that combo for the podcast.

[Liz]

Well, we were. We were talking about. You sent a darling photo of Libby today in our family group chat, and she was playing with, like, one of those black and white book. And I went to your house the other day, and she had, like, 80 toys in front of her. And, like, I don't know where any of my baby toys went because Sloan, I didn't realize that I have been neglecting her in that area because she has, like, the wooden. The wooden thing that hangs over her when she lays on the ground to play with. And, like, James throws a dinosaur at her, and I have the Tabitha page black and white books. Like, I have nothing else for the girl to look at or touch or play with.

[Kelly]

Yeah, you need to get.

[Liz]

And I don't. I forget, like, at what age you need to do stuff. Are you good?

[Kelly]

Yeah, I'm good.

[Liz]

Kelly had a sneeze coming, and it seems as though it has passed. I forgot. I just, like, kind of forgot that she's at the age. Like, she was just, like, a potato newborn for so long, and now she's four months now.

[Kelly]

They have wake windows.

[Liz]

They need to be entertained. And anyway, I just feel like I am totally lacking.

[Kelly]

Well, you know, I do have double the kids that you have, so you can say I know a thing or two, because I've seen a thing or two.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

But, yeah, Liberty is on her toy grind. She's also like, I know she's only five months old, but, like, I'm telling you, she's a toy girl. Like, she likes to look at things. Also, I've never seen a baby with such head control. Like, the girl is doing, like, she's doing, like, yoga poses. Like, she's, like, arching her back, pressing her hands on the table like she's about to take off.

[Liz]

She is. She did the Superman for, like, a minute straight the other day, and it's like Sloan is nowhere near that. And I actually think that Sloan is progressing at the normal state of a baby her age. I think that Libby's just, like, in. On a different planet.

[Kelly]

Well, and we just can't. Like, the boys were so interesting because James and Fred were five months apart. So it was very much like, that's a lot in terms of babies. But with Libby and Sloan being so close, like, you and I cannot get in a habit of, like, comparing them too much because one thing's Libby's gonna be better at one things Sloan's gonna be better at, and they're both fine. You know what I mean?

[Liz]

Oh, totally. Yeah. I don't care.

[Kelly]

But yeah, I would say Libby. I think Libby's kind of a freak. Like, I swear she just came out as a three month old.

[Liz]

She literally did. She never.

[Kelly]

She just. Just came out as a three month old.

[Liz]

Well, and you know what else about.

[Kelly]

Also one more thing. I deserve an early crawler and an early walker because I have been gypped. None of my kids walked early, and that's time. And Fred still can't. Fred still barely talks. We were with a two year old the other night who's a month older than Fred. First of all, the kids potty trained. Okay. I think that's crazy.

[Liz]

Okay.

[Kelly]

But the mom was like, yeah, he just did it himself. I was like, okay. And the kid is talking in sentences and Fred just. Fred's a caveman. Fred just grabs. Fred just. Yeah, yeah.

[Liz]

You can't do the comparison game.

[Kelly]

No. And like I was almost borderline like in word abouts Fred's speech, but I luckily I have like randomly have like two very close to people who are speech pathologists. And they told me not to freak out because he does understand and he does have language. He just doesn't. He just grunts.

[Liz]

I'm sure some words there's. Yeah, he does. He does. Fine. And there is a point. I'm sure that there is a. A point when you need to start, you know, you need to get that looked at. But I don't think he's.

[Kelly]

Well, my friends told me, which this is not speech pathology advice because I am not a speech pathologist. But they were like, unless he's like a year behind where he's supposed to be, no one's probably like, I mean, he's not really going to qualify for that much. So he's not a year behind where he's supposed to be. He's just not, you know, using sentences.

[Liz]

I think that's okay.

[Kelly]

No, it's totally okay. I think it's also hard when you will have like, older siblings because I'm telling you, George and I know what he's saying. He's communicating with somebody in this house. It's just not always me.

[Liz]

I'm tell. I really think the oldest, the. The third, like the younger siblings take longer because they don't need to talk because their siblings talk for them. I'm telling you.

[Kelly]

Yeah. I mean, I feel like we still talk for Sydney and Grayson.

[Liz]

So. True.

[Kelly]

I mean, right?

[Liz]

Craig's. No one's even ever heard Craig talk before.

[Kelly]

No, no one's heard Craig talk. But it's just, like, if we. Like, let me just paint a scenario for you. If we were all out to dinner and we all decided as a table to get an appetizer, who's ordering the appetizer? It's not Cindy and Grayson. I'd be like, we'll do this for the table. Like, they. Like, that's what we would say as the older siblings.

[Liz]

Yeah, they wouldn't say that. I know.

[Kelly]

When we would go get our nails done with Sydney, she was like, remember that one time we went to our nails and with Sydney, and we had. We were like. She was probably. We were driving, and she was old enough to drop off at the nail salon. Like, she wanted to get her nails done before a dance, and we had to walk in there and tell the person what to do to her nails.

[Liz]

Oh, I don't remember that.

[Kelly]

Oh, that was me. I had to walk in and be like, can you give her a gel manicure? I was like, said, I'm gonna go to Target. I'll come back.

[Liz]

You know what? I think that I'm not. I'm not denying that Sydney didn't request you to do that, but you are such a. How can I do something for someone? Like, if I bring you a problem that I'm dealing with that I actually don't need your help with, you're like, do you just want me to come over?

[Kelly]

If there was a problem, yo, I solve it.

[Liz]

Yeah. Like, I just think that's the oldest sibling in you, just always wanting to, I don't know, help and do things.

[Kelly]

Well, I like to feel needed.

[Liz]

You do? That's really, like, to feel needed.

[Kelly]

I need to feel needed. It's not even. I want to feel. This sounds bad, but, like, I want to feel needed more than I actually want to help you. Like, I just like to feel that way. I like to feel helpful.

[Liz]

We are helpful.

[Kelly]

I built a whole platform around being helpful. Like, it's just kind of. It's my thing.

[Liz]

So true.

[C]

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[Kelly]

Well, Liz, with this being, speaking of babies and things and equipment, I had kind of a major day. First of all, I'm trying to film a day in the life reel. Pray that it comes out. Let me go on, let me get my clip. Okay, give me like a little like, it's like I don't know if I'm gonna do voiceover or not.

[Liz]

So you just want me to act like I'm talking or.

[Kelly]

No, I'm act like I'm talking. And I want you to be like, oh, good point. Give me a laugh, give me a cackle.

[Liz]

Okay.

[Kelly]

No, no, we were going like, that was me.

[Liz]

Oh, okay, okay, okay.

[Kelly]

Yeah, this is me recording it. That's perfect.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

Day in the life reels. I'm telling you You. If you ever watch someone's day in life, real and don't like it, that's honestly so rude.

[Liz]

They worked so hard on it.

[Kelly]

They worked so, so hard. They filmed all day and then edited it down. And for you not to like it is honestly then did a voiceover. And then did a voiceover if, like, they need to be like, if you.

[Liz]

Watched it all the way through and don't like it, straight to jail.

[Kelly]

Straight to jail. I was thinking about doing, like, a morning of. My mornings are just not that interesting.

[Liz]

Well, I. I feel so conflicted on, like, that aspect of it too, because my mornings are also chaotic and also, like, I don't know.

[C]

I don't want.

[Liz]

I want to start after my kids are taken care of.

[Kelly]

Totally, totally.

[Liz]

I just don't know how to start. Maybe you just start it. I don't know.

[Kelly]

Yeah, I mean, people, like, make, like, a. Those, like, vlog styles. Like, I don't want to call them a day in the life. Like, come to Target with me trips all the time. And they're good to watch.

[Liz]

You know what I watch? I watch. People are just like, here's what I got from Trader Joe's.

[Kelly]

Oh, I'm sat. Any. I'm always sat for a haul.

[C]

I'm sat.

[Kelly]

And that's, like, the 2011, like, YouTuber community, like, person in me. Like, when we used to watch those, like, makeup influencers just get, like, spend so much money at stores or get so much prime. Like, I would be sad or, like, remember people used to do, like, what I got for Christmas.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

Out of touch. And I'm not trying to brag, but, like, here are, like, all the things I got for Christmas. And it was like. So it was like, thousands of dollars worth of stuff. And we were just all sad. We had a higher tolerance for that kind of stuff back then.

[Liz]

We. We did. And I actually saw. Did you ever. Did you ever watch Nikki and Gabby? I didn't really, like, regularly watch them, but they would, like, they were like, twins, and, like, one of them looks like Ariana Grande. Like, they're twins who are identical, but also, like, one's pale and one's.

[Kelly]

Oh, yeah. Okay, I see this. Yeah.

[Liz]

So these girls used to make. Used to have a YouTube channel together, and they would do these hauls of, like, what we got for Christmas. And then they, like, came out years and years later, and they were like, yeah, we would just, like, buy that stuff, like, film it before Christmas and then, like, return it.

[Kelly]

Well, yeah, draft.

[Liz]

But people were a lot of People.

[Kelly]

Do stuff like that.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

Unfortunately, Tyler broke my big ass candle, so I can't return it, I fear. Anyway, what were we talking about? Calls?

[Liz]

Day in the Lives.

[Kelly]

Day in the Lives. Okay, thank you. Anyway, I had a big day though because I had to go get my recertification for being a cpst. So I've been a CPST certified channel passenger, save me back for four years now. But every two years you have to go and get an instructor to like, you have to install every type of car seat for an instructor. Like as far as like infant convertible booster, rear facing, forward facing. And then you also have to do a community event. So thank goodness for me because my, my girl Kim from Cardinal Glennon in St. Louis, we. It's a twofer for me because the community event, she also does my seat checks and the community event is really cool because so it's. We do seat checks and seat fits for like patients of the hospital and Safe Kids like runs this. I actually don't please other cps. I don't know that I should, I should know this, but Cardinal Glennon and Safe Kids partner at Cardinal Glennon's hospital and we give away car seats to families in need was like, basically is basically the story. So I'm there and we're having family for the most part. Like low, low income families come get car seats and then we install them in their car. It is like, seriously, I honestly need to make an effort to go down there more because I love this woman Kim so much and she's working her butt off and it is such rewarding work to like see it in, in that kind of field, like in that kind of capacity and like the side of like being a cp. And I hope people find this interesting. But being a CPST in the CPSD community, it's, it's a little.

[Liz]

I think.

[Kelly]

There'S like some bad, There's. I don't say there's bad faith actors, but like there are some people that are just so performative with it and CPSTs or being a CPST, there's a lot of things that are black and white and there's a lot of things that are gray. So on social media, like everyone loves to say, oh, the chest clip's too low. Oh, there's like, they, they love to find these corrections because it's just a knowledge flex to these people. It's like, who knows the most? And sometimes they're like, sometime people are sassy to each other about it, but when you're actually like doing it in the field and not doing it for Instagram or not doing it for like your everyday like affluent person and you're doing dealing with like, like children who have specific needs or like low income families. It is a whole different ball game.

[Liz]

And like that's. Yeah. Car, like cars that maybe don't have like the best like that the cars like cars that don't have locking seat belts.

[Kelly]

Like cars that.

[Liz]

Right.

[Kelly]

And it's always just such a rewarding and humbling time when, when you, when, when you get to do that. It just reminds me that it is. I just think so. I just think some, sometimes the car seat content gets like a little out of touch when like we're comparing and I'm not saying there's not a place for it but like there's some people who are looking to a CPSD to compare the $370 even flow shift to the $550 duna. And then there's some people like this family came in and they had an infancy. It's a ten month old baby. They had an infant seat. And we were like, where's the base? They're like, oh yeah, we don't have a base. And so we're like, so you just had the child in the car? Like, like not buckled in the car seat. Like the, like the infant seat was just there. And I'm not, I'm not saying that it's, it's a lack of education. They didn't have a base and like the car. I don't want to like give too many details because they're just not necessary, but the car was not easy to fit a car seat in. And like we just had to make like good, better best scenarios to get that child like driving safer than when they came to us. And like that's rewarding stuff that I like. Yeah, obviously. So like that child came in a car seat and we're not there to judge the parents. We are there to help provide a free car seat and teach them how to use it. Like that mom, like we were tied by the end of it. Like she knows what to do.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

And so that was, that was a very rewarding one. We got like the kid a brand new car seat. He was, I mean he was a huge baby still in an infant carrier. Like he didn't even fit. Like he was above the height and weight limit, wasn't in a base. Then the other one we had was. It was my first time doing a special needs one which I've never, I don't have a lot of experience with special needs car seats. And I'm signed up to take a class because my girl Kim's like the only instructor in Missouri who can teach the special needs class.

[Liz]

Oh.

[Kelly]

And so the child was autistic and that gets kind of difficult because he wasn't able to. He was, he was outgrown the what a typical harness would give. But he wasn't mature enough to like sit in the booster, so we had to like explore like some riding vests and whatever. It was just like a really. I'm feeling hyped about, like helping the people today.

[Liz]

I love that.

[Kelly]

And now I'm recertified for two more years, so.

[Liz]

Good. Well, I'm getting certified this year and.

[Kelly]

I wanted to talk about that.

[Liz]

And I'm getting certified in Feb. My classes start in February. I'm very excited to get certified and to know more. I feel like I actually know a decent amount just, you know, per the job. But I'm excited to be able to help you out more with installing car seats and just like be another sounding board for you. And also my friends come to me a lot about like cars and car seats and stuff and I just want to be more knowledgeable on it. So I'm excited.

[Kelly]

Yeah. Well, it'll be nice to like, for you to. Yeah. To feel like you can answer some of those questions.

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

But I will say, and this is like not a knock to for the CPST class, but like just to shed a little bit more light on it because people ask me like, how to get certified. Just Google safe kids classes near me. I want to be very clear, like, it is not a hard certification to get though. Like it is crazy. I think you're actually going to leave the class being like, oh, like that's it. And I, I don't say that to knock the class. I say it to say like, if you don't continue the education and continue the infield experience that we do, like, the class just tells you what to do. Like you. Then you have to get the hours under your belt. But it's kind of scary when I say that because like, anyone can say, I mean, again, CPSC certification is not hard to get. So anyone. Like, I think you have to be mindful about who you're going for, who you're going to like, are they seeing multiple different seats, installing multiple different seats, collaborating with other cp like just that. That's all I want to say.

[Liz]

Okay. Well, I'm excited.

[Kelly]

Anyway, speaking of cpsts, there's one other. Like, this is kind of Like, a juicy industry news story that I have.

[Liz]

Okay.

[Kelly]

Anyway, there was a new Consumer Reports test that came out. Have you seen this?

[Liz]

Yes.

[Kelly]

And I wanted to address it. As you guys know, I'm like, a big Consumer Reports fan. Like, we have them on the podcast, and I think they do really good work. They did a test on two infant seats, a Diono infant seat, and then a Peg Perego infant seat. And the results were not great, per the Consumer Reports test. Now, this puts myself and a lot of every other CPST in the world in, like, a really weird position because those seats, all seats pass NHTSA's guidelines. So. And that's. That's what the government requires the seats to pass. Now, other people can do their own testing. And what does. Like, what the always thing that, like, gets me about, like, the CPSD community is, like, those results, the results of the NHTSA testing aren't. Aren't released necessarily. Right. We don't know, like, who did better. We just know they passed. So then you have someone independent, like Consumer Reports, who makes their own test that is different than the NHTSA test. I do. That's, like, a very important part of the story. And there's some controversy on, like, if that's a fair test. So if. If that's a fair test, and what if it really tells us anything? If. How much it actually stimulates what a real crash would be. And, you know, I think at some point, like, if you. If you freaking. I mean, you could simulate something that, like, would blow up the entire car if you wanted to. So, like, you have to. You have to say, like, okay, their test was like, a 35 miles per hour. It was. It's. It's. It's not in a vehicle. Everything's like a simulation. The two seats, the peg seat. Honestly, it cracked, which isn't, like, raising a lot of alarms for us, because what the Consumer Reports tests don't tell us is it's just like, a doll in there. Like, there's no, like, dummy, like, you would find, like, at the IAHs where.

[Liz]

They can tell you that, like, it's.

[Kelly]

Like the seat crack. But, like, was the kid okay? Because, like, okay, the C crack, like, that's fine. Was the kid okay? Now, the Diono seat's the one everyone's talking about because that's separated from the base two out of the three times this test happened. And at the time of this recording, Diono has not responded. And that's just where we're at. I don't. I don't know what opinion to give really truthfully because people have that seat and NHTSA says you can have it so NHTSA says you can drive with it. I think that's concerning though. I don't think it should have separated and I have, I have like not issues with the consumer report test but like you know, it feels like not telling the full story and I think, I don't think they're trying to fear monger. I think actually they're like oh my gosh, like this is crazy. It's the balance of like they want people to be informed. That's what, that's what people pay for their membership for is to and similar to what the IHS does with cars. Like Consumer Reports are trying to do this with car seats. They're trying to make it better and better and better and better and they're allowed to do that. Like they buy the seats themselves. They're, they're not government funded. Like they're, they're completely donor funded. Like they're like their members pay for them to run these tests. So I don't know, you go back and forth.

[Liz]

But yeah, I mean on one hand regardless of you know the test, other car seats performed well in the test. You know like other car seats they, that didn't happen. So like that's the constant is that they did do the same test across multiple car seats and like these are the you know, the red flags that they found. So I just think you have to have that information and you have to make a decision for you.

[Kelly]

And I also don't ever want like I don't want to subscribe. I want to give my audience the credit to like something I'm trying to put fear in you but like one thing about me is like I'm always going to empower you. So like that's the information. I'm not going to judge you based on like if you have that car seat like, like that this is the information and like I just want you to be empowered. I think sometimes people in the our community are so scared that they're going to be giving fear that we like that we stop the lack that we stop educating people to we said we stop educating and we don't teach them like what a load leg does, what an anti rebound bar does. Like what's the benefits of rear facing our because it's like I'm not judging. I don't want to do this and I don't want to but I also want you guys to feel empowered and educated. So there you go. Do with it what you will do.

[Liz]

With it what you will.

[Kelly]

I would say, like, if, I don't know, I don't like that it's separate. I mean, if I, if I had Libby in that car seat, I'd probably, I would put her in a different car seat today. But I have, I. But I have that option and I need Diono to respond. Hopefully Diono responds or we get more info on the test. So if I kind of like the industry news.

[Liz]

Well, there's wasn't expectations like a car.

[Kelly]

Seat take on industry news, but I.

[Liz]

Guess there's actually more. There's actually, there's actually more industry news.

[Kelly]

Oh, okay.

[Liz]

And that would be that the car mom car of the year finalists have been announced.

[Kelly]

Holy cow. How do we forget?

[Liz]

So how do we forget? So we were originally just going to do a top three, but we pulled the audience. We got 10,000 people, moms, families to vote on who the car mom car of the year should be. It was so close. It was like a matter of like 100 votes between the Lexus GX and the Kia Carnival that we decided to do a top four. Because we actually did a top four last year. And when we went back and watched our content from last year, we were like, okay, we actually kind of like the vibes of a top four. So top four finalists are the Chevy Traverse, Kia Carnival, Lexus gx and the Honda Odyssey.

[Kelly]

Slight. Kia Carnival Hybrid.

[Liz]

Kia Carnival Hybrid, yeah.

[Kelly]

Chevy Traverse, Lexus gx, Honda Odyssey. Stacked list.

[Liz]

Stacked list.

[Kelly]

I mean, they were all good. And I'm not gonna, I don't. I, I want to keep. I'm not gonna, like, I don't want to say, like, who had the most consumer votes at this point. Maybe we can do that eventually. I don't know. We haven't talked about that. But it's going to be a tough decision because they're all great cars and they all have such different things to offer, which is why, like, we're so mindful about not comparing them to each other. Like, they get rated individually.

[Liz]

Yeah. So we have, we're working on the rating system. We're doing the same one we did last year, which is. Yeah, not taking a Traverse versus a Odyssey or like, which one has better car seat capability. We're just. Okay, we're looking at the Odyssey. How's it, how's it car seat capability, how's its comfort, how's its value? And we're giving it a score based off that. And then at the end, we're going to see who comes out on top.

[Kelly]

Yeah, I'm very excited. Chron Core of the year is a big deal for us, so stay tuned for that.

[Liz]

Kel, I just want to say that I am so happy to see where the car mom has come, because people don't know this because it's conversations that had been had behind closed doors. But when Kelly started the car mom, she was like, I'm never gonna do, like, my top or a car of the year, because that's too much. It's too much to put a stamp on. I'm not gonna do it. You also said I'm never going to get too into the car seats because there's. There's too much. There's too many people doing it. There's too much, you know, black and white. Like, I. That's not where I'm. That's not where I'm gonna thrive. And here you are doing all the things you said you weren't gonna do.

[Kelly]

That's a fact.

[Liz]

And that's.

[Kelly]

Well, you know, that's.

[Liz]

That's a. That's your grown confidence in what you're talking about.

[Kelly]

Yeah, that's growth. And then. Yeah, that is confidence. And it's just always coming back to, like, you also just start to do it when you see other people try to do it. And I know they don't care as much as I do. Like that we started. We decided to do it when. Freaking that. We talked about a couple podcast episodes ago when mama was like, it's the family car of the year. And I'm like, hold on, what are you guys writing this off of? And then I was like, okay, so people are already doing it. So if they're gonna. If it's already gonna be out there, I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna make sure it's the best and like, the actual most thought provoking one out there for families.

[Liz]

It's not. It's not the answer for everyone.

[Kelly]

No, it's.

[Liz]

But it is the answer for families.

[Kelly]

Yeah. So, yeah, I'm really proud of us too, actually.

[Liz]

But anyway, you ready for ditch the.

[Kelly]

Drive through, where we give you an easy dinner recipe to mix it up to get you out of your dinner rut. Because after a 21 chick fil, a lunch for one, I'm simply ditching it.

[Liz]

I am ready for just the drive through and I have a listener submission. And if you want to leave your own digital right through, you can email [e-mail] all right, we've got ground. My favorite ground Beef go to. We love a ground beef go to. Literally a Korean beef bowl.

[Kelly]

Oh.

[Liz]

Prepare white, white rice desired way. While rice is cooking, whisk together soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil and red pepper flakes, brown minced garlic and beef. While the beef is. When the beef is almost finished, add the soy sauce mixture to the pan. Throw broccoli in the microwave and mix everything together in a bowl. We like to add fun sauces. I like Thai sweet chili and my husband usually goes to the yum yum sauce. It's like it's. It's the Asian. It's the Asian taco bowl.

[Kelly]

It's the Asian top. It's the Asian burger bowl.

[Liz]

It's the Asian burger bowl. I love a different flair. I love a different cuisine.

[Kelly]

Is anything more versatile than ground beef? Like I'm genuinely asking.

[Liz]

Ground beef.

[Kelly]

Chicken.

[Liz]

Chicken is versatile. Chicken's very versatile. They're both very versatile. I'm just not much of a chicken girl. No, I love ground beef.

[Kelly]

Well, I could eat it plain.

[Liz]

I could eat a plane.

[Kelly]

I'm such a ground beef girl. Ground beef bowl. Yeah.

[Liz]

All day long. All day long. So anyway, I'm definitely gonna add that to my rotation to try. Sounds great.

[Kelly]

And so yeah, we. So now, now it's got me thinking because I am thawing out ground beef and I was.

[Liz]

You are.

[Kelly]

Do you have Fluffy?

[Liz]

Do you have those things?

[Kelly]

Yeah, those are shelf stable. I have them.

[Liz]

I say you do it.

[Kelly]

Should I?

[Liz]

Will your family eat it? Maybe.

[Kelly]

Yeah, I guess I could half it. We could take a choose your own adventure. Ground beef bowls. Like what if I just made the brown beef? You know, one day I'm going to brown 15 pounds of hamburger. I talked to my sister in law about. You know how I always say that?

[Liz]

Yeah.

[Kelly]

First off we ever did merch. That's the quote.

[Liz]

What?

[Kelly]

Something about Browning. 15 pounds of ground beef. I just feel like I say that at least once a week.

[Liz]

Okay.

[Kelly]

I was talking to my sister in law about it. She's like, yeah, you know you, Kelly, you gotta get around to doing that. It's so helpful. And I'm like, Trina, I know. Yeah, I know, I know.

[Liz]

One of these days, Cal. £15 is a lot.

[Kelly]

So much.

[Liz]

So much. All right, Cal. Well, I think that's our episode.

[Kelly]

Yeah, No, I think that's fine. I think it's good. I think it was everything and you did nothing. You didn't.

[Liz]

Yeah. So thank you so much for listening to the carpool podcast and we'll talk to you next time.

[Kelly]

See ya.

[Liz]

Thank you for listening to the Carpool Podcast with Kelly and Liz. Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode. And if you enjoyed riding with us, tell everybody you know there's room in the car for everyone.