New!
I think the ", and" construction works best if the clauses are not too independent, as for example those in a family trip to a store below.
She took the kids in tow and headed off with a shopping cart, and he, trying to remember what time the game started, idly perused the magazines.
I also read somewhere that a series of items separated by commas should be related and structured to be grammatically similar to each other to avoid a "1, 2, 3, and d" situation. It should be "1, 2, and 3 and d" (despite the two and's). Otherwise place d in a separate clause or sentence.