living on the third floor

[margherita76]

My baby is due in August and I am really unsure as to what it will be like living on the third floor of a block of flats with a baby (and no lift).

At first I thought it would be fine, people have babies in far, far more difficult circumstances but I rent, so I could look elsewhere. I particularly thought about it because of the weather this year - I felt quite isolated on my own ( partner works long hours) and cannot imagine how you maneuver a baby around in the freezing cold with steps and icy paths etc.

I wonder if anyone could advise - obv this is 1st baby. Also, there is no where to keep a pram downstairs. There is no way of parking directly outside before 6.30, and getting into the building itself involves quite steep steps.

But...flat hunting is a pain / letting agents a nightmare and so on...

[curlimum]

hmm, it will be more difficult but you could get around the problems - instead of a pram you could invest in a sturdy baby carrier (that you strap onto yourself) which are quite comfy for you and baby. As long as you are confident about climbing flights of stairs with baby strapped to you, then that should work. and with a nice warm snowsuit and your body heat, baby will be warm enough.

the first couple of weeks are going to be hard though, because you will find it very hard to go up and down stairs..with or without a baby! if your partner is able to take paternity leave, then you will be fine but otherwise if possible have a relative or friend stay with you for a little while or at least come over often to help.

you might find after a while that you still would prefer a more convenient place to live, but until then its definitely not impossible! (and on the plus side, you will lose your mum-tum in no time with all those stairs )

[MumNWLondon]

Buy a sling - or 2!

Don't buy a big pram, if you do want a pram go for a buggy - eg like maclaren techno, M&P pliko - perhaps one with a car seat that attaches that you keep the whole lot in the car (ie one that won't take up the whole boot). When you go out you stick the baby in the sling and if you want to use the pram you go via the car.

If you don't have a car I'd recommend trying to manage to 6 months just with sling and then going for something really lightweight like a maclaren triumph.

But I didn't like using sling in the very cold as I was worried I'd trip on ice etc and only really works in rain if you invest in massive all encompassing raincoat!

[FatSeal]

I have to say having had a baby in a 2nd floor flat with no parking outside is the one thing that makes me want to move house!

We managed though, and it's less about actual stair-climbing (although I was terrified I'd drop dd on her head) and more about logistics with bags of stuff etc. We were lucky as well in that we could leave the pram/ buggy at the bottom of the stairwell. Slings would probably be the answer for you, although I would second the comment about if it's raining. I think some of them you can buy waterproof covers for, which would be worth investigating.

[margherita76]

thanks for your advice - a lot of mums have said, similarly, that you just cope with stuff and get on with it and that if it gets too much it's probably better to move with a baby than whilst pregnant.

I think once I make a decision to stay I can engage with things like which pram and so on and someone has already offered a sling / baby carrier. And I will ask about keeping the pram downstairs, though its all fairly impersonal in our block.

and yes there is the fact that I will undoubtedly be keeping active with all those stairs!

[Morloth]

Yup, go for a sling for a little baby and then at least you can get a super-lite umbrella type stroller so no need to have a big heavy one. Those little tripod ones can even be put into a bag that you can then sling over your back if necessary.

[margherita76]

light stroller is a good idea but, what about the thing about babies having to lie flat for the first 6 months - how would that affect my situation?

[MorrisZapp]

I live on 3rd floor too. Round here, I see mums and buggies coming in and out of blocks of flats all the time.

If they can do it, I can do it!

It will be a pain in the ass but to move to a house with a garden would mean doubling our mortgage which we can't afford.

I fully expect my DP to carry all shopping loads etc, and have no hesitation in asking a passing neighbour, 'excuse me, could you just grab this for a second' etc.

[Morloth]

Get a sling/baby carrier for the under 6 month stage.

[VigourMortis]

We live in the 3rd floor and have a maclaren techno which is suitable from birth. I'd planned to use a sling but despite working my way through several I never found one that suited and now DS is enormous and too heavy.

I ring the buzzer downstairs and if DP is in he comes down and helps us up. If he's not in I leave the buggy down there and he carries it up when he comes in. Actually a few months in (I had a c-section) i find I can carry it up and down myself no problem and not bother DP. I take DS up first and leave him in his cot or on the floor in his gym and go back down for it.

Guess who lost their baby weight

[Cies]

I live on the third floor, and although we do have a lift, I hardly use it because it's tiny, slow, and very old, so old in fact that I worry about being trapped in it.

So, I'd echo what everyone else has said - get a sling. I've got a Moby wrap, which is fab. DS (3.5mo) loves it. I also have a pram, which doesn't fit in the lift, and I use it maybe once a week, when dh is around to lift it up and down stairs.

Use sling + back pack for daily trips out and about.

[MorrisZapp]

Is it generally considered ok to leave the baby in the cot while you nip back down to bring up the buggy?

I pictured myself struggling with it all at once I must admit. I do live in a safe stair though, and the downstairs door would be locked behind me.

Hmm, that does sound sensible actually. Would make life easier if DP was out.

[Bucharest]

I am on second floor (4 flights of stairs) and no lift. I had a big rocky proper pram. You get used to sort of bouncing it down and then hoiking it backwards back up again (IYSWIM?) Babies seem to quite like the bounce.

[blackcurrants]

This is a v. encouraging and helpful thread - thanks to OP and everyone who's commented. I live 2 1/2 flights up and I'm worrying a bit about how it's going to work out. Was definitely thinking sling + Techno/ Baby Jogger City Mini (Am in USA), and it might be possible to leave the buggy in the stairwell, and it would be GREAT for me to get the exercise and stuff. (someone gave me a Moby, which is cool).
But I'm 21wks now and feeling out of puff as I go up the stairs, so it's a bit daunting, too. So it's nice to hear all the mums who're doing it, it makes it feel much more possible!

[Morloth]

I would do that no worries MorrisZapp though others will probably disagree.

Just don't get confused in the new mum haze and leave the baby downstairs while you tuck the buggy up in the cot...

[margherita76]

MorrisZapp, I would also not have even thought about it NOT being OK- if you feel like it's a safe stair/ landing area. As long as the baby is strapped in - what else can we do if no one else is around to help?!

and I totally agree with blackcurrents that it's good to hear other in a similar situation just getting on with it

[susiey]

we have always lived in flats on varying floors with our kids and becasue of this have always had a safe place to leave the baby while I run down and answer the door/ get the shoppiong etc

we used a playmat/ bouncy chair while they didn't move

and when they could move we had a playpen

if you can keep the buggy downsatirs that great if you can't put the baby somewhere safe run down put the buggy up and then bring the baby and all its stuff down.

we have always had maclarens for this reason we had a techno classic to start with then at 3 months changed to a triumph.

[AmazingBouncingFerret]

I live in a third floor flat and we are on baby number 2!
So you can imagine how much fun it is getting 12 week old DD, 3 year old DS and bags of shopping up the stairs! Plus im due to have a back operation this year! Ahhh good times.
Im lucky that all flats are privately owned so the stairs are very "homey" The walls are emulsioned and the windows are PVC. I keep the pushchair in a downstairs cupboard, but in your case a sling seems a very good idea.

For the first few weeks I just took it very slowly.

As for leaving baby in the cot to go collect things, I always do it, have been known to wait for her to fall asleep and I will then go take the dog out into the garden aswell. (better that than the dog peeing on the floor!)