Push chair for 3 under 3.5 dilemma

[Katsand]

Ok so I am going crazy!!!. Found out that I am expecting baby number 3 in February. I was first very exited about getting new pram as this time I could get a single and had so much more choice than when I was shopping for double. My oldest will be 3 years and 5 months and my middle will be 2 years and 4 months. I used to have a b dual which worked really well for me but now as they are getting older I just use a maclaren with a buggy board and I sold the b dual as I needed space ( little did I know that nr 3 was coming so quickly lol). My thought was to get a single with buggy board and my oldest 3.5 could walk. I now spoke to a friend and she was thinking that I definitely would need a double for second being able to sit.
I like britax affinity, oyster2, graco symbio ( a bit dubious about graco though) and graco evo. But last night I start re a ding about uppa baby vista and in theory it could be perfect with extra rumble seat and piggy back but my baby's are on the 98 centile so feel that the rumble seat would be waste of time (????) but the idea would be great. Are there any other push chairs that do the same ( extra seat plus buggy board) . But then the other part of me are thinking that maybe I should use the sling for the first 4-5 months and then maybe just use single.
Like I say I am a bit clueless and need guidance :-)
What would you do???

[Artandco]

I would wait until at least next year to see. In comparison mine are 16 months apart. We have only ever had a single with buggy board, and by 2 years no pram.

I can't imagine a 3 1/2 year old would really fit in board very well and would make pram heavy and awkward to push. The uppa baby isn't great as newborn can't lie in seat flat with extra seat on.

Personally I would buy a bugaboo bee. Add board for 2 year old if needed and eldest def walk. The board unclips in seconds and can go under if 2 yer old is walking and seat reclines without bassinet so if really needed you can take baby out and put 2 year old in a while and baby in sling.

Spend the next 7 months training both children to walk as much as possible so it isn't a sudden leap.

Recommend the boba 4g sling also as takes from newborn-3/4 years if needed so great to keep under pram for emergencies or can use for baby and walk older two locally to go pram free

[Katsand]

Thank you artandco
I do feel that my 3.5 will walk all the time by then but my friend made me doubt ....

[kimblesj]

My son had just turned 3 when my youngest was born and we didn't get a double. We had to allow more time to walk at first but he walks quite happily to his swimming lesson 1.5 miles away and home again afterwards at 3.5. I just leave 45 minutes before.
We obviously had a few months where he would just stop but we would do lots of little non essential trips to the shop to get used to it.

[SpockSmashesScissors]

3.5 will be walking by then.

I have 3 children, we had a nipper 360 double for the youngest 2, eldest used to just wedge on the front bit if he was really tired.

www.johnlewis.com/out-'n'-about-nipper-360-double-pushchair-black/p567909

[naturalbaby]

I had 3 with a similar age gap. Baby in a sling, toddler in a phil & ted's, oldest on a scooter or balance bike. After a few months baby had to go on my back. I had big babies, nearly 9lb and used the sling till baby was over 12months. I had to plan for days when they would all be tired and need to be pushed/carried home from toddler group/nursery, and there were a lot of those days.

[AnythingNotEverything]

I have an Uppababy vista, and it's lovely, but therumble seat only goes to something like 15kg, and you can't use ironwork the carrycot, and them you need an insert for the toddler seat to make it suitable from newborn.

Don't get me wrong, it's a great pram - sturdy, huge basket, easy to push, but not necessarily what you're after for an alternative to a double.

I was going to suggest a sling for when the middle one wants to sit.

[AnythingNotEverything]

Sorry! Feeding large baby and typing one handed.

Ironwork should be "alongside".

[Katsand]

Natural baby did you have the phil and ted double or single?
Maybe I should think single, buggy board and sling
Anythingnoteverything yes I was suspecting this to be the case.... :-)

[MrsSpencerReid]

I have a baby jogger city select and can fit two in buggy us one on board at the back, it can also be a single so all bases covered!!

[lemonfolly]

Congratulations!

I'd wait until you get closer and see what your needs are then. It's likely your 3.5 yr old will mostly be walking, but it's good to have options especially if you need to be somewhere in a hurry.

I've got the vista and have the rumble seat which in all honesty ruins the handling a bit. But in theory you could have that plus buggy board and sling for lots of options. Lie flat is a pain, but they can go in standard seat from 3 months and rear seat from 6 months which would improve handling as the lighter child is on the rumble seat. I flit between using car seat and sling for my newborn, and standard seat or rumble for my 2 year old.

I was also looking at Phil and teds navigator, you can have lie flat cocoon, buggy board if needed for 3.5 year old and normal seat for 2 year old.

[MrsSpencerReid]

*plus one on board even!!

[Katsand]

Mrs spencer can you use the board when you have the basinette?

[Katsand]

Yes lemonfolly now looking at phil and ted too. I think that if I should get a double it need to be one that function nicely as a single. That was the trouble with the b dual. It looked bulky as a single.

[Artandco]

The main thing is Get a single where the main seat can be used for both baby and 2 year old if needed, so not seperate carry cot etc. so basically any that lie flat completely

[TribbleWithoutATardis]

I loved my Phil and TEDs, it was a brilliant pram. Personally, I'd get either a Phil and teds or a cheap second hand nipper to see you through. You may find with three out and about you just need to be able to go and get on with it. Do whatever will make your life easiest.

[Ihateparties]

I found it very much harder with two young walking children and a pram than with two in a pram and one on foot. I do have a set of not very easily or quickly "trainable" children though. Now they are 6, 4 and 2, it's fairly mental when they are all on foot, which is the majority of the time. For 2 and 3 I did very nearly do what Art did, the lie flat pram a board combo but ultimately I didn't have enough hands and with ds in reception we had a much more rigid timetable that ever before.

Imo if you can be flexible in when you do things and the format of them then you could certainly manage with a single, if you have to be places for certain times then being able to put two in the pushchair can be a valuable thing. Dd2 is 2y4m and my most compliant child but I would very much miss not having a seat for her and I don't have a baby to contend with also.

[naturalbaby]

I had the double. I tried to keep the baby seat free as much as possible to encourage my middle one to walk/scoot but he gets tired quickly and so distracted on a scooter so he was safer strapped into the buggy!
I also had a single stroller suitable from birth but hardly used it till dc3 was well over 12months. When the older dc's were dawdling or starting a tantrum I could just strap them into the buggy and get moving. Life is tough with 3, do anything and everything you can to make it as easy as possible for everyone!

[HomeIsWhereTheHeartIs]

I recently saw a buggy board that was also a seat. Hard to explain but it was kind of like a ride-on suitcase shape (but smaller) with a foot hold either side, so the child could stand as normal, or just sit on the ride-on.
Kicking myself for not running after this family to ask where they bought it from.

[Katsand]

Ihateparties what would be your suggestion?

[Ihateparties]

As in what would I do or what specifically would I get?

[Katsand]

What product :-)

[MrsSpencerReid]

Yes you can I'm on mobile or I would add pics

[Ihateparties]

Well I would get a tandem with space for a board... I would say the select as it is fab but I personally cannot push the fecker empty, I would have no chance with two in it and one on a board! People can and do though so it's a solid option. Especially if your eldest child is sensible and can be kept safe without actual handholding as it pretty much needs two hands to push and definitely two hands up kerbs.

I would look at an oyster max, jane twone, peach 2 or 3, a tfk joggster twist and buddy seat if you can track one down, the select, a mb duet if you think your middle dc will ride for a significant period of time. I will try to think of more. The twone was my favourite but it has many awkward features. I recently weaned dd1 off the buggyboard, she still really doesn't enjoy walking at 4y5m, which is the exact same age ds was when dd2 was born and he had been walking everywhere for aaaages by that point.

[Katsand]

Thank you everyone for your advices. Think I will have to get myself down to some shop and try them all out. I love my research but it's also quite stressful lol

[imip]

I had three under 3.2 and then three under 3.4. All big kids. London, so we do a lot of walking. I was tricky sometimes but we survived with a phil and teds double and scooter/bike/sling.

Dd1 was frequently tired, so she sometimes sat on the front foot rest of the phil and teds in an emergency. I did feel bad for her in poor weather, but she was pretty sturdy. When I had dc4 (oldest was 5.2, dc 2 3.4) dc2 was really motivated to scoot/bike along with dc1.

Crazy days.... They are now 7, 6, 4 and 2 and finally I have just a maclarens!