to wonder about these older children still in strollers...

[chaya5738]

OK, so I know I am totally setting myself up to be flamed for being judgmental but...

I am wondering what the deal is with all these almost adult-sized children in strollers. I see them everywhere. During my lunch break just now I went into a toy store and there was this boy who looked to be about seven - no physical or mental disabilites that impaired his ability to wander at an ok speed around the store - browsing with his mum. When it was time to leave the store she calls him over and he gets into a stroller and off they go. It was bizarre. And then a few days ago on the train a similar thing. A mother gets on with her daughter who looks about seven or eight. She then gets herself out of the stroller, jumps all over the seats, has a grand old time and then when the train stops at the next station she gets back in the stroller and off they go. And then I saw this over the weekend again as we walked along the river. This child who was almost as tall as me happily sitting back in a stroller while she was pushed along by her parents.

I don't remember being in a stroller at all when I was small so I must have stopped being in one quite young. I remember going on shopping outings with my mum and getting quite tired, and probably complaining a bit, but we'd just stopped for a cup of tea or my mother would walk a bit slower. I soon built up shopping stamina that sees me in good stead today.

Admittedly my DD is only 15 months old so I don't really have a good grounding for saying when children should stop being in strollers but I seem to be seeing quite old children with no physical disabilities being pushed around because, presumably, it is faster for their parents to do shopping that way. Is this true MNetters? And what does this say about the health and fitness of our children...

I reserve the right to come back and retract this post in three years time when DD is five and I can't get any shopping done without strapping her into a stroller.

I was the same LC200, didn't drive used to go from one side of london to the other to visit my mother. The push chair was a godsend also for carrying shopping or luggage if we were going to stay the night. I had exactly two years between dcs and used a double for about a year.

I tried a sling type thing for a while when DS was born and again when DD was born and hated it both times, babies to heavy and seemed to get in the way of me doing anything.

DS is autistic. We have a hefty buggy for him as he's 9. He's capable of walking, sure. He's not always capable of managing massive sensory stimulation, and the buggy provides a retreat. When stressed he will refuse to walk. He can do this 90 times or so over a mile. You cannot force him, because he's autistic, not naughty, and his desperation is genuine.

. It can provide a retreat - at Legoland we need one of their buggies so he can take a break from the bustle and noise. And that's just one reason, for some kids.

Disabilities aren't always visible. My son is bright as a button and looks very healthy. And autism is variable. He can be fine on one day with something and absolutely unable to manage it another. Yet we get the most venomous looks.

It's exhausting, to be honest, coping with people's misapprehensions. That and dealing with the professional services is usually way more stressful than parenting my child.

ARGH I HAVE ZOMBIED! I am so sorry. I was searching and this came up and I forgot to check the date.

Huge MN offence. I've never done it before, I promise!

I haven't seen 7 year olds in strollers.

But I did put my DD in a stroller once in a while when she was older, maybe 3.5-4 If we were on holiday or going somewhere crowded. But she wasn't in it normally.

I don't see the advantage to 7 year old in stroller, mine would be mortified at the idea. But no harm either would assume parent has a reason.

Sleeponeday I was reading through this post and realised I had posted way back when on it. So thank you for bumping this particular zombie thread! It's reminded me how far my own DS has come since I posted on this thread, (and that MN is mostly full of sensible types who think before judging).

Ive seen one where the kid was so tall their head was handle height and their feet dragging along the ground.

I have no issue with older kids being in strollers. No one bats an eyelid when they are driven 500m in a car, and yet swap the car wheels for pram wheels and suddenly it is dreadful. My own DC stayed in the stroller until they were 4. It suited us as we walk a lot.

I realise this is a zombie thread but the judging is still the same and it gets under my skin. No one knows the reasons others make their choices.