Aibu to wonder how people do the school run with a new born?

[SuzanneSays]

Second baby due in a couple of weeks, drive to school is about ten mins, then couple of mins walk from parking area. My plan is to just unclick car seat and carry baby in that, DH says it will be too heavy and we need to buy a travel system so I can unclick car seat and wheel baby into school on buggy. Realistically can’t see myself doing that in a rush on a cold January morning! Aibu to wonder how other people manage it? ( not really much of an Aibu- sorry!)

[Purplelion]

A newborn is a lot easier to take than a 9 month old that wants to crawl everywhere!
YABU, did you not consider this earlier than 3 weeks before your baby is due? Loads of people have more than one child and manage!

[notyourmummy]

How did it work out for you OP?

[Lovelymess]

Be easier just to walk up with the buggy? Or sling l?

[PurpleCrazyHorse]

I had a stretchy sling (so could wear it in the car and then just slot DS in) and we also had a Quinny Zapp Xtra. The buggy is tiny and it's a simple click into place (we had the cabriofix car seat base so the car seat just unclicked from the car and clicked into the buggy frame).

[Yb23487643]

Def wear sling n pop baby in & out. Anything else is madness

[Yb23487643]

Baby sling, no fun putting pushchair/Pram up n all that faff for such a short walk

[Moomin15]

Maybe I am just a worrier but I wouldn't have left my newborn in the car seat for very long at all. The position they are in looks so unnatural and like they are going to suffocate. I would definitely use the sling and then put the baby back in the car seat when I had to.

[goodeyebrows]

I think you’d use a travel system so much more second time around. Your forever popping out when you have an older one too. I couldn’t have lived without mine. Also the new baby will much more likely be chilled out and used to being moved around a lot. He/she may cope very well with being moved in and out of the buggy.

[JaneBanks]

What about already be wearing the sling so all you have to do is pop baby in? I did that a few times!

[user1472151176]

The school run is hard with a newborn definitely but you'll adapt and you'll soon get into the swing of things. I used to carry my newborn in his car seat but I didn't have far to go. Even so as he got bigger it definitely got harder. I think a pushchair will be your greatest friend. I had a travel system and it was brilliant! It was so useful on many occasions and the chair would also fold flat to create a bassinet. Maybe worth looking into. Best wishes for your new arrival

[IJustLostIt]

DC2 was born 2 weeks after DC1 started school. It's quite rural and only a 3 minute drive.
Walking is too dangerous as there's no footpath along a very busy road which DC1 can't manage well because he's tiny and it's basically vertical. There's also no parking at school so we have to find somewhere safe along a one track lane without blocking off anyone's drives. So usually a several minutes walk into school after parking.

I use my travel system if it's raining, my sling if it's dry (tying it all up in the rain is awful because the ends get soaked).
The school run isn't as bad as you might think. Just set off earlier than you normally would. The only times DC1 has been late is when DC2 has had some kind of explosion which means he needs changing just before we leave

[Bobbi73]

I bought a second hand bugaboo with my first for £200. I was so glad as I had a C.section. When my second was a newborn, it was a Godsend for the school run (had another section), took seconds to put it together and he frequently slept through the whole thing from home to school and back again. Recently sold it for £120. Best £80 I ever spent! Good luck 😀

[Onlythedoglovesme]

Baby bjorn or sling. Arrive a bit early, feed the baby then put them in the sling so they are all snoozy , plus bonus is both your hands are free to welcome first born child who might well be bit more in need of cuddles and hand holding than usual.

[Passthecake30]

My friend had a Quinny zap like a pp, looked really light (unlike my mega travel system )

[SuzanneSays]

Maireadplastic as I mentioned further up in the thread (didn’t expect so many suggestions!) we live in the country side so ten min drive is a 45 minute very steep hilly walk on dangerous roads.

[ArDali1]

I think someone has already mentioned but I also highly recommend the Doona car seat.
Perfect for your situation when you need to take baby out with out the hassle of getting pushchair frame from the boot.

[Biffsboys]

I carried the car seat - it’s fine if only a few minutes walk . When he was around 6/7 months I just carried the baby

[babybythesea]

@IamPickleRick.

Sorry - only just seen your post. The answer is no, there is no bus service. The only person I know in our village who didn't drive used to walk 2 miles to the nearest bus stop to get to work but she's just passed her test...
For secondary school kids there is a bus service to get the. To the local secondary school but it is a specific school bus, not a general public transport one. Primary schools, no. Too many small village schools dotted around to make it worth while I think. Although if you live beyond a certain distance (3 miles ish) the council can provide you with a taxi. Don't know anyone who does that though.
We have 2 cars so when our car did break down we managed for a day but went out the next day and rented while ours was sorted out. We can't actually manage without 2 cars. DH drives to work, and then an hour later I take the kids to school. He leaves before breakfast club is open so he can't drop them off on his way, and anyway, I work in the opposite direction.
What we do do, if we are out of action car-wise, is ring friends. I spent 3 weeks taking a friend's kid to school when they had car issues. I have phoned people at 8 am asking if they can come and pick my kids up on their way to school as I am poorly and can't drive (migraine meant I couldn't see properly). It's the plus side of a small community, where pretty much everyone drives - someone will bail you out as next time, it might be them needing help! And because it's a small community I know the name of every child in the school, nearly all the parents, and I can tell you where 90% of them live (actual house, not just village!) so you kind of know who comes in from your area, and who you can and can't call.
If you really couldn't drive, and had no prospect of it, then I think life here would be tough and probably not manageable. My next door neighbour is 90 and still occasionally drives. She's actually a really good driver but doesn't like driving much so loads of people in the village help her out with lifts to the shops etc. But with working, and school run, no. We couldn't stay here.

[bellie710]

I bought a quinny zapp purely for the wheels, just used to clip the car seat into it. We travelled a lot and it was a god send!

[Callamia]

Sling is easiest, but I get that taking a sleeping baby out of a car seat isn’t an inviting task. (Don’t worry about keeping them warm in the sling btw, an extra blanket wrapped around is fine).

Is there anyone around who can help you out for the first few weeks while you work out what works best for you?

[hopeful31yrs]

Post c section I carried DS in his car seat. Absolutely fine.

[Maireadplastic]

'Somehow I really don't think not walking to school is a big contributor to the 'obesity epidemic'. Most fat kids are fat because of a crappy diet not because they get a lift to school.'

It's all about creating habits though.

[chocolateiamydrug]

yabu. just use a baby carrier or sling. sorted.