Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To wish I’d bought an expensive pram?

274 replies

pramenvy20 · 12/03/2021 06:40

Before I had my baby I looked at the price of prams and thought how silly it was to spend that amount, and I bought a second hand one.

I regret it now so much. I saw a woman yesterday just park, get the frame from the boot and attach her car seat to it without disturbing her baby. No fuss or faff!

Mine is fine so I’ll probably vote that I am BU because I am ... but I wish I’d bought a really lovely pram!

OP posts:
Original poster
pramenvy20 · 12/03/2021 10:15

Oh there isn’t anyone I could ask - honestly our pram is fine. I’m quite fond of it in a way. We actually had a worse one that I bought second hand from Facebook and the first time OH and I went out with her in it she cried hysterically. OH saw ours advertised in the local posh baby pram place and it was ex display and snapped it up.

But if I am fortunate enough to have another baby I will definitely buy the most gorgeous double pram out there and be proud!

OP posts:
Original poster
pramenvy20 · 12/03/2021 10:16

caspian because you are snipping at me over (to use a much loved MN phrase!) a snapshot of my life. I am not going to endlessly angst over The Morning I Nipped Into Boots And It Was A Faff - and I suggest you don’t either.

OP posts:
Seapoint2002 · 12/03/2021 10:17

We bought a second hand Bugaboo for £300. Would be £1,200 new. It was immaculate. Second hand quality is better than new lower quality IMO.

Definitelyrandom · 12/03/2021 10:17

25 years on from my first and I'm still bemused at mothers feeling the need to spend thousands on what are essentially unnecessary things. Mine were carried round in a sling till they were old enough to go in a cheap, lightweight stroller. Hands free with the sling, no worries about fitting a pram in the car for the other end. Then later on the stroller was easy to manoeuvre and fitted pretty much flat in the car boot. I used an old rucksack for a changing bag. Had a cheap and cheerful changing mat - plonked on a Georgian side table that we'd picked up fairly cheaply previously.

But then I was 35 when DS1 was born so was probably less bothered about what other people thought.

DisgruntledPelican · 12/03/2021 10:18

If it helps OP I think I managed to lift the car seat out of the car without disturbing DS about 3 times in total; he woke up anyway when the change of air hit him outside 😂

Original poster
pramenvy20 · 12/03/2021 10:20

Ah definitely, you are, well, definitely superior to me. But then I am 40 and totally bothered not by what people think but by what I think. I like what I like. Isn’t old age marvellous!

disgruntled they never bloody stay asleep do they!

OP posts:
WombatChocolate · 12/03/2021 10:21

My DH says I became irrational and obsessed about all kinds of baby purchases. He says I researched widely and tracked prices and would buy things and then keep returning them because I wanted something different and always thought there was something better out there.

I do remember doing this with the toddler bed. Did we need a toddler bed when we already had a cot bed? I didn’t like the headboard, so wanted a different one (mad) and then there were so many different mattresses you could have and I became obese seed with that. And then I was into play pens...those hexagonal ones, although we didn’t actually have a child who needed a playpen at all. And then it was shoes...startrite ....I didn’t want Clarks shoes, but I became obsessed with boots and shoes and websites that sold discounted shoes. And if I bought a pair, I’d then see another cuter pair elsewhere and really really wish I’d got those instead. Why did it matter..I have no idea? And a lot of it was about finding bargains on the things I wanted...so tracking things down. Oh yes, the trip-trap wooden high chair and all the lovely seats cushions you could get for it. And some awful baby Mozart DVDs.

LolaSmiles · 12/03/2021 10:21

Theres often an underlying sneering at spending money on things that will predominantly make woman's lives better.
I think it depends.

When I was pram shopping I saw 2 versions of the same pram. One was limited edition and the limited edition pram was £500 more expensive. Half a grand to have a different colour scheme! DH and I definitely said to each other that someone spending half a grand for a limited edition colours has more money than sense.

I've also been involved in conversations about prams in mum groups where prams are seen as a sort of status symbol. I find it silly to hear how many people have got the must have prams, but then sit in baby groups complaining that it doesn't fit properly in their boot, the cream fabric is hard to clean, the stylish pram with tiny wheels doesn't handle the park very well etc. It's not sneering but I do think there's a common sense bypass to buy a higher end status symbol pram but doesn't meet your life.

FWIW, we bought a reasonably nice travel system that matched our lifestyle so I'm not against buying expensive prams.

Original poster
pramenvy20 · 12/03/2021 10:22

Well, strangely enough DH had a real thing about wanting special wallpaper in her bedroom (which she won’t be sleeping in until she’s 6 months anyway - probably 6 years the way we are going.)

I really don’t like it! But I think it was his man nesting equivalent.

OP posts:
LittleMimi · 12/03/2021 10:25

Half a grand to have a different colour scheme!

I noticed that too when buying and it’s crazy - especially since some I saw were only a few shades difference. I have a dusty navy but for a slightly lighter dusty navy I’d have to pay hundreds lol.

WombatChocolate · 12/03/2021 10:26

I agree that a secondhand quality product, is usually better than a cheap new one.....that applies to expensive items like cars, prams, often electrical products too.

Buy a secondhand micro scooter rather than the cheaper copy version new. Buy the Maclaren stroller secondhand rather than the cheapie Cosatto version new. Buy some quality wooden toys second hand rather than loads of plastic new.....but that’s all a preference thing and I know LOADS of people hate secondhand. I also love the quality children’s furniture brands (name escapes me) that make expensive beds and desks.....and you’d get those second hand far far cheaper than very inferior new versions.

Original poster
pramenvy20 · 12/03/2021 10:28

Yeah ... paying £500 for a different colour is insanity.

I don’t think I would but erm ... Blush

OP posts:
ivfbeenbusy · 12/03/2021 10:34

@pramenvy20

This is the problem when you have a thread in active. People just jump in.

I’m good Wink I was having a fairly lighthearted thread and chat, not really looking for pram advice - but thanks. Please don’t infer I’m an idiot ivf.

No need to be snippy

You should read your opening post again - which clearly suggests you wanted a pram which you could easily clip a car seat too etc - therefore If yours doesn't it's nothing to do with it being new or second hand or whatever it's purely down to the choice of pram you made 🤷‍♀️

Original poster
pramenvy20 · 12/03/2021 10:35

You’re the snippy one ivf and it’s all over MN not just here, tbh.

You’re free to offer advice and I’m free to ignore it - all is well.

OP posts:
IthinkIsawahairbrushbackthere · 12/03/2021 10:37

I thought I was being so clever by buying the cheapest lie flat pushchair on the market when my oldest was born. It lasted 9 months. When my second came along my mum's friend asked if she could buy a pram for the baby. She wanted me to spend the full amount she was giving me so I bought a lovely "proper" pram and I used it for that baby and the subsequent ones until after their first birthday plus it was used by two friends for their babies. It is now in the loft awaiting grandchildren because it is in perfect condition nearly 30 years later.

Original poster
pramenvy20 · 12/03/2021 10:38

What a lovely friend of your mums!

OP posts:
LunaLula83 · 12/03/2021 10:38

Buy secondhand. Ours was £400 secondhand and so worth it. Just dont get the bugaboo

Original poster
pramenvy20 · 12/03/2021 10:40

I can so tell this thread is in active Grin

OP posts:
EvilOnion · 12/03/2021 10:41

@pramenvy20 cut yourself some slack!

Ithink people are forgetting that things are different for parents right now - what seemed like a minor issue 2/5/10 years ago is magnified because your scrabbling for a tiny bit of control amongst the chaos.

Your pregnancy, what you bought, how you bought them and your babies first month's/year have all basically been micro-managed by the response to a pandemic.

Teaplease29 · 12/03/2021 10:41

I felt like this.. my second hand one was bulky and difficult and it was my first baby and we walked for hours with it everyday. I really resented the thing in the end.
Spoke to OH about it and we ended up getting a lovely brand new one .. the one I really wanted when baby was about 5 months. Baby is 11 months now and it was the best decision I made.. I love the pram! Such a pleasure to walk with.
Plus have the unused carry cot still packaged and perfect for baby no2 (fingers crossed)
I will say that having the 2and hand pram first made me realise which features were important to us when we did splash out.

IthinkIsawahairbrushbackthere · 12/03/2021 10:43

@pramenvy20

What a lovely friend of your mums!
She is like an extra aunt. For the first time in her life she had found herself with money and she treated me exactly as she treated her own daughter - we were pregnant together. Thirty years on we are all still close.
Soubriquet · 12/03/2021 10:44

I went through no end of prams with my first born Grin

I think it’s normal to get pram envy and try and get something better, but it turns out worse so you try and find something else. Ad infintum

With second born, I started off with a double, switched it for a single I didn’t like, and then switched it for the single version of the double and loved it. I didn’t change it again until ds was too old for any buggy

Misspacorabanne · 12/03/2021 10:44

I always liked the look of the more expensive prams! But I went for a basic travel system in the end used for both DC, I was tempted to get a nicer pram for dc2 but money was tight so we didn't bother, and looking back now I'm glad we didn't, they are in them for such a short time. If you have the money though and really want one for your next DC then why not! Smile

MrsTiffin · 12/03/2021 10:45

@pramenvy20

Oh there isn’t anyone I could ask - honestly our pram is fine. I’m quite fond of it in a way. We actually had a worse one that I bought second hand from Facebook and the first time OH and I went out with her in it she cried hysterically. OH saw ours advertised in the local posh baby pram place and it was ex display and snapped it up.

But if I am fortunate enough to have another baby I will definitely buy the most gorgeous double pram out there and be proud!

I'd definitely consider shopping around for a double. We ended up with two under two and the double we bought isn't great, it does make a big difference though.

We have a silver Cross which you can turn into a double, but it felt like you were pushing a bus along so we just use it for the baby now!

bluebluezoo · 12/03/2021 10:54

I've also been involved in conversations about prams in mum groups where prams are seen as a sort of status symbol. I find it silly to hear how many people have got the must have prams, but then sit in baby groups complaining that it doesn't fit properly in their boot, the cream fabric is hard to clean, the stylish pram with tiny wheels doesn't handle the park very well etc

This. I saw some women on their third pram in six months because the silver cross was huge and after six weeks the baby didn’t want to lie down, then the travel system didn’t fit in the boot, the huge pneumatic tyres kept getting punctured in the park, so they move on to a small umbrella fold...

Which does for 6m until baby no. 2 arrives and then they get a huge double buggy. Which won’t fit through shop doorways, the eldest is walking and won’t sit in it, so they swap for a travel system and buggy board....

That’s not including the ones they get because they prefer the colourway.

And don’t get me started on the people who buy seriously expensive navy or pink prams for the first, then have to get a completely new one because the second is the opposite sex and you can’t possibly put a girl in a blue pram or vice versa...

Swipe left for the next trending thread