AIBU to think a 2.5 year old doesn't need a pram?

[Sissynova]

Will have two months less than a 2.5 year age gap, nursery is a mile walk 5 days a week and we do all the usual days out on the weekend.
Would you just use the pram for the baby when you didn't want to carry them all day?
Is 2.5 too young to sit properly on a buggy board or walk 2 miles a day??Would a 2.5 year old need a pram to nap if you are out of the house all day?

Mine 100% needed a pram at that age as they were shattered after nursery. I got a double pram and it was the best thing I did.
They're 4 and 5 now and I still get it out of the basement if we're having a massive day out as by the end, they're exhausted and want to sit.

I had this age gap and didnt have a double or second pram. Bigger one rarely needed it, only really odd occasions in first 6m, when they did i put baby in a carrier. It needs planning to have right seat when you need it so we only did it on very rare occasions.

a) get one where you can put car seat on chassis for baby if needed b) get buggy board c) get toddler riding a scooter & balance bike asap.

Totally depends on the kid, my daughter turned 2 during the first lockdown and that was pretty much the end of the buggy for her! But she was a good walker, held hands, very sensible, not a runner, a general angel!

My son is almost 2 and honestly wouldn't trust him to walk anywhere without the reins on 🤣🤣🤣

get toddler riding a scooter & balance bike asap

At 2.5 this just isn't safe if there's any traffic.

Same age gap. You need a bassinet for the first six months, so you can't just put the toddler in there. I got a double secondhand and I'm so pleased I did.

We have a three year age gap and before my DS2 was born DS1 had been walking everywhere for months. Unfortunately as soon as he saw his little brother in the pushchair he stopped wanting to walk and wanted to be in a pushchair too. We’re getting around it currently by using a buggy board for when DS2 is in the pram, and then the carrier for DS2 when DS1 wants to go on his stroller. However we’re going on holiday soon and I’m now looking for a double buggy for it just to make life easier.

With the small gap I'd definitely get a double. Second hand if possible
There will be times when you need to " contain" them both
plus handy for trips out/ holidays etc

Both my children were mostly walking at this age. However, it's still useful to have a buggy for when they're tired (likely after a day at nursery) or under the weather, or if you just need to get somewhere quickly. However I think a single buggy with both a buggy board and a sling (for the baby) should be fine.

I think your best bet is to get a double buggy second hand.

We bought a Micralite Two fold when they were on sale earlier this year. It’s a single pushchair that you can put a bassinet on and it has a built in buggy board, to use the buggy board the base of the pushchair extends and it also comes with an extra seat that can clip onto the buggy board.

Our second is due in November when DS will be 2 and 5 months. I felt like that pushchair covered all bases 😂

I got a second hand pram very similar to this https://www.kidskargo.com/product/glider-double-black/?gclid=CjwKCAjwqZSlBhBwEiwAfoZUIMp3WxhLy6FFJkC8YeirZiyXPQb9l2TUNfiame6-Tu_oLSbhf6KuCxoCTLkQAvD_BwE

When I had my DS. DD was almost 3 by the time he was born and struggled with long walks. The bottom seat is fantastic, it spreads out into the basket so the toddler has lots of leg room and either seat could be taken off to turn it into a single. The basket was huge too. I absolutely loved my pram it was brilliant.

My DC are winter babies and DD used to be so snug wrapped in blankets tucked underneath. We loved it 😅

My 3.5 year old stil gets in the pram on the way home from nursery as it’s a twenty minute walk and I cannot guarantee he will do it. Often he’s tired, slow and dawdles so if we have somewhere we need to be, he hops in.
he can walk for ages when it suits him and he wants to go where we are going but it doesn’t always pan out that way 😂

Can you look to get a replacement part so that you have the option to switch between the bassinet and 6month plus seat?

Advice after a c section ia to get up and moving/walking ASAP. The longer you sit still the longer your recovery will take.

I waa up and doing school runs 10 fays after my c section, you just have to take it slow.

I would do buggy board and a scooter that can fold down to go under the pushchair

I had straightforward recoveries but would have taken at least 8 weeks to be able to push a toddler in a buggy while carrying the baby in a sling - and that's assuming the toddler played ball and I didn't need to lift them or wrestle them into the buggy.

I had straightforward recoveries but would have taken at least 8 weeks to be able to push a toddler in a buggy while carrying the baby in a sling - and that's assuming the toddler played ball and I didn't need to lift them or wrestle them into the buggy.

This has just reminded me that my DP struggled with pushing the pram while walking the dog for weeks after her C-section (she could do it, but didn't quite realise till she'd recovered why it had been so difficult). Possibly worse with a toddler on reins instead of a small dog on a lead!

Out n about double nipper is brilliant. My gap is much smaller (20m) but we're still using it now and 2 and 3.5ish as the older one isn't a very good walker and it's also handy for loading up with all the crap they need. I do think it has probably led older child to being a bit lazy but sometimes it's just easier to push them both than walk at toddler pace. Aiming to not need it by the end of the summer when the eldest will be approaching 4. She was fine on a buggyboard from 2 for short trips and would also balance on the hood of the single pram from a bit older. Not necessarily recommended but did the job! I couldn't have managed a sling and a pram. Too hard to chase a toddler with a baby strapped to you.

Another vote for a buggy board! We're still using it for our 5 year old if we have big days out and he starts to flag 😅 (but we are pushing it and will stop soon). It was a godsend when his sister was younger.

I bought a second hand double buggy and then sold it for what I paid for it. On the weekends my DH had a buggy and DC each when we went out.

I found baby in sling, toddler in buggy was far more efficient and got me there on time and less stressed.
Toddlers like to walk two steps in the right direction. One in the wrong. Sit down. Take shoe off. Have a tantrum because you put their shoe back on and they wanted to. Decide they're going to run in the right direction for 20 paces, then declare they're too tired to walk another pace....

Also, my dd2, who hated the buggy from birth and never went in under choice announced when I was 8 months pregnant " that baby is not using my buggy".
Now that was a oh heck, is this going to be a problem moment. It wasn't because actually when #3 came out dd2 was no keener on using it than she had been for the previous 2 years, but if you had a child who liked the buggy, then it could produce resentment.

Both mine could ride a balance bike by 2.5. I'd get one now so they can start to learn.

It’ll probably depend on the child. I have a 2 year (almost to the day) age gap and never had a double. We had a buggy board on the pram and the baby went in the stroller at around 5 months ish. I don’t remember using the buggy board more than a handful of times, but you would probably use it more as I didn’t have a daily walk to do. I did use a sling a lot - and I used the sling for the older one as well as the younger. He didn’t walk until he was 18 months though, so I was used to slinging him, and he is built like a bird so weighed very little (although to be fair, he takes after me - I’m hardly super strong myself!)

I also second the balance bike idea. They’re great for getting two year olds to get somewhere at a reasonable pace under their own steam!

We’ve used a standing buggy board since 2. Also cycled on a balance bike since 2.5. Longer walk than yours.

They’re great for getting two year olds to get somewhere at a reasonable pace under their own steam!

If there is any traffic this just isn’t safe.

My 3 year old wizzes around on his balance bike and can walk a lot if he wants to.

No way would I take his balance bike into the busy town, with a baby in pram. I wouldn’t be able to 100% control him safety at roads or with traffic.

We still use pram with 3.2 year old. Not often, not daily, but it handy to have.
I took him for a long woodland walk yesterday afternoon after a morning at nursery, he walked a bit, had a rest a bit, then walked again. If I hadn’t had pram he would have wanted carrying on and off.
If it’s pouring with rain, or super hot/ cold, or they aren’t feeling 100% sometimes it’s just handy.

I would also get a double. It will get you through the first year, through newborn phase, winter weather and potential long days out or ad hoc naps. Toddler can always walk as well and just use seat as required.