Page 2 | At what age should they not use a buggy at all?

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

LadyOfTheFlowers · 22/08/2007 22:54

i was not directing my comment at anyone in particlar btw cylon, if that is what you thought.

sunflowervalley · 22/08/2007 22:59

My daughter is just 4 ,and will be getting the buggy out of the garage tomorrow.

We have school uniform shopping to do for her and DS who is 6 and I don't drive so will be walking.

No way am I letting both of them lose in Woolworths tomorrow and the buggy is handy to put the shopping in rather than carrying it and negotiating 2 children around town and across a busy road.

Gobbledigook · 22/08/2007 23:05

Well, I know a couple of people that still use a buggy for a pre-school child (almost 5) and a child in reception because tehy are too tired to walk the full distance home.

I personally think this is a bit old.

Ds3 is nearly 3 - he has been capable of, and willing to, walk for aaages but I do use the buggy for him on the school run because I've got to manage ds1 (6) and ds2 (4) and often have somebody else's child as well. Ds3 is a bit of a runaway so if he's strapped in the buggy it's one child I don't have to worry about.

He starts the school nursery in Sept though and I won't be using the buggy to collect him then.

Rachmumoftwo · 22/08/2007 23:07

I used buggies for our holiday last year when my DDs were 3 and 4 1/2. It meant we could eat out, and they could crash out in the buggies so we didn't have to rush back to the apartment.
I don't have one now and really miss having somewhere to put my shopping!

Niecie · 22/08/2007 23:17

DS2 has only just given up his buggy aged 3.10yrs. It was useful for long trips and busy places but it was getting too difficult to push as he got bigger. Mind you I have to carry my own bags now which is a real shock to the system!

Apart from being a bit lazy I think DS2 like the security of a buggy and it made him feel safe in busy or strange places so he was reluctant to give up.

I know lots of people who walk their older children a quite a distance to school and still use a buggy for their younger children who are 3 or even 4 yrs so 2.8 is not too old for a buggy by any stretch of the imagination. Maybe try and avoid using a double for shorter journies to build up his stamina a bit.

hana · 22/08/2007 23:19

I use a double for my 2.9 year old and 11 month old. I have a long walk to school for an older child and it's too long for the 2 year old to do both ways, and she's not ready for a buggy board (have used a few times, she wouldn't stay one)

I think if you need it even for a few months, it's worth it

cylon · 23/08/2007 17:00

sleepless, i hae a car now, but didnt for many years.
either we took the bus, which meant a lot more extra walking than just walking int he first place, and i always thought buses were too expensive. or we walked. with sandwiches and water.
that's right. we walked everywhere. we are blessed by our lack of mobility issues, and so just used our feet. sometimes it meant that it took the entire day to get something done. but thats just what we had to do.
and fwiw, today, despite having a car, and despite the rain, we walked/cycled into town, which is 1.5 miles away. walked around there, and then walked/cycled back. dd, who is 4.6 has gotten very tired. but that's just the way life is.

cylon · 23/08/2007 17:02

and when she was 2.10 i remember many times walking to town with the buggy, whilst she walked next to me. her choice, not mine. i often used to wonder what the point of taking the buggy with me was, when she was capable of walking all the way, but at the time i didnt want to take the risk of her deciding she was tired, and then having to carry her.
o, and dd is a lazy stroppy personality.

Reallytired · 23/08/2007 17:10

What about a buggy board?

I think it has to be remembered that children vary a lot in the age that they learn to walk. Some kids walk at 9 months old and other kids are nearly 2 years old by the time they take their first steps.

We got rid of the buggy completely by the time my son was four years and 2 months. He did have orthopedic problems that meant he needed the buggy longer than average.

I have to admit does not rile me seeing able bodied 5 year olds in buggies because their parents are too lazy to control them.

mummytoamonkey · 23/08/2007 19:49

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mummytoamonkey · 23/08/2007 19:51

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alexw · 23/08/2007 19:58

Sold it when dd was 2.2 she walks everywhere.

alexw · 23/08/2007 20:00

By 2.5 is late enough imo

Original poster

kitsandbits · 23/08/2007 20:03

Ive bought a double one.

Because

a- we dont drive - so often have to walk miles to get shopping ect

b - its going to be winter soon and Id rather have them both snuggled up in a buggy under a raincover than out in the cold.

c- I can use it when i go shopping and put the stuff in the spare seat if DS does want to walk

OP posts:

eandh · 23/08/2007 20:05

my dd1 gave her buggy up at 23months just refused to go in it, she was 2.4 when dd2 was born friend gave us a double think she went in it twice (novelty factor!) bought buggy biard - she doesnt like it and is very good at walking (although can be a nightmare in shops but I threaten to get wrist strap out and she behaves)

indiasmum · 23/08/2007 20:06

my friend takes her buggy when they go to festivals and her ds crashes out in it in the eve- he is almost 6!!!! i hasten to add they dont use it at any other time, its just for sleeping before bed!

emj23 · 23/08/2007 20:12

I think ours got retired from use when DS was 3. He wanted to walk everywhere by then and for quite a while had only been using it if we were walking a very long way.

LIZS · 23/08/2007 20:18

"Ive bought a double one". There's no need to justify it, surely ?

BigBearistheBigBear · 23/08/2007 20:21

My DD still uses hers loads and she's 3.1. Can't imagine how we're gonna manage to get her out of it. I cracked and bought a double (she was 2.5 when new baby arrived). It's a Phil and Teds and you can use them till they're 5 if you need to!

3andnomore · 23/08/2007 20:27

depends on the child itself and the distances you are walking, imo.....I truely beleive that some of those...don't use a Buggy when child is that age people, actually possibly use a car for trips that I would happily walk, partly with children walking (ys 3 and ms 4 1/2) and partly standing on the back or sitting....
Anecdotally, my es was really lazy and still using a Buggy age 3, but we were living in a hot country and walking any , to us, closer distances, and I haad people moan at me then, but then said to them, but look, you actually drive from there to there if you have Kids, which they did, and that soon shut them up...
also, we got rid of his Buggy when he was 3 1/2, as we moved from Cyprus to UK, well, it was no problem then, however, a lt of trips I otherwise may would have walked I did drive...so really, he didn't walk much more for a fair while...age 11 he is a fine walker, lol....

LexB · 23/08/2007 20:31

Hey kitsandbits you can always get the double and then sell it on eBay?! You can prob get a double 2nd hand in good condition as so many people buy one and then only use it for a bit. I got a 2nd hand double for dd as a small baby and ds when he was 2.7.
We only used it a few months but it was worth it as it was winter and he just wasn't ready to walk out in the cold or go on the buggy board full time. Warning though, they are hard to pack if you do plan to sell via eBay!

My ds at 3.2 still loves to usurp dd from her buggy whenever he can, but that's cos he is jealous! The rest of the time he now goes on the buggy board and loves it (or walks).

blueshoes · 23/08/2007 21:11

Height also has a bearing. My dd is almost 4 but the size of a 2-3 year old. Takes her forever to walk anywhere. I don't put an age limit on getting her out of the buggy.

handlemecarefully · 23/08/2007 21:22

Dd quit her buggy just before she turned 3. With ds his buggy was a bit knackered when he was around 2.6, so I chucked it and didn't bother to replace it since working on my previous experience with dd I felt it would soon be redundant.

He is now 3.4 and boy do I wish I had replaced that buggy. On longer walks (i.e. anything over about half a mile!) he whinges constantly "Carry me mummy, carry me". I never give in but have to carry out protracted psychological warfare involving leaving him on the pavement wailing whilst I walk on ahead so he thinks he will be left behind unless he gets on with it.

It is unutterably tedious. It would be nice just to give in (yes give in , bundle him into a buggy and be done with it) since all children outgrow it sooner or later. Peer pressure / social embarrassment means they are not likely to get to 5 or 6 and still be buggy dependent (unless there are other factors of course)

blueshoes · 23/08/2007 21:37

hmc, for precisely that reason, dd 3.11 is still in the buggy. She would quite happily be carried or sit on dh's shoulders all the way. Not a crime, but a buggy is MUCH more convenient.