Hermione another scan buddy! Yay for 3rd September! It won't seem so far away if we're all doing it together!
Rainbow, thank you for your moving account of your horrible experience. I appreciate your honesty - it is very eye opening for me. I have to admit to being one of those naive mothers first time round, but since my mmc and hearing about a surprising number of still births since then (including Gary and Dawn Barlow's at the weekend), it has really made me appreciate and treasure the miracle of life. I hope things get easier for you with time.
Tiddley I am more than happy to indulge you in the finer details of the Donkey. Although expensive, it has definitely been my best baby purchase by far. Right. Where to start.
Size: as a single, no bigger than anything else out there - the handles are on the outside of the wheels, which makes it feel wider, but it is actually slimmer than my old Phil and teds. The basket on the side is brilliant for putting your changing bag, shopping etc in and loads of people always comment on it! It expands into the double really easily and is apparently the slimmest double on the market. I've used it as a double a couple of times and haven't had any problems getting through shop doors and paths etc, although I'm not absolutely certain it will fit through our new front door, because of the design on the stupid doorway - I haven't brought myself to try it yet!
Folding: unlike the Bee (as I understand), the seat units come off for folding, although they can stay on if you have a nice big place to store them, but I'd suggest not bothering to fold if you have such a big space! We keep ours in the garage all up and ready to go, which works really well for us.
In the Car: this can be the tricky bit. We used to have an Astra and could comfortably get the pram in the boot, but had to take the back (bigger) wheels off (easy peasy) to fit it in, but we always said our boot was rubbish, even before we were trying to fit baby stuff in. When we found out we were expecting earlier in the year, we realised that our trouble would be fitting the carrycot in for the baby and any extra luggage, because we always used the rest of the back seat for long journeys. Queue purchase of bigger family car. We now have a Mondeo (which we love btw) and have plenty of room for everything, even on long journeys with another baby in the car!
Versatility: the reason we switched from a Phil and teds (also a single/double, but a tandem) was because after DS outgrew the little carrycot we bought for it, he had to always be facing outwards, which I absolutely hated. I also felt sorry for a future baby who would never have the luxury of a carrycot and would have to be hidden underneath his/her big brother. The donkey allows them to face in or out, which was a winner for me. Facing you, they can sit upright (very upright, which DS loves!), slightly reclined or fully reclined. Facing outwards, they can sit upright or slightly reclined. As a double, the carrycot and seat unit can be on either side, depending on your mood and when you LO progresses to the seat unit, they can face you whilst your DS faces out, which I think is dead cute! You can also get the maxi cosi car seat adapter if that's the baby seat you have, which fits on really nicely. We have the buggy board too, which in my mind means that it will last us three children...! The handle extends easily and away from the pram, rather than just up or down, which means that it does actually create extra leg room for a tall person to walk, rather than just changing the height of the handle bar (DH and I are both tall, but DM and DMiL are both short!)
Wheels: the wheels are all air filled and it comes with its own on board pump, which is a great little extra! Because they are air filled, they are great on all types of terrain, and the front wheels can swivel, or be locked into position, which is supposed to be best for rough terrain. You're also supposed to be able to alter the position of the wheels for sand and snow, but I haven't been brave enough bothered to try that to date. it's a lovely drive and surprisingly nimble and light, even when loaded up.
Cost(!): brand new, yes, it is the same price as a second hand car, but when I'm not working, it is our main form of transport and is essentially DS's car! We got ours second hand from eBay, which does have its drawbacks; the lady I bought it from wasn't completely honest about its condition and there were a few aesthetic issues, such as scuffed and rusted hubcaps, but this is fine and I have dealt with it. Of course, when buying second hand, you also relinquish the 2 year guarantee, but ours is nearly 18 months old now and we've had no problems at all. I understand bugaboo are pretty good at issuing replacement parts when need too. I did manage to get a few sneaky extras too by buying second hand, such as fleecy bumper bar covers, a little brolly, seat liner, buggy board and car seat adapter.
DH's opinion: it took a little while to convince him it was the right thing for us, and much searching to check that there is nothing else like it (this time last year, at least, there wasn't! I'm pretty sure the whole concept is patented, so you'll be unlikely to ever see anything else like it!) Since getting it though, he thinks it is absolutely the bee's knees and recommends it to anyone and everyone!
Our only gripe (I'm being absolutely honest here!) with it was that there were no safety reflective strips or anything anywhere, but we remedied that by buying some reflective tape and 'blinging' it up! It looks great now! (If you were to do the same, please don't put it on the extendable handle - it makes it too thick to go back down and I now have a piece of reflective tape flapping around inside the workings of my pram!)
I hope I've covered everything, but feel free to ask if you have anymore questions (or DH needs further convincing!) I don't think we live anywhere near each other, otherwise I'd happily meet up and show it to you. I'm in Surrey, or Kent. John Lewis have them and bigger mothercares now too and they are always happy to give a full demo.
Sorry to everyone else for hogging the thread - I've probably taken up an entire page!