Do i really need to get a 2 seater buggy?

[SweetTea]

Just wondering if anyone can give me some advice?

I have one toddler (27 months) and am due with no.2 in a months time. Do i really need to buy something like a Phil & Ted's or could i make do with the usual buggy and attach a board for toddler to use?

I like to walk if possible, toddler is wanting to walk more and more, all be it slowly! A buggy board could help but they would not be resting their legs i guess when they've had enough of walking! I'm confused!

What did you others do?

You will probably get responses that people's 2 year old walk 20 miles a day no problem. I had a similar age gap and have found the Phil & Ted invaluable espcially at the baby stage. If you want to get somewhere in a hurry, go for a long walk, one of them is sick, its raining (buggyboards not much fun).

It depends if you walk alot and have any time constraints getting to a preschool/work etc..

I don't get on with slings (big babies very small mother) but a buggy and a sling is what people will also recommend.

Children will often regress when a sibling turns up and they will want to go in the buggy not the baby.

Resale value of a Phil & Ted is very high.

Oh tricky age gap, I had 18.5 months between mine and DEFINITELY needed a double (have a P&T Sport), but maybe with 28 month gap a buggy board is all that is needed.

You need to think about when you would use a buggy and character of your toddler (is it useful to be able to restrain them sometimes?). Will you be mainly doing short trips or all day outings when toddler might need a nap in the buggy?

Have you thought about having a sling too - then you can juggle the baby between buggy and sling depending on mood of toddler. I normally pop a sling under the buggy (double or single) when out and about to settle screamy/fussy baby if necessary, also you could have reins underneath for unruly/stubborn toddler, some people dislike them but I have found them very useful at times.

Like all questions about buggies the answer always seems to be that you need more than 1 (have 3 and that still isn't quite enough), maybe watch out for a cheap second hand double...

Sorry for the waffle, HTH

lol fiddledee - you predicted my answers

Mmmm, it's a tricky one. I do have a front carrier which will deffo be handy.

I hear good things about Phil & Ted's. What is the best model to get if i was going down the second hand route? Don't see the point in buying new as i don't think i can justify the cost for how long i will use it for!

I loved my P&T. I used it for 2yrs then sold it for just £100 less than I paid for it (think it all came to £400 new and was well worth it.

I found DC1 regressed and started wanting to go in even though he was walking lots before DC2 came along. Also great for long walks and just for bunging your shopping in.

With P&T, you can just take the second seat off within 10seconds if you don't want it but I never found it any heavier or more awkward with it on.

Some people not keen on the newborn position but mine loved it as it rocks gently and they sleep very well in it.

You will use it longer than you think, I've used mine for 18 months and won't really think about getting rid of it for another year. Second seat great for picnics and shopping and the buggy is a dream to push for long walks.

Theres 21mths betwen my girls now 2 and 3mths.

I didnt really want the expense of a new buggy so tried giving the buggyboard a go.

I made a point of walking more with DD instead of the buggy and would only use it for long trips into town. She was getting to the stage of asking to get out all the time anyway.
She was an early walker anyway so pretty confident.
She loves the buggy board and likes the freedom of choosing to walk or ride.
There are days when shes stroppy and tired that I think I wish i had a double but know shed still be stroppy and tired but screaming about being in the buggy so you cant win really!
Sometimes for park trips etc DD1 will get pushed on her smart trike and DD2 goes in the sling but shes not been in the buggy at all since DD2 was born.

I agree with the others in it depends how much you walk, how far, how strong a walker they are etc

my two have a 16mnth age gap, i tried a few different doubles and finally settled on a p&t we have the vibe, no reason except it was a straight swap with my icandy, i would be happy with any p&t my mum has a sport at hers and its just as good and i have friends who love their dash, so any model id say.

My two are now 36mnths and 20mnths, and i still take my p&t with the 2nd seat on everywhere, its the best piece of 'kit' i own, ds is a brilliant walker but sometimes hes tired, or its hot/raining or hes grumpy and i need him strapped in as a bad mood translates into bad behaviour and running off. we tried a buggy board on our stroller for a holiday and ds hated it, when he needed to rest the buggy board didnt allow that he needed to sit down, i see so many people with kids sat balanced on them, and plus when it rained he got soaked, and i couldnt just walk and get somewhere in a hurry as he was secure iyswim, maybe its just my ds but he forgets to hold on.

id most deffinatly recomend a p&t that way if the eldest does walk everywhere you just pop the seat off (or if your me use it as an extra big shopping basket or a portable naughty step ) and its a lovely single, they have lovely big seats. and are a dream to push in single or double.

i cant believe im gushing about p&ts when i swore id never buy one lol but its been fantastic and i wont sell it until my youngest is past pushchair age, its just too good.

DD1 is 28 months and DD2 is 8 weeks, and we've got the P&T sport, for me it is definitely worth it! I walk pretty much everywhere and even though DD1 likes to walk a lot of the time, i like having the option to strap her down when i need to eg, walking through busy streets, in shops etc. The other day she ran off in M&S and i had to abandon poor DD2 in the pushchair to run after her!

Also, she does get tired so sometimes she might walk to the park but go in the pushchair on the way back. I also don't have time to walk everywhere at toddler pace!

i looked at 2nd hand ones but the resale value is pretty high so i thought for the sake of 100 quid or so i'd rather have a new one. It's great as a single too so i expect we'll be using it for at least another 2 years... longer if i can convince DH to have a third

Having said that, if your DC isn't a bolter and you don't walk that much you might manage without one... I have a friend with 3 DC under 4 who's never had a double buggy.

I decided against a buggyboard as my 2yr old still naps in the buggy sometimes and wouldn't be well behaved enough to stand nicely and safely. So I got a buggypod instead. Google it and you'll find loads of reviews on it, not all good. But I adore it and would hate to be without it.

I think you will find one useful so I'd buy one 2nd hand and then sell it on.

I had a 14 month gap and then a 24 month gap, so my just 3 year old had to walk everywhere. My youngest gave up a pushchair altogether at 2 much to my horror!

You've got winter coming up and presumably getting to and from pre-school etc far easier to buy one at leisure than rush out and buy one in desperate mode.

dd was almost 3 when ds was born - she didn't really use the buggy at all, but when necessary I stuck ds in a wrap sling and dd in the buggy. I think buggy board plus sling is a good option.

There was a 22months gap between my first two and I just had a sling for DS2 while DD1 was still using the pushchair. She was walking everywhere by the time she 2 1/2 so I never needed a two seater buggy (when she was really tired I would just carry her on my shoulders for a bit).

I think I must have done the same between Ds2 and 3 and then with DD4 because I have never owned a doubble buggy.

Mine are 24 months apart and I got a double.

2 year olds like to tantrum!

I had a similar age gap, used a sling for DC2 and buggy for DC1 when he needed it for about 3 months, but I did get hold of a 2nd hand double for a while (I don't have a car and walk a lot).

People who I know round here who have the P&T often use the second seat for shopping/picnic stuff/coats and make the older child walk!

greentriangle,

thats it, in a nutshell

Ds will be 28 mnths when no.2 arrives, so same age gap. We've gone for a buggy board option as I loved my bugaboo I used last time and really didnt want to part with it-also didnt see a double I liked.

Ds is a very good walker though, and I'm a SAHM so there's no urgency to get anywhere really. I also have a car, so figured if things got too tough I'd just drive more instead.

i actually have got both the p&t (second hand) and my old maclaren with a buggy board. my two are 17 months apart.

short trip, i use the maclaren +buggy board, much easier and your baby will not like the p&T between 3-4 months until he/she is sitting up

long day trip or if i need to go somewhere quickly - i take the p&T but it is bulky/heavy/the baby doesnt see much (even in toddler seat)

22 months between mine, they are 3.9 and almost 2 and we still use our P&T.

The thought of chivving up a dawdling toddler in the rain / cold does not appeal to me so we are sticking with the double until DS starts school in a years time, he just hops in and out of the back seat as we go.

definitely get a double
There will be days when you are out all afternoon and your 2 yr old will need a sleep in the buggy
There WILL be tantrums!
There will also be days when she gets the devil in her and runs in all directions but the one you want to go in with an enormous grin on her face
There is 28 months between my 2 (now 4yr and 2yr) and I used a double (P&T is fab) for at LEAST a year)

Double prams/buggies can be pretty handy. I had one for DC's (12months 2weeks between them) but on most occasions, I used a single pram for DS and an X-backed sling for DD. This was the combination I used when going most places. Worst thing was though, going back home was up a long, steep hill.

24 months between my two and definitely need a double - love my P&T. I did try for the first two months just using my single buggy with DS1 walking or using a buggyboard. He never got on with the buggy board and walking at a toddler's pace when baby is screaming and you need to get home is no fun. After two months I gave in, got the double and should have done so from day one for all the various reasons listed in this thread.

More than a year on and we're still using the P&T daily, I do make a point of putting DS2 in the front occasionally over protests from his brother to make the point that there aren't 'allocated' seats. More recently DS1 is loving his scooter but you never know when he may tire and demand a ride back the rest of the way.

My first 2 are 24 months apart and then there's 22 months to the 3rd one.

I never had a double buggy - buggy, and sling/backpack was totally fine. I did get a buggy board but we never really used it and it made the buggy (cheap mothercare umbrella fold one) hard to fold to get on the bus etc (I don't drive).

I walked loads with them like this and it was fine. This was all of course in the years before buggies were sucha big deal and before Phil and Ted things were invented, so I didn't have so much of an option. I did spend twice as much on the backpack as I did on the buggy, but it got used pretty much every day from when dd1 was 4 months old until dd2 was 2 and a half, so it was worth the money!

I think I would just get it if i was you. I got for mine (17 months apart) but ds1 is now 26 months and couldnt really see getting rid of it in the next 1 month..