To double buggy or not to double buggy?

[FlashingTurtle]

I'm currently pregnant with DC2 due in March. DD1 will be 26 months when DC2 arrives and I really can't decide whether to get a double buggy or just attach a buggy board for DD1.

Basically the main issue is that DD1 will continue at the nursery while I'm on maternity leave so as not to upset her routine. DH will drop her off in the morning but I intend to collect her at lunchtime but I won't have a car. The walk back home is up a hill and approx 1.5 miles which makes me think I really should get a double buggy instead of a buggy board.

I'm not sure that DD1 would stay on a buggy board that long without being restrained but then she is 21 months at the moment and might be quite different in 5 months time.

I'm so confused!

Does anyone have any experience of this age gap and what would be the best option?

Would a sling and buggy be a better idea? Get something like a moby wrap for baby and then your older dc can go in the buggy. You could still get the buggy board as well for shorter journeys.

My DD will be 2 next month, and DC3 is due today. We can't afford a double, and don't think we need it, so getting a buggy board and probably a sling too.

She is a very good walker, though, which helps.

Had the same quandary with DS who is 20 months, DC2 due next week - there's no way he'd stay on a buggy board! He's good at walking but I like the option of the pushchair (especially in late pregnancy when feeling weak) to put him in if he's getting tired or pulling away from me.

These threads always get filled with people saying get a double - but of course you don't want to waste money if you end up not using it. I also love my single so plan to continue using it along with a sling.

I made a compromise and bought a double (first wheels city twin) second hand from a lady on Facebook. It has 2 toddler seats and a carry cot. The thing that sold it to me was the seats can face front or back or 1 each way, I figure I can always resell if I don't use it

I've got a tandem for my son who will be 2.4 when DC2 is born, not because he can't walk, but I think there will be some times, especially in town, when I want both children corralled and no baby on my chest. I'm expecting it to be used for about 9 months til DS is about 3 and by then he should be mostly on the buggy board. If I can sell it for what I bought it for (secondhand) then it will have cost me nothing.

I've got a sling as well but there are times when I don't want to wear my baby.

I'd say double buggy as march/April an may are quite wet.

So even if your dd stayed on a buggy board she'd be quite wet after 1.5 miles. (I know rain doesn't melt children but if its pouring she'll get soaked)

i have a nearly 24 month old DS1 and a 5 week old DS2....no way would DS1 stay on a buggy board if we had one. Thankfully we planned to have children close in age so when we had DS1 we bought a Baby Jogger City Select (DP's folks paid for it :) ) and it's brilliant, DS1 in buggy seat can face DS2 in carseat, or can have DS2 in carrycot, and lots of seating options, and because it's not a side by side, easy to get through shop doors/aisles and into the car boot.

I did think about the sling and buggy combo but I had a sling with DD1 and she hated it so not sure how DC2 would take to it. I suppose all babies are different though!

BoysBoysBoysandMe good point about the rain. I probably should opt for a double buggy especially as I live in a particularly wet part of Scotland!

I'm in your position but a bit further on, dc2 is now three months old.
We decided against a double buggy and I bought a buggy board, and also a decent sling.
After ds was born it became apparent I couldn't carry him far in the sling. He's a giant (98th centile) and I have some pelvic floor weakness so it's just too uncomfortable.
So I tried to get dd on the buggy board and she hated it. She was jealous of the baby in the pram, she wouldn't get on the board, and if they won't do it willingly you cant force them, unlike with a pushchair, where you can wrestle them in and strap them in and it's done. It became unsafe crossing roads as she wouldn't get on the board and didn't want to walk either.
Also she gave up her nap just before ds was born (she was 2.6 when he was born). But she still sometimes needs an afternoon sleep and will drop off in the buggy. But she can't go to sleep standing on the buggy board and just gets more and more tired and ratty.
Last week I bought a phil and teds for £85 third hand from a friend. It's made my life so much easier and I am so happy now. There are loads of second hand ones on gumtree in my area for about £130 or £150, I'd say its definitely worth the investment.

I had a newborn, 13 month old and 2 yr 5 month old.
I used a double buggy for the younger two and stood the 2 yr old on a buggy board. I invested in proper wet weather gear for her so she didn't get to wet.

I think I'm swaying towards a double buggy which I had always hoped to avoid. I had planned a bigger age gap but it didn't quite work out that way!

I didn't find that I needed one. I have 24 months (birthdays a few days apart) between DD1 and DD2 and 26 months between DD2 and DS. I lived in central London at the time and did a daily nursery walk of a approx 1 mile. I much preferred the buggy / sling combo than the idea of trying to haul around a double buggy. I tried a buggy board and totally hated it (too heavy and difficult to manoeuver). I don't think that DD1 ever went in the buggy again after she was about 2.3, she just got used to walking everywhere, and then graduated to a scooter. DD2 was proficient on scooter from aged just over 2 (copied her older sister), so when DS was born he was usually in sling so that I was able to chase after two small scooting girls on school / nursery run and so with him I almost never used a buggy at all let alone a double. It depends on your child though. My DDs both walked v early (DD2 at 10 months) and so had had a lot of time getting used to walking everywhere and building up the strength and stamina prior to being turfed out of buggy by the next baby.

If cost isn't an issue then you might as well get one just in case (there are loads of second hand ones around). If it is, then hold off and wait and see how it goes, then get a second hand one if you need it

I would say it depends on how much of a pain it is for you to buy one. We got a Phil and Teds bargain on ebay, even though DS is 3 now. It was about £300 for everything; doubles kit, raincover, carseat adaptor and so on. I couldn't have justified spending £££(£) on it, because he's a tall lad and a little squashed in it, so mostly he walks and the extra seat is for emergency use only. To me, it's been well worth the money as there have been plenty of occasions when it's been such a godsend to just bundle him in there - rain/tiredness/naughtiness/needing to get somewhere fast - and if I had to make the decision again I would definitely do the same thing.

It also removes any stress from trips when I'm not sure if DS will manage or not - I just take the double and even if he doesn't need it, I've not had to worry about it. I'm a big fan of giving yourself as many tools as possible and because DS isn't always an easy walking companion, this is one of mine.

I have a sling too and sometimes using that without the doubles kit on the pushchair is the best combination but more often than not I'm really glad of my double.

Basically, what luckysocks said. I used the P&T until mine were 4.6 and 2.8. It was a sanity saver when we were in a rush, ill, kids were tantrumming or a day out. I could chuck everything in and off we went, at my speed!

I vote double buggy, with buggy board as 2nd choice.
Sling + buggy is a nightmare, you'll do your back in.

Sometimes sling + buggy is useful - for example, I was in town the other day and DS, who rarely naps in the day now, fell asleep in the car on the way in. The doubles seat is quite small and upright so not great for (tall, 3 yr old) DS to sleep in, and no good before 6 months so DD can't go in there yet. So the best combination was DS in the main reclinable seat and DD in the sling.

But I agree, double buggy is first choice for me too.

I also find it difficult to bend down and deal with DS properly when I have DD in a sling, but maybe that's just me.

Get a phil and teds, then you can flip between double and single as required. Makes life a lot easier!

I got a Phil and Teds off ebay for £65 with everything - second seat, rain cover, sun cover, panniers, carry cot - and it is fab. It's a bit tired looking but in perfect working order and I'm so glad I brought it rather than do buggy and sling, which is what I was thinking of.

I thought about keeping DS Quinny (which I loved) & using a sling for DS2 who is due in a few weeks. I had kind of decided that i really didn't want to follow the doubles route and would make do with what we had got. However have just invested in a new Phil & Teds, although would have brought 2nd hand had I found one & am really pleased with it. Ds1 was SO hot in a sling that it was uncomfortable for both of us, i will try Ds2 in it but as Dh keeps on pointing out to me - we will have a new born and a 20 month old and need to take advantage of every tool out there to make life as easy as possible for all of us. Pretty sure too that Ds1 would be a complete liability on a buggy board

We have a double buggy. Dc2 due next month when dd will be 21mo. I plan to walk a lot, and although dd is a good walker, I want to be able to strap her in when she's tired or tantrumming. Thought about sling plus buggy, but if I'm carrying shopping and its raining, it'll be easier to just put dc2 in the carrycot.
We got ours in the boots sale, and it has good resale value. We sold dd's pushchair to fund it in the first place.

Have you heard of Buggypods? They are an attachment seat that clips to the side of your current pushchair for an extra toddler seat

www.preciouslittleone.com/product-information/18/4246/buggypod-smorph-2-pushchair-toddler-seat/

My two are 2 and 4 now, but when DS2 came along I did buy a cheap double buggy off Gumtree (£25). It was great for the first year because although DD1 was keen to walk she always got worn out. They also napped at similar times which was helpful as I think sleeping children are always heavier in a carrier. We tried a buggy board but she never really got the hang of it and needed to sit rather than stand.
I had a side by side buggy and it did get heavy after about a year but by then DD1 was walking far enough, or they could take it in turns walking etc.

We have both, and the nice sling (23 month gap).
I use single and buggy board for under a mile, and when ds1 being in good form.... We got a p&t for all of the rest of the time. It's only been a month and it's been worth it. :) I'd have bought the mountain buggy duet if it fit in my car boot....