Pushchair / Pram advice

[sobeitjedi]

Hi.

We have a 2 year old and another baby due in December and we're unsure of how to take them out and about and were wondering how other people manage.

Do we buy a double buggy (seems expensive and maybe won't be used for too long?)
Do we get a buggy board (will child #1 stay on it or run off around the supermarket?)

Any other ideas?

Single pram. Sling for baby, toddler in pram. Baby in pram, toddler on buggy board or walking. This option only if your toddler is a good walker (by this I mean doesn't run off, as well as being able to walk distances).

Alternatively a pram that converts from single to double - Icandy pear or peach, uppababy vista with snug seat and rumble seat, smyths dimples duo, phil & teds.

Last option keep existing single, buy a second hand double then sell it on when no longer needed.

Really depends on how your toddler walks, and how quickly you need to get anywhere! I'm going to have a nearly 3 year age gap, and I'm going for the first option.

2 year old is very independent and likes to walk and run off.

Get reins as well then!

Sling, single and buggy board gives the most options, depending on who is most tired (of the DC, even when the real answer is you )

I have the same dilemma - 2yo and baby due Dec, 2yo keen on running off! I've concluded that sling plus single should be okay, plus buggy board should DC1 want to walk. Also I still carry DC1 so continuing that is an option if baby is in pram. On the other hand it'll be vile weather and I may crack and buy one that I can then sell on/keep for travelling.

It's an awkward gap to have pram-wise.

I went for a compact tandem with similar age gap. Baby lying down in the back (we had one of those nest things to make the seat more padded) and toddler in the front seat if not walking. I could still push it with one hand and hold toddler's hand if necessary. I don't think a side by side double would be easy to push with one hand. I depends how much you walk. I wanted to be able to put them both in and walk quickly sometimes. We used it loads, even when they were 3.5 and 1.5 we took it on long walks and they could hop in and out as necessary. Also useful for putting the shopping in the front seat when the toddler was walking.

What make / model?

We have a 17 month gap between our dc, and had one of those long double buggies where the baby can lay flat at the back and the toddler sits up at the front. When the baby is old enough they can then sit up (due to problems with my back, I didn't want to use a sling).

I had a Safety 1st buggy, it cost about £120 from Asda Direct.

It was a good buy, it was great for getting out of the house with both at the same time and it meant I could feed and change dd whilst keeping ds strapped in thereby stopping him running off when I was busy. As he was only 17+ months, he wasn't great at walking and got easily tired so the double buggy meant he had somewhere to sit and rest.

The problem with it was that it was very long and rather heavy, especially as all the weight was at the front. This made it difficult to lift it over steps and kerbs, hard to maneuver around small spaces and would have been very hard to use on the bus. However if I'd have gone for a side by side thing I'd have had similar problems, as all the weight would have been at one side making it hard to steer.

Sorry, I sent too soon. I would suggest trying out different models and styles before buying, and bare in mind that they handle completely differently when empty compared with when your dc are in.

We only used ours for 7-8 months, now ds walks everywhere and dd sits in a stroller I got for £30 from Argos. He wears reins which I strap onto the frame of the stroller but I'm training him to walk sensibly next to me.

I think it was called "Happy Baby" but we are talking a while ago and it was in Holland we got it, not the UK. It was about 120 euros so pretty cheap. We thought it wasn't worth buying an expensive one as we didn't think we would use it for that long, but 2 years later it was still going strong.

We got a second hand tandem I love it. Dd was just two when dd2 arrived but 6 months in it is still our main pushchair. Both dd's are safe which gives me peace of mind. It does depend on your lifestyle though, we don't have a car so walk everywhere so for us was essential.

I got a jane powertwin pro. Some of the models don't fully recline at the back but ours does. It had mixed reviews on the pushcairs topic but is perfect for us.