Thinking about new buggy - your best advice please!

[Sanguine]

We have a Graco mosaic one travel system. We got it because it was light and compact, and would fit in the back of our little car. It's been OK while DS was small, but at 5 months there's no way in world I can lift him in his car seat. I now just use the pushchair bit, but DS is getting heavier, and one of the wheels has gone funny. It's getting really hard to push, and i'm aware that my posture is awful when I'm pushing him because of the amount of effort it takes.

I'd really like a light weight pushchair that folds down small, that has adjustable height handles, that is sturdy enough for me to lean on when I'm having a bad day. A 'lie flat' option is useful as DS does like to have a kip when we're on the move. The graco wheels are quite small, I was thinking bigger wheels would make it easier to push, but then they would affect how small the fold was, wouldn't they? I guess size isn't quite such an issue as we're about to buy a ford focus instead of our fiat punto, but we only have a little flat and zero space for storage!

I use the [[http://www.xplory.com/ Stokke Xplory] and wouldn't have anything else as it's great to push and I use it as a walking frame. It's got great manoeverability and both DH (who is 5'10") and I (at 5') can use it because the handle is so flexible.

DS1 loved it because it is rear facing and up and could talk to me and I think DS2 is very happy in the pram bit atm.

The disadvantage is that it is heavy to get in and out of the car (I've got an estate for ease of access), it doesn't fold down very far and you would have to lift your DS up into it, but once they're there they don't want to get down! It generally lived in the car when I wasn't using it before DS2. I'd be more than happy to give you a demonstration!

My physio at the JR in Oxford recommended it when I was pg with DS1 and I haven't looked back - I love it.

Hope this helps

Sorry link didn't work (must remember to preview!) Stokke Xplory

Oooh, was that Nicole in the women's centre? Also my physio!

I saw one of those pushchairs on sunday at church, from a distance. Very striking, and it looks like good fun to ride around in from the child's point of view. I'd be a tad wary of the weight issue. Can you let me know how easy it is to assemble once it's out of the car? My hands are rubbish. Also, there's no way in this world I could afford to buy a new one. I'd just have to hope I could get one on e-bay.

It was Linda at the Women's Centre! She only works one day a week now - but she was a great help to me. Do you live in Oxfordshire?

It is very easy to assemble and even with my dodgy leg and balance issues I can put it together. I think that you shouldn't find it too difficult for your hands, it's basically a big clip on either side of the seat which needs doing.

I would be more than happy to give a demonstration. I bought mine from the Nursery Store in Abindgdon and they were helpful.

They are very good in there. I live in Abingdon (this gets weirder - it wasn't you having your LO baptised at St Helen's on sunday, was it??). I go in there a fair bit, sometimes just to browse the Lovely Things. I'm sure I could get them to show me one if they have one. If I they haven't, I may well take you up on your kind offer.

Would it go in the back of a ford focus, do you think? Does it do work for the child up until the time he stops needing a pushchair altogether? we don't want to buy yet another in a years time! I'm quite taken with the height, it would mean I wasn't forever bending over to tend to DS, and the "mobile highchair" thing sounds great, especially since DS has just decided to lead off the weaning process by stealing my food. Is it easy to clean squashed banana off the cover?

I floated the idea with DH last night, expecting him to splutter "£550 ???!!!" at me. I was quite surprised by him saying, quite calmly, "well, that's what the DLA money's for, innit?". I'm almost beginning to hope.

Right, been into the Nursery Shop, and I totally get why you're in love with the Xplory. DS loved it too, and chortled at me when we tried him in it. I felt I could stand up straight and push it because there was space for my feet underneath, and the handle went where I wanted it. Bliss, after my crazy exploits trying to keep the Graco one in a straight line (I'm not very good at straight lines at the best of times!).

Any ideas where I can find £500? DH about to start studying and I'm on SMP, We desperately need a new car and I'm really not sure we can justify it. We may just have to get the bone shaker fixed and make do.

Oh the dilemma! Well, my Ma happens to have a Focus estate and it fits in there. If you're going to test drive the Focus you can always take it to the Nursery Shop and ask them if you can see if it fits (friends who dive got all their dive kit out to see if it fitted in when they test drove their current car). However, I have a Peugeot 307 estate and I'm glad I haven't got the Focus because the doors open a lot wider on the Peugeot than the Focus which for me a s a big consideration.

It will definitely last your DS out. DS1 had to be walking by the time DS2 arrived because there was no way I was getting anything else - I couldn't manage a double buggy of any sort anyway - and he was just over two, but they say it will go on for children a lot older than that.

Is it worth asking the Nursery Shop if they get second hand ones, maybe look on Ebay or see what's for sale on the for sale boards on here. I haven't yet ventured into the world of the DLA - I really must - but do they do special grants for things like this if it would make a difference to your mobility?

Btw, it wasn't us at St Helen's - we're on the north side of Oxford and DS2 was baptised at the church where I grew up in the New Forest a few weeks ago!

If you want to contact me email me at pigeonpie at webowls dot com.

Sanguine don't know anything about the buggies. But if you need a new car and get DLA why not get a motability one?

Mumoftwo - It's a thought, isn't it? The thing that has put me off motability is that when I got awarded DLA, it was only for 18 months. I guess when I applied I was pregnant, and they wanted to see what happened to my mobility after that. The SPD has cleared up to a certain extent, although it's still lingering and waiting to bite me some days, and my underlying condition means I'm always, staggering, limping and lurching around for one reason or another. But I'm worried that they might take high rate mobility away from me when I reapply. I sincerely hope not, but you never know with these things.

Do you know what happens if yo have a motability car and they decide to cut the level of DLA you get?

No I don't sorry, on my first motability car although have had DLA for 10 years now. They are getting better about awarding for SPD, I have suffered for 12 years and had 2 fusion ops but am no better. You do have to have at least a year running from your current award to have a car. When you apply next time they'll probably award for 3 years. That was what happened to me.

The Jane Carerra is good and seem to tick all of your boxes. I'll try and find a link...

Here you go. I was on crutches and in a lot of pain for months after DD's birth and found this one to be the best I tried.

Ooh, that's the same one my friend has. She let me have a push yesterday and it was a lot easier than mine. The only thing was that I kept kicking the wheels at the back - this may be due to my weird sticky-outy feet combined with my cowboy-style lurch . And I seemed to have some difficulty getting it up curbs, but I'm sure there's a knack to it that I was missing. I'd definitely take one of them over my current one any day. The Stokke remains my favourite, but quite likely out of my reach, financially speaking.

I was 45 seconds away from owning a second hand Xplory. Now depressed.

Little Nipper 360 is a good pushchair is 3 wheeler and only 7kgs folds relatively small and is a dream to push.

Hi Sanguine - don't quite know why i'm reading buggy threads this late on a Sat night but i'm sure you've seen there's another Xplory on eBay. Do you know how to "snipe" an auction? It's a service that automatically bids on yr behalf, about 10 secs before the end of the auction (free for this) or if you pay about a tenner it will do it about 3 secs before the end. Unless someone has put in a mahoosive maximum bid that's going to be far more than you want to spend anyway, it gives you a better chance of winning... try here

hth

ybnd - I'll check that out, thank you x

Tallis - thanks for that link. I'm a complete e-bay virgin, I did have time to react (well, a few seconds anyway), but it had gone above the amount of money I had to spend so I got up and forced myself to walk away. I'm watching the others that are coming up, and I'll perhaps give sniping a go! (great name btw, think I'll go and put a CD on...)

Ah, now that's why I chose my name. Not clever, not cool, but just my favourite composer. Wanted to call our dd Tallis but husband put foot down. Perhaps just as well...

You did well to walk away from the Xplory if it had gone above yr maximum. So easy just to keep dobbing in another bid, just another tenner, you think - and before you know it you're way over your limit. Still, the sniper thing is good for helping stick to your limit: it lets you put in yr maximum bid and then you can just sit back and let it do the work for you...

Best of luck in yr hunt for a buggy. I will soon have a spare Cameleon chassis and wheels if that's any use - not the seat, but you can buy that separately from Bugaboo? I'd be happy to hand them on to you free. I don't know how difficult it is for you to operate buggies etc, but although a Cameleon is quite light for a travel system, it doesn't fold terribly small. Goes flat and has height adjustable handles, but you have to take the seat off and do a bit of bending down and picking up the frame to get it flat. Quite a faff.

Another option might be a Quinny Buzz - again, not all that light but it too has adjustable height handles and a kind of gas powered system that makes it spring to life upright very easily from being in its flattened state.

Goodness, I'm not very good at explaining all this. I'm not really one of those MN buggy fiends. Just had to get to know a couple after British Airways lost mine in transit for a month and I had to get an alternative quickly!

Tallis, I love you (as well as your namesake).

I got one!

What, you got an Xplory!! Fantastic. was it the nice pale green one on Ebay? Did you snipe it?

Yes, it was the green one. The sniping worked a treat, thanks for the link. I think there were a couple of other people trying the same trick as well but I won. I got it for £280 (just scraping in under my maximum!), which is still a heck of a lot of money, but a jolly sight less money than £550 for a new one.

I rather like the green colour, but then I like all of the colours. DH was secretly pleased I lost out on a red one because he thought it was girly

Oh, I'm so pleased. Isn't it exciting when the thing comes through saying that you've won? Specially when it's something you really, really, wanted. I think the green is v smart and unusual. The red, I think, not so much girly but more like an executive office swivel chair.

I hope it makes your life a lot easier. Look at it this way - quality of life, which is priceless, for less than £300

Just a quick update - I've been using my new Xplory for a while now and it is absolutely fantastic! I feel heaps better. And now that DS is facing me, even when I'm having a bad day he can cheer me up by grinning at me!

Thanks PigeonPie and Tallis, and everyone else for your help.

glad to be of service

hi
i have arthritis and currently have a mamas & pappas one which is very, very lightweight easy to fold up etc but does anyone know of lighweight double or if buggy boards are heavy as have just found out child no. 3 on way and i need pram not too heavy but sturdy enough to use as walking aid for the very few occasions I am out on my own with kids :0