30 min walk to nursery?

[CCrowe]

Hello,

Anyone done a 30 minute walk to and from nursery with a 3 year old? We might not get into our first choice nursery and our second favourite option is 30 minutes walk. We have a family car and my husband drives so he could drop the littler guy in the morning sometimes or pick him up in emergencies but I don't drive (I'll never be able to drive for physical ability reasons).

I love to walk and usually walk at least an hour a day anyway but right now our currently 2 year old boy is tricky to walk with - he loves to walk but also loves to wander off and see things and is very strong and heavy to carry! Did you find by 3 your kids were easier to walk with? How did it go if you had this kind of commute in all weathers? Thinking we might buddy up with someone else for lifts in exchange for other help but not a guarantee that will work out...

Our other option is a closer nursery that doesn't have as good a reputation and doesn't have trees and green space around it, the outdoor play is by a road. Still potentially a good option and 16 mins walk from our house...just weighing up our choices here, know we're lucky to have the choice.

We did and he walked the whole way but it took an eternity!

Some days it will be nice, some days it will be awful.
Can you use a buggy or balance bike?
Is there a bus at least part of the way?
Can you use taxis as backup if the weather is going to be terrible etc?

My son loves riding his little scooter to and from nursery...otherwise he wouldnt walk or would get upset half way there as at 3 they are still only little and building their stamina. I can pull him along on it if hes really tired. He doesnt lose any street cred either 😅

Good luck...hope you find something that works for you x

I think it will really depend on the kid and the day but it’s doable.
I agree with others that taking a scooter or balance bike often makes it easier. Have a look at the mountain buggy unirider too

Personally if your son doesn't like the pushchair you could purchase a push along trike. Pack some toys/healthy snacks in the front basket to keep him busy and a rain hood incase there is rain. My son used the pushchair on rainy days and the trike on sunnier days and both worked well and kept him dry and happy.
If the weather is really bad then you could use a taxi like someone suggested. I hope it works out well for you.

Is cycling possible? Mine have been on the back of a bike since they were 1 and they love it

I think a 30 min walk is quite a big ask after a long day of Nursey. We always walk to and from Nursey but it’s 10 mins . I’d say that is enough after a busy day of Nursey and my boy is very good, holds hands. Doesn’t wander etc . He rides his balance bike sometimes

Bike it, that would be 5 minutes on a cargo bike. But I’m guess the roads aren’t suitable?

I bike all year round that distance and only about 4 times I’ve not done it due to wind/snow. But our city is a biking city.

2.5-3.5 was hell walking both of mine. If they wouldn’t walk I’d put them in a stroller and they’d dislocate shoulders to escape it. If they walk they either examine each speck of dust or run at full speed

We had a trike with a lap belt and long handle so we could push it.
All in one waterproofs and wellies.

A ten minute walk for me is a 30 minute walk for my three year olds so I think you’d definitley need the buggy , could your DH leave it at nursery in the mornings

A bike with a child seat on the back would be better

My eldest had a 30min walk to nursery. Some days we’d take the car but otherwise he’d go on his scooter, while I pushed his little brother behind him in the buggy. He loved it and got so fit and healthy from it! I appreciate not all 3 year old would scoot that distance willingly (or safely) but it worked really well for us.

Walking at full adult speed we are almost exactly 5 minutes away from nursery, on a slow day this can take us 30 min to walk back from! My youngest is now 2 and a half, and is a good walker, but does like to stop to look at every person, cat, stick.. I prefer not to rush and allow time for this, I can't imagine she would be happy with walking if I insisted on more urgency. She stopped using the pushchair at about 2, I think because she associated it with something for babies (so would comment 'baby' for a long time when we saw a pushchair, even if the child was obviously older than her, which obviously wasn't embarrassing at all!)
We also have her 4 year old sister at nursery though, so do give them the choice of using their scooters which they usually do. Or one of those festival wagon/trolleys. We originally got it more for days out, but find that useful for the way home when they're more tired, especially as the 4 year old can have to wait ages for her sister otherwise, but is happy if she can just sit in there. That may be a good option for you rather than a pushchair? (If you choose that option for nursery)

No advice but I'm a bit jealous that you're able to carve out 2+ hours of your day every day for walking. I love walking and wish I had the time to do more of it!

I’d get a scooter or trike you can push. Our nursery was about 20 mins away but would take double that time walking in the morning and going home was a nightmare with a tired child. I’d normally end up carrying him or stuck on what felt like a never ending walk.

Yup I do!! And have done since dc1 was 3 year 2 month and dc2 was 8 weeks. Twice a day. 25 min there 25 min back. Completely fine. Some days stressful yes. Other days lovely. Winter obviously harder. We use a buggy board! I’m active so walking itself doesn’t phase me, and I just keep calm if both cry. DC2 gets a snack on the way back from nursery’

Brought back a memory from a long time ago 😱 I made mistake of moving half hour walk away from school/preschool just before 3 year old due to start who didn't much like walking anyway. Had a just one year old too, ended up having to buy a double buggy, was hell as they started half days then for a term before full time and I quickly realised that I'd be all day back and forth when one was full time and second was half days...........sold and moved, shortest time I'd been in a house 13 months😂

I think this is very dependent on your child to be honest @CCrowe ☺️

We’re very similar to you - DH drives, I am unable to, and DH works abroad for weeks on end so it’s just DS and I here the majority of the time. Nursery is 25/30 min walk from home and DS started attending at 3yo.

He’s always been fine with it but then he’s very used to walking since it’s usually just him and I and we’d walk the 25ish mins to town daily for whatever club/class we had on. He usually preferred walking to being in the buggy to be honest.

We’re also right on the coast in Scotland so we do this is all weathers. Some days when it was absolutely horrendous weather, it’s was a lifesaver having a decent big buggy on standby though - or just if we were running particularly late (after the 25 min walk to nursery, I then walk 20/25 mins straight to town for work with only about a 10/15 min buffer). If you don’t already have one, the BabyJogger City Mini GT is fab as kids get bigger. We only used it a few days admittedly but it was so so handy on the days we did use it! I got one off Marketplace for about £50!

My advice would be:

• Get decent wellies and waterproofs
• Invest in a decent winter coat for both of you!
• Always carry a full change of clothes (including shoes!) for DC. As well as the frequent times getting soaked, there were a few days DS managed to walk through dog mess and needed a full change on arrival at nursery 🫠
• Keep an emergency snack in your bag incase bribery is needed 🤣
• If DC doesn’t already use a balance bike, try and get started. That helped on the days when DS didn’t fancy walking and allowed us to get home slightly quicker too.

And when you inevitably get the comments from some parents on the days you need the buggy about how your child is too big for a buggy (yes, this does and will happen 🤣) - just remind them they’re the ones that have just driven their child to the door 🫠 and that actually it’s no different 🙄🤣

30 minutes at your speed or theirs?
I'd have thought at theirs would be fine, my son started preschool just after his 3rd birthday, it's about a mile each way and we drop his brother off on the way and pick up on the way back, making the total more like 40 minutes each way.
Usually the way home is slower but after months of doing it he's just got more fit.
I think try it out a few times on the weekends and see how long it takes etc, if there's a park nearby you can frame it as a park trip.

@GreenLemonade It’s much easier when it’s your main mode of transport ☺️🤣
I’m 25 min walk to nursery, then 20ish mins to work. On my feet all day at work. 20ish mins back to nursery (all uphill) then 25 mins back home 🤣
And as much as it’s nice to get the fresh air, it’s usually done in a rush while clock watching so not very leisurely or enjoyable 🤣

My DD walked 1.3miles to nursery- she would walk from 3- hubby doesn't drive for medical reasons. They took about 40 minutes and perfected it to 25 by the time she left. She sometimes used her scooter but mostly they walked and played games. On Fridays she walked 1.5 miles into town went to playgroup and then 1.3 miles to nursery....now she is 5 and walks a mile in 15 minutes.... Anyway coming home needed snacks to distract but perfectly doable

Ive done that with 2 of my kids. Was absolutely fine. On the days they didn't want to walk or were wandering etc I would put them on my shoulders. Both were out of prams before 2, hated them. When my oldest went I had the baby in the pram so id be pushing the pram with the baby and have my oldest on my shoulders. Youngest starts school in august so 6/7 years of nursery runs are nearly over 🙌😅

I think 30 min is too long to walk. My son got to a school nursery which was 15-20min walk for an adult. It was too difficult to make him walk all the way and it used to take ages especially on the way back. He found it much easier and fun to cycle. So if your little one is into cycling maybe try that

When my son started disliking the pram, I found a trike was a great speedy alternative! Much more to see for them and they think they're moving it so far more fun.