Buggy board - yes or no?

[mamablondie]

Hi there

Due baby 2 in September and will have a 2 year old by then. Considering options for double buggies etc and someone suggested trying a buggy board initially.

Are they good? And are they ‘universal’ or do you have to match brands with the brand of the pram you use?

Thanks x

Following! We've got the babyzen yoyo which only uses its own one and it's extortionate, so I'd like to know if it's worth it. Ideally I'd like to test it out, but that won't be possible for a while.

They can void the warranty on your pram/ buggy.

@CoolNoMore don't buy the BabyZen buggy board - save yourself £99. it's a bit crap because:

1. you cant easily push the pram from behind as you cant get close enough to the handle, you have to push it from the side which is beyond annoying.

1. while you have a child on the board, you can't recline the pushchair seat, so the baby has to be bolt upright. Nor can you put anything in the zip pocket as it sticks in the child on the back's face.

1. The seat on the board obvs has zero suspension so whilst it would work ok in an airport on a completely smooth floor, going up and down pavements is pretty painful on the bum.

1. It's fucking loud. Sounds like you are dragging a load of "just married" tin cans behind you 🙄

Magnificent review! Thank you. I guess I'll sling DS2 for as long as I can cope with and hope that DS1 gets more competent on his scooter

My children are adult now, but the buggy board was absolutely brilliant for us. Check the design/style of your pram and the board though so that you know it's going to work for both the child and you - like you can still walk along without having to shorten your stride to a shuffle, or that you can hook it out of the way or take it off easily when not in use.

I've never used one but just wanted to say I have a brand new in the box a bugaboo comfort wheeled board for sale if anyone is after one
PM me if interested.

I had a buggy board and then didn,t need a double buggy.

They can be useful but they don't replace the need for a double buggy (or sling+buggy) if you need your 2yo to be able to nap when you're out and about. You can get seated ones but most of them are to be used by a standing child, and if you do a lot of walking then a 2yo won't be able to stand for the whole of a long journey. They are more useful for age 3+ when your older child is mostly walking or scooting but needs a lift from time to time when they get tired.

I got the Lascal buggy board. My 2yo already preferred to walk and rarely used the buggy for short trips. He's loved the board. If we've gone for longer journeys I've taken the sling as back up but only used it a couple of times in a year.

The lascal is apparently universal, it fits fine on my Cosatto buggy, a couple of drawbacks being that when going up high curbs it can trigger the break and it's loud if it doesn't have DS standing on it. It is easy to clip and unclip on and it's allowed me to use one buggy for two children.

My daughter loves the buggy board or sometimes sat on the hood holding on to me but she was a good walker

How far do you walk? How often?

The buggy board has been brilliant for us, we got the one designed for our bugaboo chameleon with the optional seat. We still use it with the seat on, if I try to take the seat off DS1 tries to sit down still 🙈😂

I was a bit concerned about whether DS1 would like it (there is 28mths between my 2 boys and my DS1 has GDD and didn't start walking until he was 21mths) but he loves it. I used to put the car seat onto the pram when DS2 was a newborn and we were popping to the shops and I used to fold the handle forwards so DS1 could hold onto it. Then with the seat unit I have DS2 facing me still rather than outwards (he's 17mths now), DS1 holds onto the bottom of the seat when it's laid flat and his brother is sleeping. There's plenty of space for them both facing each other & we can all interact.

I would definitely still recommend having a carrier as well for when baby is restless and/or your toddler wants to sit in the pushchair (I have the Tula grow with me which is brilliant)

I tried using a double pram, the bugaboo donkey, which I was very lucky to get off my brother second hand but it was very cumbersome and not very practical! I found it a nightmare in shops etc. So I didn't end up using it much and sold it on. x

My first was just over 2 when my second was born. Buggy board was useful to save the “pick me uppppppp” when tired although we didn’t actually use it loads. It probably depends how much walking you do though. We live fairly rurally so anything we walk to (park/ corner shop/nursery) is less than half a mile away so she was fine walking that distance so definitely didn’t need a double buggy. If you’d be walking miles a day though it might be worth a double although as you say you can always use a sling for the baby for longer journeys and by the time they’re getting heavy in the sling the older one will be older and hopefully walking better!

Also really interested in this as my son will be 2.5 when the new one comes and I do not want to buy a double! We have a bugaboo bee at the moment. I was thinking of keeping DS in the pram and using the sling for around the first 6 months with the baby, and then once the baby is sitting up in the pram DS will be 3 and can use the buggyboard. Does this sound feasible? And can anyone review the bugaboo board?

@HarrietM67, yes it does sound feasible although you may not want to use the sling all the time? I have a 28mth age gap and my DS1 hadn't long been walking when DS2 was born, so I had the buggy board on from day 1, so that he had somewhere to sit when I put DS2's car seat on the pram, but I also used a carrier (still do when we aren't on lockdown!).

I have a bugaboo chameleon and have the bugaboo buggy board, which has a removable seat. It's brilliant, honestly one of the best things we have bought second time around. You do have to walk slightly to one side, but you get used to that quite quickly. I also have the pram handles set at max height to give DS1 a bit more space to climb on and off. You can fold the buggy board up when it isn't in use.

I tried to use the bugaboo donkey in double mode but it was just far too big and impractical, I gave up after a couple of attempts and went back to the chameleon & buggy board! It's also much cheaper to invest in a buggy board than a double pram.

@HarrietM67 forgot to mention I didn't bother changing the chameleon seat unit back into the carrycot. I kept it as the seat unit for trips out with DS2 in the carrier and DS1 in the seat and then just used the car seat and buggy board combo when nipping out to the shops.

Now that DS2 is older and in the seat, I tend to take the carrier out with me when we are on a day trip and then I have it if DS1 gets tired and wants to sit in the pram for a bit of a rest. x

I used the lascal too. 4 children so 3 of them had a buggy board at some point. Wouldn't have been without it. Also bought extra clips so could just move it from the pram to the stroller depending what we were doing that day.

Thanks so much @luckymagnoliatree that’s really helpful! I didn’t have a carrycot for the bee - just used the cocoon (like a footmuff basically) so it’s a bit more flexible. You’re right though about the car seat clipping on occasionally. My son has been walking since he was 11 months but he’s still very distractible and slow when we’re out and about so the seat sounds like a good option. Might start training him with it before the baby arrives!

@HarrietM67 no problem at all! Yes that's a good idea, help him get accustomed to it and the idea of sitting/standing on it and then it won't be such a shock when baby arrives and will just be normal to him 🙂 x

@CoolNoMore we have a BabyZen and the Lascal Mini fits it. Just bought it from Aldi baby event for £40. A friend of mine uses this combo and recommended it. Can't comment on how flat the pram goes though as I have changed over the the newborn nest which is fine. Hoping that in 6 months time, lazy 3yo DD will be more inclined to walk/scoot/cycle and it won't be an issue.

@wineymummy oooh, thank you! Is it easy enough to push then?