Prams are giving me a headache...

[emsyj]

Can someone put me out of my misery??? Have promised DH I will stop dithering and order the pram. We've decided to get a Mutsy 4 Rider and I want to get the single spoke one (even tho DH thinks it's an utter waste of money to pay the extra for single spoke wheels - meh). My problems are:

1. What colour to get?? I don't like the idea of black for a baby, but it does seem the most practical. Do they wipe clean easily?? Will I regret it if I get a light grey or a bright green one??

1. Do I get the carrycot and the 0+ car seat or the traveller lie flat car seat and ditch the carrycot?? I'm confused about whether the lie flat car seat actually lies flat in the car, or just on the chassis. Would it save £££ if I get the lie-flat car seat and not bother with the carrycot?? Carrycot is £140, the 'standard' 0+ car seat is £100. I have found the lie-flat car seat for £129, but it's group 0 so would have to get another one at 9 months but of course could then save the lie-flat one for DC2 (if we have one).

Help!

you need to check that the car seat fits your car

Hi. I bought the 4 rider in black and it looks really smart. Wipes clean, shower proof fabric, didn't bother with the carrycot. The Traveller seat does not lie flat in the car but the fact that it does when attached to the chassis is a big bonus. I bought the maxicosi seat as the retailer didn't seem to rate the traveller seat. You will probably look to upgrade to the next car seat around 9 months anyway as your baby will look pretty big in the first stage seat and you may want to face them forwards. I love my Mutsy and am sad to see it go but it will no longer be appropriate with a small toddler and a baby. The only bit of advice I can give you is that whatever you buy won't be perfect - I have had 6 pram/pushchairs- but the Mutsy has been the best. Good luck!x

I thought most car seats would fit most modern cars? I have a Vauxhall Astra (2006 reg) so pretty run of the mill, nothing unusual. It has isofix but I am having difficulty getting very basic information about isofix car seats.

Isofix is a fool proof way of ensuring your child's seat is correctly fitted. It uses fittings mounted to your car rather than a 3 point belt. look at this page. I don't think Mutsy do an isofix seat but the maxicosi seat can be used with a permanantly fixed isofix base.This is about another £100 but can also be used for securing some of the next size maxicosi seats too.

if you search you may find the recent Which reviews of car seats
they are not all equal in terms of safety although they have to meet minimum standards

I think most would wipe clean and I've a red pram and have no bother with stains. In fact the black cosytoes that came with it shows more wear as it's lighter crumbs and yoghurts that seem to end up on it!

I got the Musty 4 Rider in black for DD (now 2.2 and still loving her buggy!) - remember you can always add any colour you want with bright cosy-toes/blankets. The black is super practical and really doesn't show dirt. I'm also glad I went neutral as I'm now 19 weeks pregnant with DS and will probably just buy a blue blankie/cosytoe.

As to the carrycot/carseat - I got the carrycot and a MaxiCosi carseat. I figured that in warm weather the baby would have a lot more air circulation/ease in keeping cool in the carrycot. This turned out to be a great thing as DD runs hot! ALso, as Eldon mentioned - not all carseats are equal in terms of safety and the lie-flat ones usually rate low in crashe tests. We bought the Maxi-Cosi Isofix base which stayed in the car permanently and was sooooo easy to use - no faffing about with the seatbelts/trying to ensure everything was in the right position - it was a simple click the seat in in a second. Also, you can get adaptors for the Mutsy frame so the Maxi-Cosi infant seat can be clicked used with the Mutsy.

HTH!