Mum of three any good?

I think it's definately possible BUT it depends on your child.

I'm also a CM and from 2 yrs I get them used to walking reasonable distances and they get used to it pretty quickly.

I did have a double and a much bigger age gap 2 yrs 8 months but that was because it did come in handy even if it wasn't that often.

DEf poss to do without and especially if you use public transport then a good reason not to because it's difficult to find one easy to travel with.

Sorry not much use in hindsight!

I'm a mum of three. Get a double. Your eldestwill seem like they can walk for miles but there will be times when they are ill, you have to walk a long way or very fast.

I tried to get away with a single maclaren and sling combo with DD2 and dD3 and wish I'd got a double - especially when it's freezing and the rain is horizontal.

I walk everywhere though - I don't have the car.

Yes, depends on your older child. I had a gap of 27 months. We used the double buggy (Phil & Teds) approximately 5 times with both DCs in it. Then I sold it on eBay.

However, at 20 months I'm assuming that your DC1 might still have the odd nap in a buggy if you're out and about.... and it might be handy to have the option of sticking him/her in it and strapping him/her in while you deal with baby's nappy/quick feed/coffee for yourself...

Depends how often you'll be out walking and for how long.

I found that I used the car much more once I had the 2nd DC, but everyone's different.

Never, ever used the buggyboard and eBayed that too!! My DC just wanted to walk. It would have been so much easier it he had just hopped on the buggy board or sat in the damn buggy

I have a twenty month gap - there is ABSOLUTELY no need for a double. I had a sling for DS till he was six months and by that point DD could walk!

I mean DD could walk and didn't need a buggy anymore.

Unless you plan to sling seriously and are comitted to that for reasons in addition to avoiding a double, get a double. JMO.

Mine are 20 months apart too, now 2 and 4 and it's not long since I stopped using the double (Phil & Teds). I have used it most days for the last 2 years! We do walk quite a long way though. I've found it fine for manouevreing onto buses.

I have a Maclaren and buggy board too, for going round town. The older one used it fine from about 2 and a bit. Can't use this now though as they both want to go on the buggy board.

The double has been most useful in situations where they have both fallen asleep, like buses and trains. It is not easy getting off a bus while pushing a pushchair AND carrying a sleeping toddler.

I think it depends how much you walk - if you have a car you may not need one - but at around 20 months your eldest is still a baby really.

You could get away with it if you have a car. But yes it's very useful yo strap in toddler do you can run home if need be.

Also, if they are both in a double, facing away from you, you can sneakily eat chocolate while out walking :o

Depends who long you used a sling with your eldest. I would strongly recommend getting a 2nd hand double - imagine a stroppy 2 year old in a shop and a 1 year old in the buggy.......

Still i had a 14 month gap and then a 2 year gap and walked as much as possible.

I think the age gap matters less than the personality of the older child.

There is a 2 year gap between my two, and I didn't make a decision until after dc2 was born. For the first couple of weeks ds either walked or went in the buggy, whilst dd was carried in the sling.

I eventually bought 2 second-hand ones - A nice pram that could be easily pushed one handed (an essential feature imo), with a buggy-board. Also a double Maclaren.

Found the double vital on days when ds was feeling a bit sleepy/poorly/tantrummy. The single was great for quick trips to the shops and whenever I needed public transport.

Worked really well for me. I do have the advantage of a massive cupboard to keep multiple pushchairs in though.

for a 20 months gap i would get a double, but depends how strong of a walker your oldest is really? i had a 17 months gap and no way could i have been without it, i still put the oldest one in the back if i want to go somewhere quickly and he is coming up to 3 . it just makes life easier if you have that option..
expecting dc3 now with a 20 months gap and definitely will be keeping the double!
p&t is fine for getting on buses, and also if you do end up finding you dont need the back seat you can always take it off and back to a single rather than being stuck with a side by side unnecessarily? so would prob recommend that buggy.
as mentioned it is convenient to have a place for both of them to sleep
also if they have a tendancy to run off or anything its just easier to have the option to put them in the buggy seat sometimes
you can sell it after and get most your money back anyway

I didn't do a double. I hated them all. :)

I was able to get away with the eldest in the buggy and the baby in a baby-carrier, and then (when the baby got really heavy) the baby in the buggy and the eldest on the buggy board. If you don't have porker babies like mine, you can probably carry for much longer - a friend was still carrying her baby in a sling happily at a year. My two-year old was fantastic on the buggy board, so no problems there - it was presented as the fun grown-up way to travel.

Disclaimer - we did end up getting a cheap folding buggy for the eldest for days out when we were going to be walking all day. On holidays it is lovely to have two adults and two pushchairs for your two children. :) Another disclaimer - I was biased by the complete lack of buggy-storage space in our house at the time. Doubles take up a lot of room and would have had to have gone in our lounge.

I had a 26 month gap and did get a double. I think one of the other posters was right, it does depend on the personality of the older child. My eldest was just at the tantruming stage when DS2 was born. It was great to be able to strap him into the double and get home without too much of a struggle. You can't strap a screaming toddler onto a buggyboard.

I had a 23 month gap between DC1 and DC2 and bought a second hand double which I found invaluable on certain occasions, wouldn't have been without it. Even though DC1 was an excellent walker he still wanted to climb into the pushchair if he got tired and I would put him in on certain occasions to get somewhere more safely or quickly.

I only used it about once a week for the first year as we either have to drive to most places or walk for about 5-10 minutes which was fine with just the single. I will use it again with DC3 (will have a 2 year gap this time) then I'll sell it on again and I think I'll get a decent resale value for it so well worth getting in in my opinion.

I am not someone who finds slings easy, I used one occasionally in the early days with DC2 but they are not my cup of tea for various reasons. It is also worth pointing out that buggy boards can be great in theory but quite hard work in practice as they are heavy and 'clattery'; again, not much success here although we tried it. DC1 wasn't ready for one until he was about 2.3 if I recall correctly.

I managed to a avoid a double - DS was 2.4 when DD was born. I used a sling for DD until she was about 6 months and she still goes in a backpack carrier sometimes now depending on where we're going. DS has been using a buggy board since about 2.5 - has worked well. Never felt I needed a double buggy.

It depends what you do when you use a pushchair ie do you walk a long way, do you shop, do you just nip in and out of shops, library etc? I have a 21 month gap and have been time and time again eternally grateful for the pushchair as we hit tantrums galore post two and things like shopping would have been a nightmare, not to mention dawdling. It's been worth every penny to is. We tried a sling for about ten minutes (I wore it a lot with the eldest) but trying to push a pushchair and support a newborn in a sling was too much for my back. My eldest is now heading for three and I have just invested in a higher weight capacity pushchair because I don't see us stopping using one any time soon. It's been worth every penny for is - not least in sanity at times!

I have 16.5 months between DD2 and DD3 and first bought a Mamas and Papas Aria twin which I hated and sold on eBay within a couple of months and then got a P&T which wasn't used enough to warrant what I paid for it as I have to drive everywhere. I would say use a sling and single for the time being and just see how you go - saves making expensive mistakes. You can get a double when you need it - when the baby wants to look around more etc.

You'll work it out

BTW I used an Ergo carrier which was very comfortable and meant I could carry big one on back if necessary.

Ah well if you have to use the bus alot if you can manage without a double pushchair that would be much easier!

In that case, I would wait and see. My youngest got too heavy for me to carry at 6 months - but I had diastasis recti and a porker, and I live near shops and parks, and would walk rather than take the bus. So even if you were in my not-ideal circumstances, you would have 6 months to decide whether you could do a buggy board, or whether your eldest needs to be strapped into a pushchair on a regular basis.

Once you've bought a double buggy you are stuck with a huge pushchair and the hassle of selling it on (and the cost of depreciation if you end up buying a new one). There will still be shops that sell double buggies when your youngest is a few months old. :)

I have 19 month age gap and didn't have a double buggy. Got older one in training before baby arrived . If baby due in winter, as mine was, probably less compulsion to take 2 babies out in the wind and rain so may not walk for 1st 6mnths as much as you anticipate. I did use the car more than I otherwise would have though.