Parentals are buying our Pram & Car Seat but...problem is...

[MydnightRose]

My parents are wonderfully buying our travel system for us as their present for the baby.

I am stressing out a lot however because they have decided that they will not be buying (this includes pre-ording) until the birth of our child (apparently it's a bad luck thing-I've heard that you shouldn't have it in your house, but buying it and storing it is surely okay??)

Most places now seem to be stocking the prams I want online only, or order in and collect.

Do places actually keep a lot of stock in nowadays? The only ones I see on display are all the colours that I don't want, or are 3 wheels instead of 4 etc. Bear in mind they are going to be restricted to buying in Norwich or surrounding area...

Then there's the fact of, what if I give birth on a Sunday afternoon...no shops open to buy car seat so can't come home...or even they buy one and it doesn't fit the car???

Am I worrying about this too much or any solutions welcomed!!

Thank you!

1. Buy a cheap carseat yourself out of Argos that will get you home from hospital. If you have a spare car or if you want to keep a spare seat with your parents' car, this will work out economical, anyway.

2. Hassle them that you need a car seat to avoid staying in hospital overly long, and sod the Bad Luck superstition.

3. Borrow an infant seat from a trusted source for the first week after birth.

Dunno what to say about pram, I suspect will work out to buy after birth, especially if you don't mind using a sling &/or your partner has 2 weeks off after birth so can help you with carrying. Which model is it you want? Why can't they buy it online or get it ordered to pick up from local shop (Bonds or M&P, etc.)?

And breathe

If you want a particular pram, and don't do superstition, then can you tell them you want THIS one in particular and so they'll have to get on and order it? Have you explained that very few places have lots in stock and so pre-ordering is the norm?

Or could they give you the cash so you can order it yourself?

I had similar superstitions, I must confess, but I could 'cope' if things were stored elsewhere - could you persuade them to order the pram and store it at their house? I think the old wives tale is that the pram shouldn't be in the house, it doesn't say anything about elsewhere!

With regards to car seat, I would be stricter with them - that you WILL need in advance so that you can get home. Can you find out which car seat goes with your pram and make sure they get that one (although you need to make sure it fits your car properly)? If they're buying as a bundle from a store then they may be able to pick up the car seat there and then.

Which pram are you thinking of getting?

I would check car seats in your car and be dictatorial on that front - it MUST fit your car to be safe.

It completely depends what pushchair you're looking at. Some companies are having serious stock issues. If it's an iCandy Peach for example, then you need to order about 3/4 months in advance at the moment. If it's a Quinny Buzz , Quinny Moodd, Maxi Cosi Mura or Baby Jogger City Mini then you should be ok but that's not guaranteed. I can't think of other pushchairs with 3/4 wheels options off the top of my head.

Yes, you have to get the carseat tried in your car(s). Or look at compatibility lists on their website.

Daisy, you were superstiscious but had 5 pushchairs before birth? :o

well if they are buying in norwich they are restricted to john lewis (they can be pretty good stock and delivery wise) mothercare, not so good! toy r us, again not great and umm where else. is it babyland, but i cant remember where that is.

tbh if you are wanting a certain pram and wanting it in a certain colour scheme you realy need to be ordering it. we ordered from john lewis and they will actually keep the pram at their depot for your and then deliver it once baby is born, they kept ours there for ages as we ordered it really early! or if they cant deliver it you can go adn pick it up from their depot :)

you need to explain to them that you cant just walk into a shop and buy the pushchair some shops on ly have the shop floor model etc, they need to be ordered. we had issues with the bugaboo we ordered for ds3 as we wanted it in a specific colour and it was going to be a minimum 8wk wait, it ended up being more like 12wks and it was a good job i went overdue as it didnt arrive till after my due date, tbf to john lewis they were very aplogetic and gave me freebies and their customer service was great :)

John Lewis sounds perfect -ordered but not jinxing anything!

Oh yes Hypatia - I had 5 scattered around the farm buildings and at my parents

I agree with the others. Absolutely make sure that what you want - both pushchair and car seat - WILL fit in you car - because not all do! Then get it ordered....do not bank on a pushchair being in stock. Some companies like iCandy are known for their waiting lists; Bugaboo can take 6 weeks or so; even Babystyle were out of stock on Oysters recently. They almost all are manufacturered elsewhere, so the distributors here are reliant on ships arriving with stock on board and once they have gone, they have to wait for the next ship.
Most nursery shops will store a pushchair for you until the baby is born, or like others have said John Lewis will hold a pushchair too....but having your name against a pushchair is important.
You wont be allowed out of hospital without the car seat either.
Honestly you have to persuade them to get a pushchair ordered in advance. You could be really lucky, walk into a shop and walk out the same day with it. But equally you could be waiting months for one.
If nothing else, you personally could go and do the rounds of your local shops, work out what fits your car and lifetsyle, go eeek quietly at the prices, and also have conversations with the shop owners, and put some calls through to shops in Norwich, and find out waiting times etc. Then you can either go and work on your parents or somehow secretly order one ready for them to collect!!! LOL

Surely the superstition comes from getting the pram/car seat before hand, therefore you could still order the stuff via Mother Baby Plan then get it delivered on your due date :)

*Mothercare

If its any help, babies r us usually keep all of their prams in stock so if it's something you can get from there, then you are likely to be fine. I thought the superstition was not to have it in your home until the baby is born, my dad kindly kept our pram at his house (he was bringing me home from the hospital as dh doesn't drive) so could just bring it along with him then.

We didn't want it in the house pre=baby. We bought it from mammas and pappas and had it delivered a few days before due date to a friends house. Don't ever buy from mammas and pappas though, they're awful!