Recommend me a pushchair

[honeysucklejasmine]

I'm undecided on pushchairs, and reading round on here i think i don't really know anything about the whole wide world of pushchairs!

My requirements are as follows:
Suitable from birth to too big for a pushchair.
Lightweight: i have a bad back and a joint disorder
Easy to use clips, buttons etc for folding, as my fingers are a bit arthritic
Does not need to be compatible with a car seat as they are far too heavy for me to use.
Folds easily and relatively small as i drive a hatchback.

Has anyone got any recommendations which match most or all of these? Please impart your wisdom!

There are plenty but you don't mention whether you want it to be parent facing or you don't mind? You want the seat itself to be suitable from birth... So no carrycot?

Parent facing please but i'd like to turn it world facing in time.

Is a carry cot (had to Google! ) not actually required? I thought they had to go in one at first? Are there seats which are suitable from birth? One less thing to carry!

You can see why I need help, I think!

When I say "suitable from birth" i mean i don't want then to out grow it. I don't mind if there are multiple seats to swap in as they grow.

Baby jogger city mini. Folds small enough to go into my golf easily with plenty of room to spare. No fiddly catches. Genuinely opens and closes one handed. Can buy a basinette for it if you want. Suitable from birth to 15kg, though my 18kg 4.5 year old goes in it.

The baby jogged looks great! The only downside i can see is it doesn't seem like the seat is reversible? Otherwise looks brilliant!

Right yes, the city mini can be parent facing only with the carrycot. The versa is the equivalent baby jogger it's a reversible seat but it's heavy so probably doesn't fit your brief that well otherwise but it's an excellent pushchair.

Some pushchairs are certified suitable from birth without a carrycot, some aren't it depends on the type of seat, how flat it lies, harness size etc. So you can do either really. A carrycot will almost certainly have to be taken off a chassis to fold so bigger in the car but you have that period of time where you don't have to strap the baby in, which may help you on the fiddly straps side of things.

Have you been to see some things in person yet? In your situation the harness buckle and folding buttons may be much more crucial to the overall experience, it's not something I notice so I'm not necessarily going to be suggesting the best things for what would work best for you.

As a starting point the bugaboo bee is light, small and newborn suitable (I think with or without the new carrycot on the bee3) but had it's fiddly elements, it can be awkward when folded. The Icandy raspberry I haven't actually seen yet but v similar product. The new m&p armadillo flip looks very interesting, the regular armadillo has been very successful. The easywalker mosey could be great but again it hasn't quite arrived yet so nobody has seen or used it. The baby jogger vue is a reversible umbrella style stroller, could be good again harness and details of the fold currently unknown.

The graco evo and sky are both light and suitable from birth, the Icandy cherry is also good. That has a separate carrycot. I like the joie chrome a lot too.

Wow, thank you! It will take me a while to investigate all of those. I've not yet been on pilgrimage to Kiddicare but will be. (The "local" one isn't closing)

You are definitely right about the clips and buttons being important. I once tried to help a friend take down her silver cross and i couldn't even remove the bastinet. The button was so stiff!

have a good play with the harness if arthritis is a problem. The BJCM harness is OK, my old Bee (very old, 2009) was not, nor my old maclaran. Quite a lot of buggies will allow you to attach your own separate harness, or you could get it modified yourself. Anything you do get will get easier to use as it wears in and you get used to it. It might be worth considering a second hand one as the parts will be worn in. A note too, that you cannot lubricate plastic moving parts with WD40. My dad told me this, and it was backed up by the man at John Lewis. I was recommended to use furniture polish or dylon spray starch. Both work.

all the stores stock different brands, so have a look in John Lewis and Toys R us too. And obviously once you've decided, shop around on line for a deal.

Mamas and papas Sola

Pros: Flips either parent or go ward facing with two easy clips. I even used to flip it with DS in. Very easy to push even with one hand. Only pushchair my colicky, pushchair hating DS was happy in. Seat fully reclines.

Cons: Doesn't fold up that small, I think it might just about fit in a boot though

oooh. I love that Raspberry. I've got an very old Bee. Which I loved but found it fiddly. And DS1 was fine in it till I chucked him out of it for DS2 at 2yrs 8 months. But DS2 is a broader creature, and at 22 months is spilling out of it. I think the newer versions are wider and have an adjustable seat back, and the harness has been revised.

The Sola is great.

I was going to suggest maybe getting a second hand buggy so the clips and folding mechanism aren't all stiff. Our buggy's fold and recline are much much stiffer than the display model was (baby 4 weeks old so barely used)

We have bought the Stokke Xplory, purely because I too have a bad back. I love how high up the seat is as I won't need to bend down to pick baby up. It is a bit heavy which isn't the best and the car seats were very heavy so we went for the nuna pipa with maxi cosi adapters. We know we will need to buy a buggy down the road (holidays, quick trips to town). I would definitely take a look at it or the scoot.