Transporting a New Born and a 23 month old. What can you suggest?

[MalmoMum]

I have read the other threads on double buggies and buggy boards but I still feel I could use some advice. The new baby is due in August when ds will be 23 months.

I walk and cycle a lot and I live 2 miles from a pretty buggy friendly town eg I can put my buggy on the bus, unfolded. I love my pegasus three wheeler and have jogged with it from pretty early on. We do have a Maclaren which lives in the car and it still looks pretty pristine (but not the car).

I love the manovrebility of the three wheeler. Does anyone have any practical comments on double 3 wheelers and 4 wheelers. I did see a German woman on holiday with the TFK double 3 wheeler which works for a new born and toddler which seemed pretty nice. (Sabine, are you still posting? Thank you for the web address for TFK. All I could remember was 'Friends for Kids' not 'Trends'

At the moment, when I go out with ds I take the buggy and the bush baby backpack. He is alright in the buggy for limited periods but wants to be out and about. As we have yet to refine walking in a straight line, he goes in the backpack when restless. I wonder how this will progress as the pregancy does. Can't see myself doing this after giving birth for example. Don't think he will be ready for a buggy board.

So feedback, please!

No personal experience but a friend had a posh double three-wheeler for her new-born and 13 mth old. She sold it after just a couple of months because it was unbalanced with children of different weights, was very heavy and didn't fit into a reasonable sized car (Escort). That's not to say 'don't get one', just a warning to check out these factors!

DS was 20 mo whgen DD was born. DS usually will not use the buggy unless it's for a long walk so I use only 1 pram. If I go for a longer walk I put DD (who is now 5 mo) in a Baby Bjorn and I take my pushchair along for DS.
You could consider the pram for the baby and the baby backpack for your son as he will be walking better by the time your baby is born. The only problem I find with the way I do it is that I cannot be in a hurry because my son like to walk about........... aaarrrrgggghhhh and he isn't keen on the pushchair. Basically I have avoided buying something new.

I would avoid a double buggy if at all poss simply because they are so cumbersome and don't fit through shop doorways, i'm told. My two are 2yrs apart and first one was lateish walker, but i managed fine with baby in the Babybjorn and toddler in the buggy, or buggy + pram if i was with someone. As he's got bigger he's walked more/she's in buggy more but still have sling in the bag if needed. Seems to work OK. Will have to investigate buggy board when baby is too big for Bjorn but am told they are good too.

my children are 20 mo. apart and I did splash out on a pram with toddler seat - used once in the nine months since dd no.2 was born. At least it was second hand, but still, what a complete waste of money!
Found it much easier to get about with a single pushchair for the toddler and the baby in a sling, and then as dd no.1 'matured' a bit we progressed to the buggy board.
We're going on holiday next week and will be taking the Bushbaby for our youngest and a pushchair for the 2.5 yr old.
There's a report on three wheelers in the latest Which? magazine. Don't think the doubles did too well...

I found using double 3 wheeler (twin buzzz by kingswood) really easy, inflatable tyres made it easy to handle and a smooth ride. and it was no wider than your average double buggy, easy to fold down and put in car and ideal for loading everything onto; shopping, bags, coats etc...
No problems with balance (13 months age gap)
and it looked the part!! always got a comment from people passing.

If you are willing to splash out and try something different, and you really like 3 wheelers, you could look at a Kiwi Explorer: www.babybuggy.co.nz/

This is a 3 wheeler with a swivel wheel, and an attachment to turn it into a tandem double. My sister has one of these and thinks it's great, although she is not really a jogger. You can ship these direct from NZ for about £40 - the exchange rate makes it quite reasonable compared to cost of a double Pegasus 3 wheeler.

I had a 'waki rider', which is a pushchair with integral board, when I had mine (22 mths apart). I struggled with a double buggy for about 5 months, but found I was going out less & less often as toddler went in front, and I couldn't get it up & down kerbs anymore, let alone in & out of shops. The waki was great, and had 3 years of fairly hard use. Because it has a board on the back, toddler can jump on & off as required, and we used it until no 2 was 3.5, esp great for family days out where there was a lot of walking, as I put the bags on the seat, and then either of them used to hitch a ride when their legs got tired.
On the downsides (there's always some) it is fairly heavy, but not if you've been used to carting toddlers around, and because the handle bars reach over the toddler, they are longer than usual & so take up more room in the car.
PS anyone want to buy one in North Cheshire - got one for sale!

berries, have been looking into the idea of a buggy board for a couple of months, having given up on our Emmaljunga double buggy when my 3 year old son got too big. He's now just three and I do need something to bring him and his sister to playgroup (about a mile each way. Do you think a waki rider would do till he was about 4 - if you do you might have a customer on your hands, I live not too far away...

Manky, I stopped using mine about June last year, when eldest was 5.5 (and about age 7 in clothes) and youngest was just coming up to 4. Eldest didn't use it too much at that stage, but it had certainly come in useful when she started school at nearly 5, as her legs got progressively tireder as the week went on. I don't think I could have done half the things with my 2 if I hadn't had it. It would cetainly do your son until he was at least 4. I found it a lot easier to push than a buggy board, as you're not leaning over the elder child to reach the handles. If you're interested, send an e-mail, I think you can ask tech for the addresses.

berries, have just emailed tech people for address so will be intouch. Thanks

Thanks for your replies. Still got lots of time to um and ah over the various pros and cons. I only use the car for the Supermarket run and I am hoping to keep it that way.

We have done a bit of web browsing at the things suggested. Rosilee, the balance bit sounded good is there anything else that you would recommend to look out for as you are using the Kingswood regularly.

Berries, on the Waki Rider, is the not stooping over the added buggy board the great advantage? Hope you have a sale on your hands!

Florence, has your sister actually used the Kiwi double decker bus arrangement? (For anyone going over this double buggy dilemma, I would recommend at least looking at the pictures. The baby sort of goes where you shopping basket is, but a bit more elegantly, so you have normal length and width buggy). Or does she know of anyone who has? One of my friends in the UK has the normal version and seems to enjoy it.

Although we have plenty of pondering to do, dh has decided that whatever we choose it's not going to fit into my Nissan Sunny, so he's glued to copies of What Car? etc. There seems to be a follow up question emerging here...

Cheerio

Again, praise for the double buzzz, only trouble I sometimes encountered was with some of the smaller shops who had a small doorway, I lived in quite a buggy friendly town so plenty of alternative shops on offer. With my first car (fiesta) had to stand buggy upright in boot, parcel shelf removed but went on to escort which housed it lovely, quick release wheels also help cut it down to size quickly and easily and it lies really flat in boot allowing you to load all your shopping on top.

I have a 17 month old little boy and am due to have another baby in the next few weeks. We have looked at double buggies and have decided the Mothercare Urban Detour Alpine 3-wheeler suits us best, but have heard it's not the best option to buy one new or full price, as you don't use it for long. Does anyone know of any websites where I can get one for a discounted price? Any advice on coping with two children under two would be great also! (as everyone I meet seems to think we are mad having another so soon and tells me it will be v. hard work!)

I have a Mothercare urban detour for sale, if you are interested? Its a year old and in good condition.

MalmoMum: I think you should try the baby in front carrier or sling & tot in buggy. If it doesn't suit, then the McClaran side-by-side (umbrella folding) buggy (suitable from birth).

I have a 23 month gap. And I cycle & walk a lot, too. But I don't go on the bus. Otherwise I'd recommend my buggy (a duo-Graco travel system tandem). It doesn't fold down very small, but it's good for walking long distances, and not waking baby up when you have to leave the buggy outside the Mother & Toddler's room.

But If I had to go on the bus I'd get the McClaran & take a Baby Bjorn, too. McClaran folds down quite well for going on the bus, but you need somewhere to put the baby while you fold the buggy down! Does my back in to wear baby in a front carrier all the time, so I needed a buggy and couldn't just use the Baby Bjorn all the time. And my older child wouldn't cooperate to use the buggy board (at 3yo, he doesn't walk reliably... just not a reliable child, really!).

Cycling, btw: we found what worked was putting toddler in a seat, and getting a cycle trailer that we could strap very securely a car seat (for the new baby) into. Sort out your feeding system, and you're off!

Hope that helps.

Durh! I typed all that and now realise that MalmoMum was posting in January!

Oh well. Could use a little January chilliness rather than this stuffy heat, at least.

Mieow - How much do you want for it and where are you? I suppose it'll only be feasible if you live in the North-West, as we live in Lancs.

Neen99, sorry to go off post but as you're in the north west would you be interested in the nw meet up in liverpool on 2nd August?? realise you are expecting and dates might clash but keep looking as i'm sure there will be another in sept/oct

we are in the south east, in herts. Oh well