choosing a pushchair suitable from birth

[sistergrim]

Please, please can someone help me? Have been debating what 'wheels' to get for bubba since conception and still don't know what to go for and am in a real state over it with 7 weeks left. I had my heart set on a Micralite as it has the carry cot attatchment which would be good as we live up lots of stairs, and it also seems good for newborn as it is completely flat and cosy. I am worried about the pushchair stage though as it is a sling design- would this be adequate support for their spine? And it says can not be used till 6 months-is this not a bot long for it to be in a carry cot?
We are looking at the Maclaren techno XT - says suitable from birth but doesn't seem like would be very cosy and is the 'nearly flat angle' it lies at flat enough???
Arrgghhhhhh! Am I thinking too much about this or just being sensible? Don't want to but the wrong thing and just want to do the best for bubba.
Can Anyone offer some advice? Would really, REALLY appreciate it!
Posted: 24 Aug 2006 14:59:04

We have the Maclaren Techno XT. It's great but I wouldn't recommend for very tiny babies though, as it's not really supportive and cosy enough IMO. We borrowed a big sturdy Mamas and Papas travel system thingy from a friend and used that for the first 3 months. Then started used the Maclaren, and still using it now DD is 17 months, with no problems. It is nice and light and easy to manoeuvre. HTH

I live up lots of stairs Dd2 due Nov.

My plan is to ge the Maclaren.

I think this'll suit us because it'll leave me the option of putting Dd1 in the buggy for reasons of discipline speed (she is generally a good walker).

My recollections of Dd1 was that she looked pretty scrawny and miserable in any pushchair to begin with - was much happier in a sling. So I'm thinking that i won't need to use the Maclaren so much to begon with - perhaps just put her down in it in when i get tired - so the lack of cosiness won't be such a problem.

guess you've seen this already...

I had travel systems for my 1st two but hardly used the car seat on the buggy. Am expecting my 3rd and am planning to get the Techno as everyone I know of who has one, loves it, and because it seems a good compromise between a buggy suitable for a newborn, and a light-ish stroller suitable for a toddler!

Hi! I am a bit paranoid myself, so after a lot of research I bought the Hauck infinity model. It seemed the closest to the Bugaboo, but without the hefty price -I paid £230 on offer including chassis, carrycot, pushchair, raincover, footmuff; it was £300 in Woolworths, £170 on ebay-. Also, the carrycot is a bit wider and longer than usual, while I find the Micralite to be very small. Pros: the pram and puschchair are very easy to use, store and get around with; all terrain; stylish. Cons: still too heavy to be carried by me, but lighter than most flat prams; we had minor problems with a loose bolt than now seem to be resolved.
Although most travel systems seem to be suitable from birth, I could not find any completely flat. Some look flat, but they are not. Hope this helps

ooh, if you're looking for lie-flat have a peek at the M&P Pramette - not a carrycot, but lies flat facing you for the first few months then sits up and faces away from you like a normal pushchair and umbrella folds.

Not cheap and not as light as some but does look cosy for a winter baby.

Personally I liked having a carrycot in the early days. It meant we could go out, such as to friends, and feel ds could sleep properly while were there . Also convenient for overnight stays and it was nice to feel they were snug and more protected from the elements than in a forward facing buggy. Some carrycots have an adjustable backrest so you can prop the baby up to see out as they gain more head control.

I had a techno classic, it is cosy if you get a foot muff or use a blanket as well. DS was born in Feb and it worked fine

Btw - all maclarens are 10% off at mothercare right now

We have a Techno Classic. ds2 used it from about 8 weeks old and we are still using it now he is 13 months. Ours had a head hugger, seat liner and apron included and also has adjustable height shoulder straps which is really useful with a small baby. We bought ours from glasgow pram centre for £120. HTH

I agree with the poster below and would say the M&P Pliko Pramette Pushchair. My mum had bourght us the Maclaren XT but I was never 100% sure about it so we took it back this morning. Friends who have it, love it but they have it IN ADDITION to a travel system that they used from birth. I felt that I wouldn't like tiny new born so low down and facing away from me - and not very cosy. In the end dh and I settled for the new Moove from M&P - lighter and smaller when folded than the XT but has the added ability for a car seat to fit in (Don't know if you're looking for a car seat as well). Will probably use a sling alot at the beginning though, but if we weren't, then I really liked the M&P Pliko Pramette Pushchair - still an umberella fold like the XT, converts totally flat rear racing for new born and is only slightly heavier than the XT but still smaller when folded. Also has a nice bumper that the XT doesn't have, adjustable handle heights and can be used with the M&P car seat if you need one. Would recommend going to a M&P store and asking them to demonstrate as they were so helpful to us today while Mothercare could hardly be bothered!

Sistergrim, there is a new model, the Micralite Newborn Plus, with a wider carrycot. Might be worth checking it out.

i completely rate the Jane nomad and i have the lie-flat car seat which is also a pram but i noticed today that Mothercare has ripped off the bugaboo rather well. don't remember the name of the model but it was really lovely and padded.
the ony reason i wouldn't go straight to a buggy is that often they only face outwards and you will definitely want to stare into your baby's eyes for the first while. so double-check that it can be turned around if you do go straight to a buggy.
i live up stairs too, i'd advise getting big back wheels and good suspension.

i love my mutsy. it is so comfortable and has brilliant suspension, ds even used the carry cot as his bed during our 2 week holiday this summer as the travel cot they provided looked far too big and uncomfortable for a 5 week old.

Hmm, if you need something with a carrycot that goes beyond the 6 months "mile", then I´d say Emmaljunga Edge Sport. It comes with a seperate seat unit as well as a carrycot. Baby can lie flat on its´ back in the carrycot up until 1 year. The handle is reversiable and telescopic. The storage basket is removeable and washable. So is the inside linning. It has fittings under the mattress for a seperate 5-point harness. mesh window with UV-protection in the hood, thermobase with a slide gate under the carrycot that allows air to circulate within the carrycot. Extra head protection (HI-Pro), Outer fabric is Protex that is parcially wind, warmt, cold and rainproof. The carrycot is collapseable, The hood can easierly be removed. The pram comes with an insectnet and a raincover.
The weight: it is a little on the heavy side: around 17-18 kgs. The seat unit too has a special head protection facillity, and has a built-in 5-point harness. The chassis is made of light-weight chryptonite steel. The price is around 4-500 p.

I can't stop myself from giving you advice on this as I looked into this extensively and feel I made an expensive mistake and wouldn't want you to do the same thing. I have loved my Micralite system for the past 4 months but knowing what I know now would not have bought it. Sorry about the long post but I need to vent!

You have to decide what's important to you about a pram. If you use a car then you probably want a system to start with where the carseat clicks onto the pram which has a newborn attachment. I have also decided it's important to me to have a rear-facing option as my 4 month old is too big for the bassinet at this point but I still want to see her as we stroll around.

If a person with deep pockets is going to buy the pram for you, then get the bugaboo chameleon. (I myself am just not a bugaboo typeI just don't love the way everyone thinks they are so cool and want to buck the system a bit!) It's a great pram which won't break and has everything you need (including being able to face your child towards you once you start using the stroller bit. Or if you don't need it for offroad then get the Bugaboo Bee the newest and will be out here I think in October or you can pick one up from the USA. It's a great city stroller but not as good for off-roading as the Chameleon.) Or maybe check into the Stokke Explory. I don't know much about them but they look very cool and I like the idea of the baby being high up and closer to me!

If you are paying for this yourself and money is tight I don't think I would spend the money on a Bugaboo. Basically most moms end up buying a McClaren type of buggy when the babies are about 1 year old because it's the lightest, easiest and best value. At that point your child weighs so much you need the lightest most durable thing around. There are loads of great types that are only about £100 and do everything you need.

The bit that drives the price up on this whole process is the bassinet. You need one for when the baby is little but then never again. So you end up with a huge outlay of cash for something you only use for a few months. If you can borrow a pram with a bassinet for 4 months then that's the best option if you are in a cash crunch. Then you can buy whatever stroller you want after that and will know so much more about strollers by then.

If you can't borrow a pram with a newborn attachment and are buying this on your own I would recommend checking into the Hauck infinity travel system. It has all the features of a bugaboo with the added bonus of being able to collapse the stroller with the baby seat facing forward (which you can't do with the bug). Scroll down on this link to see more-- www.mypushchair.co.uk/hauck-pushchairs.php
I think they are coming out with a new 2007 model so be sure to get that one and not the old so beware of sales if you are buying a new one. www.groovystyle.co.uk/productpages/2006-hauck/hauck-infinity-2007.html . You can get everything you need for £269 new and sell it after you have used it for probably about half of what you paid or just keep it because the Hauck is a good stroller. And there are all typesthere are even ones where you plug in your ipod and the stroller has speakers hee hee. (I just bought the Hauck myself now that she is olderI have just purchased the version called the Rock Star Baby Candy (from the USA) one. My mother in law is going to use it so we need an extra and I just think they are too cute. This one doesn't reverse but that's OK because as she gets older she won't want to face backwards anyway. And it's about the same price as a McLaren except it's not one so I won't look just like everybody else. www.strollermama.com/rock-star-baby-candy-stroller.htm

But if you are paying for it yourself there are loads of strollers with the same features (rear facing stroller, can add a carsear, fairly lightweight etc.) which are good
Hauck infinity (good all around choice--many versions: I'coo, Esprit, Jeep, Rock Star Baby (USA) etc.)
CityElite First Wheels (basically a complete knockoff of the Bug but uses cheaper parts)
Bebe Confort Loola (too bulky and heavy for me)
Quinny Buzz (super cute but too heavy I think)
Britax Vigour 3 or 4 (I just bought the Vigour 3 our jogging stroller and off road and everyday stroller while she is little enough to face backwards)
Silver Cross (too bulky and heavy and not all that cute)
Peg Perego Venezia (pretty good but I don't love the way it looks so much)

So now I am selling our Micralite travel system. I have loved the Micralite bassinet and the stroller. They are so sassy, but the stroller doesn't face backwards and I really want that feature until she is older so I can see her as we stroll around.

I would keep the Micralite stroller bit for later as I really think it's pretty cool but we can resell the system for more than a new stroller costs, so that's why I am selling it and have bought the Rock Star Candy for the everyday lightweight stroller which should take us through the rest of her stroller years I hope. We have also purchased the Britax Vigour 3 which I am totally excited about. It faces backwards which is good for now and we will keep it as a jogging/ offroad stroller.

But the Bugaboo Cameleon does both things well (everyday stroller and is somewhat OK for offroad/ beach) or you could just end up with two like we have which I think is better because I like to have a choice and we have a spare in case something goes wrong! And I just don't want to be a Bugaboo person--it's just not my style. I live in Queen's Park and they are everywhere!! But on the other hand the Bugaboos seem to have awesome resale value so you could just buy one new and keep it if you love it or sell it later if you like. It's up to you. I am finally happy in my two stroller world and hope this helps someone out there! :0

Ok - I bought a 3 wheeler. It's huge, irritating, can't take it away with us as it doesn't leave any space for anything else in the car. I couldn't push it or do anything with it after the birth as it was too heavy. I left it at my mum's house by the coast for getting over sand dunes should we need to.

I ended up using a sling for about 8 weeks and then bought a McClaren Techno XT which I love soooooooo much. Can use them from newborn - I used mine from 6 weeks. Get a lambswool thing and lay then on it then snug blankies around them.

x

i candy cherry
it's got lovely carry cot and a pushchair which can face you.

www.icandyuk.com

Oh that's right! The icandy is very cute and a good price but I have heard that it falls apart easily but only know this third hand.