double buggy vs buggyboard/sling - honest opinions needed

[lorisparkle]

My DS1 will be 21mnths when DC2 is born so I have a few questions for all you pushchair experts out there.

If you went for the buggyboard / sling option which sling did you have, how old was your eldest DC and how did you find it?

I'm looking at the firstwheels city or the icandy pear.

Anyone seen an icandy pear and what did you think?

Anyone with a firstwheels city - how did you get on?

If I was to have a double I really want one where the newborn lies completely flat and where there is the option of the younger one in particular facing you.

Any other ideas about doubles etc gratefully received

Hiya,
I'll tell you everything I know, and believe me, I researched this like crazy before my ds2 was born (ds1 was 23 months). Save yourself the hassle and BUY A TANDEM. I recomend the Jane powertwin pro. It is expensive but worth it, because it is light, folds flat, and can turn on a dime. The infant can lie completely flat and your older child can sit comfortably in the front seat, and if you use the carseat with it, the infant can face you.

Like you are thinking, I used a sling for the first few months but then got tired of trying to chase my toddler or deal with him while he was having a strop with my baby in the sling. It's not a bad option at the beginning, but it does get too hard, so you might as well go for a pushchair right from the start, imo, and you may as well plump for a good one if you're going to get a lot of use out of it. They also hold their value well on ebay.

Good luck and happy shopping.
PS if you want to get it from Mothercare, doa search on-line and then print off the lowest price you can find; mothercare will pricematch.

I'd ditto the advice not to try to cope with a sling. Was fanatical sling user with ds, but very quickly realised that it wan't an option with dd, as I'd never manage to control a toddler whilst carrying a sling.

I have a Phil & Ted & think it's wonderful. Doesn't meet all your criteria, though, as both seats are forward facing. V robust & manouverable (sp?) - we even did a hike cross country when dd was but a few weeks old.

DD2 is going to be 25mnths when DS is born, and we are going for the powertwin too.

Ebay sell them BNIB

Great resale value too.

I am interested in this too - my LO will be 2 and a half when next one comes, and I too like the newborn to be flat and facing me.

This jane powertwin thing looks like you have to have the newborn in a carseat if you want them facing you (ie not flat).

Any further thoughts?

if you want a side by side, the First wheels city twin is nice, because it can fac both ways and take a carrycot.

mega £££ though, and me personally want something tandem to be able to get in the house easily in bad weather (baby due end of nov!)

Hi

My ds1 was 23 months when ds2 was born. We had planned on just having a buggy board but soon decided that a double buggy would be better. We did a lot of walking so it was a long time for ds2 to be standing and TBH I was a lot more comfortable with both of them strapped in so I knew where they both were and ds1 couldn't run off.

I tried a tandem in the shops but my stomach muscles split whilst pregnant with ds2 so found it really difficult to bump the front up for going up pavements etc. Eventually plumped for a maclaren twin and although both seats face forward it was light, folded up well, and was easily manouverable. Really depends what you'll use it for whether the extra width is important or not. I would try a few in the shops with you eldest sitting in to get some idea.

Good luck.

i used a double buggy
dd was 22 mths when ds was born
i got about 16months out of it, as sahm it was good for walking and napping them at the same time.
then dd wanted to walk more, so i got the buggy board on a cheapo buggy out of mothercare
still use that. thou the b/board less.

Thanks everyone. Yes I was looking at the powertwin as I have heard it is good but was a little concerned about how flat it goes. I have also heard about problems with getting tandems up kerbs.

It was worse than buying a car when we bought our first pushchair and a double seems even worse than that.

Any more comments gratefully received - especially about the icandy pear....

the nice thing about the powertwin is that because it is a 3 wheeler, it is easier to get it up on the kerb than a 4 wheel one.
Also, if you need it to go reeeeeally flat, you can remove all of the wheels (or just the front one), and also the hoods and even the seats.
One other thing I forgot to mention is that, even though it is long, it is easy to maneouver through the shops and in and out of doorways, etc. (unlike a side by side).

I should work for Jane!

we tried out the powertwin in mothercare with DD2 in the front, and of ALL the doubles in there, it was the easiest to push and bump up and down, im only 5'1 so usually struggle anyway, but it was a dream

We have a p+T with a 12mth age gap and found it by far THE best pram to use. I know you want the baby to face you but with baby in main seat lying down and toddler on front seat mode you can see the baby fine and they can still look up to see you. Then in the 2 toddler mode it is fantastic. Would definetly recommend it!

I have a 20m gap between ds and dd - so I got a Jane powertwin and used it for nearly a year - now have dd in buggy and ds walks/ uses buggy board. Ds still napped for 1-2 hours in his buggy every day when dd was born so it was a necessity for him and my dc's are very big and heavy so I could not function on a regular basis with just a sling. Although I found having a sling very useful as well. I don't drive so travelling on public transport was easier with a single buggy and sling or better still no buggy just sling.

OK I have 24mo and 21mo gaps.

Used Babybjorn (frowned on on MN now I know) and then a buggyboard once baby was about 6mo (tho I carried them all off and on til 10mo).

Worked for me, never needed a double (hate em). 21mo is the bottom end of a gap when you could get away without one tho. Guess it depends on how much walking you actually do - a mile a day? More than that? A lot less?

All my 3 are NT and walk well now. DS1 was a late walker tho FWIW, but still seemed able to drag himself a mile or so by age 3 .

Have to say I have never been big on trolling round town for hours with the kids in tow, which is when I think some people are glad of a buggy.

I have a 2 yr gap
We have a P&T for walking around locally and a maclaren twin for airports/other travel

I occasionally used a baby bjorn (with lumbar support) and a single maclaren when the baby was smaller but I would only recommend that for short trips

The P&T is great, really easy to push

The maclaren is okay, fits through standard doorways but a bit of a pain in shops really

I have a 21 month gap and used a sling for the first 6 weeks or so plus a buggy - but after that baby just got too heavy esp when walking back from the school run and I wanted to stop at the park or go to library with dd2 - so we bought a powertwin. We had a lot of problems with it - so if you do go for this please buy from a reputable department store - prices are pretty comparable to discount places online.

It's nice to have one facing you, but really in the grand scheme of things, not a big deal.

I really like the powertwin - quite pricey though.

it does depend on how much waking you do - I agree with clary - forget about the shopping trips and needing a double for that reason! I have a mile long walk to school for dd1 and didn't even consider a buggy board for dd2 ( and still won't) as the buggy is easier on my and I know dd2 is secure.