[Closed] New parent question (pram and car content)

Lola up 3 in one. Folds with one hand, we got the m and p car seat (needs adaptors tho) to go with it as it gets better reviews. Tyres are solid and not the biggest although ok for the stuff we did folds one handed although not with carry cot or car seat in it and folding mechanism eats into the underwear storage area a bit.
We're using a different pram now but based in Glasgow if you like nearby and wanna try it in the boot of your car? Guessing the shops should let u do this before you buy anything tho.
Couldn't believe the prices at first though.. Crazy stuff!

thanks for the offer althepal but i live in Nottingham so Glasgow is a bit of a trek. M&Ps did let us try theirs in the boot so we know the Urbo fits it's just whether it can take the 'rough stuff' that we'll probably take it on about once a week or so.

Out of interest - what car do you have that fits the sola and what pram are you using now?

What exactly is the problem with taking the wheels off?

well, it's fine when its a brand new pram from the shop in the warmth of July but what about after a muddy wet walk in January, i'm not sure my wife will want to get her hands muddy also.

What exactly is the problem with taking the wheels off?

It is a massive, massive faff.

Having had two 3 wheelers I'd go for one with pneumatic tyres. Also, if you have to pop a wheel off the rears are much easier to remove than the fronts in our experience.

A Mothercare Urban Detour will do the job, but I'm not sure if it is still available.

We eventually bought 2 prams, one for the car and around town, a Mclaren foldy job, and one for walking into town and around and about, a Phil and Teds. Luckily we have a focus and the P&T's fitted into the boot ok. As you've got a Fiesta the seats fold, should be able to get and with only one child should be able to fit pram in there?

The M&Ps Sola or Glide both have the same chasis and the rear wheels pop off no problem and takes about 5secs in total. the display models wheel didnt click back into place first time everytime so that doesn't really bode well for longterm reliability.

We have discussed putting the rear seat down to get it in that way or removing the parcel shelf and standing it on its side rather than laying flat - could be an option i guess.

Taking the wheels off is a doddle takes a few seconds, keep a pair of Marigolds in the boot too so you wife don't break a nail.

Yup - we have two prams, keeping the small one in the car boot.

Get something smallish for town, and a baby sling of some kind for walking. Much more comfortable, and very good for the baby sleeping in it. Means you can do proper walks, you can walk when it is cold without worrying so much about whether the baby is cold, you don't have to worry about stiles, rocks or whatever, in every way it is just a better thing (For us at least).

We had a 'Moby wrap' sling for the first 3 or 4 months, it was brilliant until she got very wriggly and threatened to escape it, and then we got a different one, a 'Connecta', which was also really comfy, but she can't escape it.

I've got a running / bike trailer push chair (Croozer), and a three wheeled buggy with pneumatic tyres (Quinny), and I'd always go for the sling (or a rucksack once they are a toddler) for any off road walking.

I've done a bit of running with a push chair, which is the only time that having pneumatic tyres and three wheels is actually worth it - if you want to run with it, I'd wait until the baby is slightly older (like 3 months) and get something you can use with the bike too, you know you want to!

We have a Maclaren for town, it is nice enough, small wheels, but that doesn't really matter except off road. The one we have is from 3 months, but there are ones for littler babies. It is not too bad on our cobbled road, which frankly is a lot more bumpy than most paths you'd get in most nature reserves (I'd still use a sling for walks though).

Joe

after a muddy wet walk in January, i'm not sure my wife will want to get her hands muddy also.

Also, in my experience, 3 wheelers (or any pram for that matter) are pretty rubbish in anywhere that gets much mud. My massive running buggy is okay, but otherwise a sling will be a million times better.

We used a Quinny Buzz 3 . Maxi cosi car seat and the buzz chassis lasted us until six months.went to mothercare an got them to demo all the travel combos of buggy and car seats and then bought all our stuff on line. Got the easy fix car seat holder of kiddiecare for £30 cheaper than mothercare and maxi cosi seat from amazon for 40 cheaper . We got a buzz 3 on eBay for 130. Chassis had slight marks but all the seat bits were still in Plastic. But you can buy just the chassis for about 60 and just use the car seat if your not out for to long . The ebayer sells childrens returned goods but I can't remember the name , wife may remember.

I'm told that avoiding dog eggs is much harder with a 3-wheeler...

Avoiding dog eggs isn't too bad with a 3 wheeler, but any pram makes it impossible for a grandmother to avoid them - worth having a pram to keep at grandmas if she plays any part in childcare in my opinion!

Hmmm, we ended up with 3 prams. In laws very kindly bought us a Silver Cross 3D pram system - baby seat, pram & buggy in one. Other half had a Pug 206 at the time and it fitted in the boot no problem. Quite a good pram apart from when I pushed it, my feet hit the rear wheels. OK off road, but not brilliant.

We also got an out'n'about 3 wheeler. Much easier for me to push, great offroad, only went in the 206 with the front wheel off. No problem as it has a QR, and fitted in my car fine. Only suitable for 6M +. Broke it eventually.

Last pram was a Maclaren when little man got a bit bigger. Small, light, cheap, strong, ok off road. The biz, but not suitable for tinys.

I think the Silver Cross was about £450 new. Had to go back to them at one point 'cos it wasn't folding properly. Sold it recently for £100 on Ebay. The out'n'about was £150 - now sitting in oil store as it's broke. The Maclaren was around £80 and we gave it to my little boy's nursery - it's still going strong.

8 month year old here...

Ignored everyone's advice to not bother with a travel system (iCandy Apple). Clicking car seat into wheels was admittedly useful but meant heavy pram attachment went all but unused - used a baby carrier most of the time.

Finally went in the stroller attachment which is bulky and fills a good chunk of a C-Max's boot. He's just as happy in his grandparent's cheap M&P folding stroller.

If I was doing it again (thankfully the iCandy has at least lasted really well and should do another kid), I think I'd probably go with something like a Micralight fastfold but ignore the pram. Car seat attachment was a blessing at times and the fastfold does look at be a good compromise between cheap rattly thing and big fancy travel system stroller.

Back to the OP - are you wanting a travel system or just a pram? You need to decide what you want then we can help more.

I live up north. I had big plans for huge walks with baby number one but wife stopped me buying the mega outdoor pram... and she was right! Baby due in December - go Papoose/Sling until well into next year for the outdoorsy stuff, keep the wee toot cuddled up nice and close where they should be.

Any pram will do for towny stuff. Reconsider in the spring if your using the town pram for offroad excursions - chances are the first pram you buy will have things you don't like anyway so buying expensive ones is daft... travel system look clever but you'll end up with multiple prams and pushchairs no matter how much you try to avoid it.

I think the Silver Cross was about £450 new

We bought ours (the 3D) second hand for about £50, including the car seat. I've no idea why people buy these new!

One tip for stopping your feet hitting the back wheels is to pull the arms out as far as they go, as this puts you further back behind the pram.

Start with a sling, a nice all fabric wrap style one is best. Slings are way way better for the baby.

Then when you have an idea of the stuff you actually do with your kid, decide if you want a pushchair. You may want to then get a small town pushchair and continue to use the sling for 'off-road' stuff.

We had a chunky 'off-road' type pushchair, it didn't get much use. It's just too much faff when you want to walk.

Travel systems are also rubbish imo. So your kid's asleep after a car journey - so what? If it's tired, it'll fall asleep again in a pushchair or sling. If not, then it'll be awake. If your kid is comorted and/or stimulated the right amout it'll be ok, regardless. This is what you have to make sure.

Travel systems are also rubbish imo.

Yup, and it's not a great idea to leave your baby in the car seat for hours on end. We just lift junior out and put her in the pram - as you say, when she's tired she barely stirs, and pushing the pram usually sends her back to sleep anyway.

including the car seat. I've no idea why people buy these new!

Buying car seats second hand is not the greatest idea.

Whoops post in wrong thread!

Buying car seats second hand is not the greatest idea.

It is if you know the previous owner. Anyway, if you don't - buy the pram second-hand and a new car seat, you're still quids in.

I think we're after a travel system as I can genuinely see us using the infant car seat and pushchair attachments plus my wife wants one of the lay-flat carry cot things too. whens it's older a smaller pushchair will be good to save space in the car etc.

I think we're after a travel system as I can genuinely see us using the infant car seat and pushchair attachments plus my wife wants one of the lay-flat carry cot things too.

We thought the same. In practice, we leave the car seat in the car and just lift her out and put her in the pram, so she can lay flat. It's no big deal, and seems less faff to me.

Phil & Ted lies very flat. That cocoon thing is only good for a few months, they soon out grow them. The wheels come off with a press of the centre button, so just grip the spokes, no need to touch the tyre. You could keep a Rhino tub in the boot for them to go in if muddy. Thats assuming a Phil & Ted wont go in with wheels on.

We bought a travel system (M&P Pliko) for number 1. He was born in November so the pram was good for insulation and comfort when walking any distance into town for example. Off road it was rubbish - it barely survived a regular 3 mile walk along the canal towpath. We soon got tired of reconfiguring it into pram mode when we were out in the car so just clicked the car seat onto the pushchair. The car seat was pretty heavy, the missus struggled with it once the eldest was about 8 months.

When number 2 was on his way (only 13 months between them) we got rid of the lot as we needed a double, and got a Phil and Ted's Explorer (new version of Sport). He went in a borrowed cocoon for the first month or so, then in the car seat on top. He's now big enough to go into either of the seats. We ended up with a Maxi Cosi cabrio car seat as it was nice and light.

We never really used a sling much, although we do have one, but in your situation I'd probably go for one of those over a pram if your wife will allow it. Prams are great but the amount of time you actually need one (3 months?) makes them a bit expensive. If she does want one see if you can borrow one, or go second hand.

I also wouldn't bother with an all in one pram/pushchair/etc combo, they're a bit like hybrid bikes - good on paper but in practice don't really do anything that well.

I'd also recommend future proofing your purchase as much as possible. For example if you're planning on having another reasonably soon get something like a Phil and Teds that will take a double kit. We paid about £500 for the all singing all dancing M&P kit for number one then sold it on ebay for about £100 (12 months old!) before dropping another £700 on the P&T kit. A very painful lesson!

Prams are great but the amount of time you actually need one (3 months?) makes them a bit expensive.

Depends a lot on the baby. If you've got a small, lie still baby that is happy with a pram/carry cot attachment, they can get six months good use out of the pram. If you have a wriggle maniac like we have it is less worth it. We basically didn't use the carry cot after about 2 or 3 weeks, once she started moving around too much in it, because they're not strapped in, the can wriggle themselves around to wherever they want. We also found the carry cot useless anywhere with hills (we live on a hill in Derbyshire, so that was annoying), as the baby falls down to the bottom.

We did find the pushchair bit that a maxi-cosi car seat fits into useful - the car seat at least held her still enough to be comfortable, and it means you only need to take a frame in the car, as you'll already have the car seat. In practice though, we've never used the pushchair bit of our quinny much, so whilst we have quinny frame + carry cot + pushchair seat + car seat, we'd really have been find with just any old frame that a maxi cosi car seat would stick into. Other pushchairs are way more convenient for the pushchair bit once they're however old they need to be for that, and the carry cot was useless.

Also, at least on our Quinny, it is a slight pain converting it from the various different configurations, taking out car seat bits, putting on the pushchair seat, or putting on the carry cot. Plus the pushchair seat alone is probably as big and heavy as a standalone pushchair.

put her in the pram, so she can lay flat. It's no big deal, and seems less faff to me.

Oh and another thing to bear in mind - massive weight difference between a travel system and a pushchair, which makes a difference if you have to push it up hills - our travel system weighs >15kg, whereas the pushchair is about 5kg. Even with a 11kg 1 year old in it, that is a big difference in how much weight you have to push up the hill.

tonyd gives good advice; if you might have another within 2.5 years get one that can have bits added to fit a second child in.

Like many new parents we got a travel system (maxi cost mura)2 years ago when the first one arrived. It was good as we did a lot of walks from home with the dog and a lot of walks round the counrty park with slight off road tracks. Our new son could go in the cot bit at first and then in the seat when he was 6 or 7 months. It got used twice a day for 2 years so we had good use out of it.

We also had a second hand silver cross fold up job that we used for going to Spain (Wife is from spain) and some trips to shops.

Number 2 arrived 2 months ago and we bought a second hand Phil and teds. We really only use this one now, #2 in cacoon laying flat and #1 in the seat on the top ready for action. Sometimes we use the maxi cosi wheels and car seat if we are going somewhere where #1 will not be in a push chair. The Phil and teds is great for off road - we did a pretty rocky walk in the lakes and it managed fine - it's also easy to lift over styles (with child removed).

If I was to start again i'd get a second hand Phil and Teds and second hand folding thing. I'd also get a new car seat and cacoon. So that would cost about £300 and be very future proof.

I reckon a Chariot bike trailer is a far better pushchair for two optionally different aged kids than a Phil and Ted double decker. Plus it's a bike trailer too.

Thank god all that is now behind us 🙂

I could have bought a nice bike with all the prams and associated guff we went through - and never really needed. Luckily, most of it was hand me downs or second hand, but even so, I still get a migraine thinking about it!

My advice would be to use some sort of front mounted carrier when they are really small and them get them into a chap simple buggy as soon as you can.

I've been looking at the Phil&Teds things that you can add a second seat to and am wondering are 3-wheelers stable or is there a chance of the pushchair falling over if we're not paying full attention to where we're pushing it?

Also, is buying secondhand iffy with regards to germs etc? That's the one thing putting me off going down that route.

Geoffj - are you suggesting a papoose or sling when they are young all the time until they can sit up in a stand alone pushchair and then use just that? Interesting - never thought of that. would their head/neck be ok in a papoose when they are new born?

Geoffj - are you suggesting a papoose or sling when they are young all the time until they can sit up in a stand alone pushchair and then use just that? Interesting - never thought of that. would their head/neck be ok in a papoose when they are new born?

This is good from birth.
http://www.mobywrap.com/

Advantages: It is lovely and cuddly. Keeps the baby warm in winter (you can put it under your coat. Babies sleep really well in them. Easy to go into shops, cafes, on public transport, over stiles etc.

Disadvantages: Some people will think you are a weirdo for not using a pushchair. Some people don't get on with them. You have to work out how to put them on (once you know it, it takes seconds to put on, probably less time than putting a kid in a pushchair with all the winter pushchair stuff). Oh and grandparents / other people who only rarely take the baby out may not want to wear a sling.

Most of the people I've known who didn't get on with slings had baby bjorn type carriers, not the hold them close to the body wrap type slings, which when they are very little seem much comfier. The wrap slings have a limit to how old you can use them - once the baby is older and wriggly, they'll learn to escape. Ours lasted about 6 months with a very wriggly baby.

Oh and our quinny was second hand, no problems with germs, it isn't like germs hang around for weeks on stuff - your baby will find a million far more inventive ways to catch germs off other babies (licking each others' faces, sharing toys, stealing food off them etc.)

Something like this - http://www.boots.com/en/Infantino-Flip-3-position-Front-Backpack-Baby-Carrier_1132435/?CAWELAID=591466606&cm_mmc=Shopping%20Engines-_-Google%20Base-_---_-Infantino%20Flip%203position%20Front%20%20Backpack%20Baby%20Carrier

We pissed around with a wilkinet sling which was what all the hippy chic mums were raving about at the time but you have to tie the bits to secure it - I prefer clips and Velcro!

The boots one linked above is suitable from birth when used on the front.

Geoff - I don't like that kind. For real snuggly warm loveliness we had one of these:

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As you can see, head support is not an issue because the baby's cradled against your loving breast 🙂 There are three ways to use it, for different ages of baby, and instead of straps which dig in the fabric spreads across your shoulders which supports the load amazingly comfortably. It was much better than the kind you link to - but they are in turn much better than pushchairs imo.

Oh and you can also BF in it if you are of the female persuasion, even when you are walking about. IF you have the technique right 🙂

Molly - each to their own - better IYHO presumably.

So your kid's asleep after a car journey - so what? If it's tired, it'll fall asleep again in a pushchair or sling.

Yup, and it's not a great idea to leave your baby in the car seat for hours on end. We just lift junior out and put her in the pram - as you say, when she's tired she barely stirs, and pushing the pram usually sends her back to sleep anyway.

Obviously got one of those super amazing easy to sleep sorts. Ours has never been a good napper and in trying to get a routine, we were quite happy to use the drive to the supermarket to get him to sleep, click him into the travel system and then do the shop knowing he's at least had a decent nap at a decent time. Transferring him to sling or pushchair from car seat wasn't an option as he'd wake and not go off again.

Oh and still using the car seat a lot for quick in to town missions - that said we have a clicky in and out base so it's really no faff.

Geoff - I don't like that kind.

I figure it's what they like though really? Ours hated the farbic wrap sling, would always get too hot in it. Always prefered the baby bjorn which he still uses.

Molly - each to their own - better IYHO presumably

I have nothing else to give apart from my ho.

Although we did under-dress ours when she was in the sling - and this was over the summer too. Re the sleeping - even if she was awake as a little baby she loved the fabric sling.

Not sure I've ever seen a screaming kid in a sling, seen plenty in pushchairs tho.

We had a baby 6 weeks ago. Don't spend too much time worrying about this stuff, it's not really that important unless you've got really specific needs anyway. We do have a 2nd floor flat and don't have a car which dictates a certain preference. Good luck and congrats btw 🙂

We've used a small pushchair from birth, plenty will go flat enough for a newborn. It's light, small and easy to cart about. And it was £80 new 🙂 Chicco Liteway I think.

We've had an over the shoulder sling, but I'm not that keen on it as it feels a bit insecure. Much prefer the babybjorn, but she's only just big enough for that. Would much prefer that over a buggy for walks in the countryside. I've a ****ed back and find it very comfortable.

When we used to take MFL Jr around the local forest, we never used the pram, we used a carrier.
We also changed quite quickly from an oldish Ford Fiesta to something bigger as the Fiesta couldn't accomodate a pram & anything else - it wasn't possible to put shopping in the boot with the prame for example.

We've had an over the shoulder sling, but I'm not that keen on it as it feels a bit insecure

Someone gave us one of those - it killed my shoulder and arm in all sorts of bizarre ways even when she only weighed 2-3kg, and it wasn't so secure either. Not good.

We are due in September, and from the buggies i've looked at so far, the wheels are really easy to get off,and put back on. Not that its an issue with a Mondeo.

Not too keen on three wheelers, they just don't feel as stable when undergoing in store ragging test.

Apparently air tyres or soft rubber compound possibly with suspension are a good idea.

Obviously got one of those super amazing easy to sleep sorts.

Time will tell! My point is that if she's already sleepy, lifting her into the pram won't wake her, and if she's already wide awake, there's little we can do about it.

A friend is a paediatric nurse, and warns against using car seats for long periods - small babies are prone to overheating in this position. Obviously this isn't applicable for supermarket trips...

A friend is a paediatric nurse, and warns against using car seats for long periods - small babies are prone to overheating in this position. Obviously this isn't applicable for supermarket trips...

Yeah but they have a big disclaimer on them anyway suggesting limits on time. Obviously when your child only naps for 30 minutes at best it becomes a non issue 🙂

i'm not sure I knew it was possible/sensible to use a pushchair from birth. that is worth looking into and then getting a seperate car seat/carry thing.

Max 2 hours is the recommendation on car seats isn't it?

Here's our experience:

Baby bjorn carriers are really good and our baby enjoyed being able to see where she was going.

We bought a Quinny system - it works well when they are very small, and the pram attachment can be used it as a travel cot for visits and camping trips too. We had an isofix base and it was good to be able to unclick the car seat and click it onto the wheels.

That said, as soon as she outgrew the car seat, we found it too wide and heavy around the shops and not really up to the job off road. No use for two children either, so limited lifespan.

Now we just use a maclaren "umbrella" folder - light and easy to stow. Note that even that will not lie flat in the back of a small car like say a Fabia/Ibiza. The wheel arches fill both sides of the boot.

We have a baby jogger with 16" wheels for any trips out in the woods, soon to be joined by a Chariot bike trailer/jogger.

Would advise not spending huge amounts of cash on something that might only end up getting a few months of use.

We're happy with the Quinny, but we bought second hand - if we'd paid full price, we'd have been gutted! Would also second the idea of a phil and teds - something that can be expanded for baby #2.

Swoosh - you won't be worrying about germs in a few months thats for sure. babies are dirty little people, toddlers are even dirtier. My wife was going mad at our 2 year old the other day as he was going into the garden with a cup, filling it up from a bucket of green water and drinking it. She went mental, he laughed and thought it was a great game.

Germs - thats why I said buy a new cacoon thing, then they don't touch the pram until they are 3 months old - by that time they've been licking the floor and all sorts - it's all good for them.

Never had a problem with stability of 3 wheelers!

It's the baby bjorn one we had. I just couldn't remember the name of it before - excellent bit of kit.

The recommended time in the car seat can also become a little moot when you are driving around town at 3am trying to get the little darling to sleep, when all else fails. Bad parent me? 😳

We also got a car seat from freecycle 🙂 I just pulled the covers off to make sure there was no damage underneath...

Plenty of pushchairs are suitable for birth, they're all labelled as such on Medicare or in motherland etc. The back bit just locks in a few different angles.

I see you're in Nottingham. Get up to Stork Talk in Ilkeston, lots of makes there and you can try them in your car right outside the door. We've had alsorts from them. They are very knowledgeable too, family run business. We had a Bugaboo for our first and soon after number 2 came along went for a Phil and Ted's. The Bugaboo is pants on anything other than a pavement, P&T much better, the new ally framed one is a huge improvement on ours too. Thankfully all our baby stuff will be going soon as ours are now 3 and 5.

our daughter (first one) is 7 months now, not much of a sleeper at all, the only thing that really got her to sleep was being walked around in the pram - she didn't really sleep in the closer sling, IME our baby slept better when stretched out flat on her back as opposed to in the car seat (she does sleep in the car tho)

we have a bugaboo and I wasn't happy about lashing out that much on a pram but it has been worth it for the amount of pavement pounding and it converts to a pushchair so we'll get a good few years out of it.
If you look after them you can get good 2nd hand values or get a good quality one from ebay

NCT nearly new sales are your friend

as for car fitting, some car boots just aren't very big but if you put the chair on it's side you get them in, this is how we got out bugaboo to fit in a mini (and they have a seriously poxy boot)

swoosh, congratulations 🙂

Spud - we went to Stork Talk on Saturday and found some really good systems in there. We're going back on Friday morning to make our final decision between two we liked. I think it's best to see things twice as when you go back you will have a better idea of how we want to use the pushchair and what we want from it.

Phil & Ted's good IMHO.
We went through four pushchairs with our two kids, starting with:

Graco three wheeler, cheapish but solid/foam tyres and a front wheel that didn't steer made it awkward to push. Quite heavy & bulky, think we had to remove a wheel or two to get it in the boot. Travel system feature was quite good though, lift seat from house to car to buggy. Glad to get rid of it, moved on to:

Phil & Teds original. Excellent overall but not without its drawbacks. Lovely to push (pneumatic tyres help) but bulky. When up they're quite big as a single but very compact for a double. Great for going on busses, at least in London. When folded we had to take both back wheels off to get it in the boot of our Mk1 Focus. We had the original one (black painted frame) which was a real pain to fold when it's got the second seat on the back. Newer design with the bare aluminium frame claims to have solved this (and lovely to look at) but it seems that the tyres wear out and it's hard to find replacements. Must have pushed ours nearly three thousand miles. That's a serious estimate. Eventually bits started wearing out but they can all be replaced - at a price. Carried patches and a pump but we never had a puncture - other parents did though.

McLaren double (second-hand). Traditional side by side double, folds fairly small. Bit wide for pavements, probably for busses too. Harder to push than Phil & Ted's but folds much smaller - we kept it in the car, which we don't use very often and used the P&T's most of the time.

McLaren single, Lightweight, folds small. Wheels were wearing out after about a year. Don't know if we could have replaced them. We had a buggy board on the back for our older child which worked well.

Don't think there's much need to worry about germs from second hand items but it's easy to say that about someone else's baby, much harder to feel that way about your own precious little bundle of joy.