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thread: Not bothering with a double pram

  1. #1
    Matryoshka Guest

    Not bothering with a double pram

    So i'm going to have a 2 year old and a new born and i am really not keen on getting a double pram. Basically i want to carry the newborn for as long as possible, probably up to 6 months due to my bad back, so in that period DS could still use the stroller if he needs. He's already a pretty good walker though... so i'm wondering by the time he's 2.5 would he be able to handle short walking trips? We currently use a backpack harness which he loves and it keeps him from running away.

  2. #2
    Registered User

    Dec 2006
    Caboolture QLD
    360

    I wish I could get away with that! My little man will only be 16 months when bubbles 2 comes so I dont think I will be able to get away with it....... I think he would be like a mad dog on a chain if I tried the harness so early! hehehe....
    But really wish I didnt have to go spend that sort of money on a double pram when I will probably only get 12 months out of it......

    Be careful with your back ok!!
    xoxoxoxo

  3. #3
    Matryoshka Guest

    Yep the other thing is the cost, even the second hand ones are a few hundred dollars.

  4. #4
    Registered User

    Dec 2006
    Caboolture QLD
    360

    I just found one online for $298... thats the best price so far, thats new.... think I might go with that one....
    I considered the toddler seat but they look pretty dangerous!!

  5. #5
    Registered User

    Oct 2007
    1,256

    I will have to as DD wont be old enough, but I dont like any double prams except the phil & teds so luckily DH has agreed I can get one.

  6. #6
    Registered User

    Feb 2006
    NSW Central Coast
    5,301

    I will have two under 16mths too, so I don't think I could do with out a double pram, and I will probably use it for at least a year I guess. I wish I could get away without using one too.
    I agre the toddler seats look dangerous, I would never use one.
    I've seen a double pram online for $249.00. It looks good and is cheap for a double pram. Its a valco doubletake tandem black majic pram.

  7. #7

    Apr 2007
    the Sauna
    1,995

    i was considering only having one pram and carrying bub in a sling .. but as a new mum being tired and having a sore back and running around pushing a toddler or watching him with the harness , sounds like a bit of a night mare to me ..

    i love the idea of carrying my nb in a sling and being as close to it as possible but i think even if i went out with dh , with him as a helping hand , i just think of going to the loo , eating and picking things off the ground or shopping for clothes or groceries .... it would just be a bit to much in the beggining .. and what happens if on the off chance bubs doesnt want to be in a sling the entire trip or if you want a hot coffee????

    i dont like the look of p&t at all , there have been some overseas modles we like , and the maclaren mx3 with toddler seat ....

    the money is an issue , but its worth it in the long run ..... but i am a firm beliver in " you buy cheap , you buy twice" so a one off fee on a tandem/double pram is a good investment ....

    with an older walikng toddler a toddler seat attacthment is good , you can get peg perago's with a toddler bar on theback where the toddler can stand ... and you wont necesairly need a side by side one .... and pram companies would make a product that was unsafe ....

    But , what if you want to pop into the movies unexpectedly, will you sit there for ages with a baby on your front ????

  8. #8
    Matryoshka Guest

    What do you mean by pop in to the movies?? i haven't been to the movies in 2 years because i couldn't take a baby/toddler to the movies and i wouldn't take a toddler and a baby to the movies.

    As for the sling i'll be using a hug-a-bub which keeps the baby so close to the chest i can bend down, do the house cleaning etc and in most cases they are happy to sleep in there. My DS wouldn't ever sleep unless i was carrying him... not even in the pram.

    I really don't want to invest in another single pram or a double pram, i guess i'm hoping i can get away with carrying the little one and using the stroller for DS.

  9. #9
    Registered User

    Nov 2004
    Giving the gift of life to a friend..
    4,264

    I didnt buy a double pram, I dont like them... Indah wasnt quite 2 when Zy was born, I go for hour long walks a couple times a week, plus a day or 3(?) shopping & I wear Zy in HAB & Indah in her pram. Zy's 5mths & so far no probs!

  10. #10
    BellyBelly Member
    Add kitten2b on Facebook

    Feb 2005
    canberra
    1,580

    My eldest is 27 months and youngest is 9 weeks, I manage just with a stroller and front pack. It seems t have worked so far. If Maria doesn't want to sit in the stroller, she walks and Sofia is put in the stroller in the most laid back position it has.

  11. #11
    Registered User

    Oct 2007
    1,256

    It really could work Ourlux, I did consider this until DH reminded me we tried 4 diff carriers and DD hated them. I know that it dosnt mean *bump* will hate it but hey i need another excuse to feed my pram addiction,lol!!!

  12. #12
    Registered User

    Nov 2005
    Where the heart is
    4,360

    I DID go to the movies with DS when he was about 5 months old...he was in the sling the whole time. I lie, except for the 10 minutes I took him out to feed...no-one knew he was there and I got to watch a WHOLE film! And it wasn't even a baby session. I haven't been back since with him cos he got mobile fairly quickly thereafter
    Really, I think you could definitely get away with no double pram, Ourlux. Even a 6 month old baby can feel very light on in the right sling. With DS I had him in the HAB for about that long, then switched to the Ergo. In the HAB I was starting to feel it, as he was in and out all the time (of the car, mainly and I needed something a bit more 'snap on'). Once we got the Ergo, it was like he was weightless again!
    By two and a half, even if DS doesn't want to be walking everywhere, you might be able to get him a 'chariot' attachment for the pram and an extension handle. That's a bit of messing around, but cheaper than a double pram and far easier to manage, I reckon (you could probably get the chariot and pram onto a bus much easier! It's good to think of these possibilities, even if you have a car you currently rely on...my car recently broke down...my VERY reliable car!).
    If your back weren't so bad (and if my hip weren't so problematic...it's getting better slowly), you could even have a soft sling for the baby and an Ergo to have DS on your back. Really, though, I don't know many 2 and a half year olds in my circle of friends who get around being pushed, so you should be fine by then by just using the stroller in the meantime

  13. #13
    Matryoshka Guest

    Yeah thats the point, DS hates being in the stroller already, i can only keep him in for the bare necessity and as he gets more independant i can see it getting worse so i really don't see the point of a double pram that he wont want to be in.

    Sounds like a few of you have managed which is great! Ds has a backpack harness which he likes and that keeps him from running off currently so i think we might keep practising with that.

  14. #14
    clare076 Guest

    OUrlux
    I bought a double stroller (tandem pram) as Shelby was 21 months when Sam was born. She loves walking also, but there are times when you want to run in and out and having a toddler trying to do their own thing can be hard.
    To be honest I dont use the pram very often, I prefer to have Sam in the sling (so does he) and Shelby goes in the stroller or walks.

    The only to thing to think of, is when bubs gets to heavy for you to have in a sling, there may still be times when Lucas wants to sit down as well, I mean he will only be 2 1/2 by then and his little legs will still get tired if you are walking around the shops, he may have had a bad night, or not feeling the best, he may also feel the need to go in the stroller because bubs has taken his place in it ( we also have this problem with Shelby). Have you thought of how you might cope then? Maybe try with a stroller and sling for now, and then purchase a cheap side by side stroller that is suitable for 6 months plus down the track.

  15. #15
    Matryoshka Guest

    Yeah good point... see i don't go out much though! Which model did you get?

  16. #16
    Registered User

    Jun 2005
    Perth
    1,454

    What I found worked best was neither of the above options -I simply used a trolley! When Alex was a newborn I could transfer him straight from the car to the trolley via the capsule and even use the layback seats they provide covered with a blankie of course. When he was old enough to sit up I would put him in the trolley sitting in a Trolley monster cover.

    This worked really well as I didnt have to purchase a double pram or stroller and Gaby could sit in the base of the trolley or sometimes stand on the end (not the safest I know but we never had an issue ). She was 2 1/2 when Alex was born and would still get tired sometimes when we were out at the shops.

    Obviously this wont work when you are out somewhere other then a shopping district but it may give you some food for thought - eg have a really good think about where you go on average and how often would you actually need to put Lucas and or baby in a pram/stroller.

  17. #17
    Registered User

    Dec 2005
    Home of the Winery Walkabout!
    944

    OurLux, I'm in the regional area and I go for walks everyday 1km into town and 1 km out. Bella is getting close to 3 and Pat is 18 months. I have 2 "double" prams (my pram fetish is showing! LOL) One is a side by side Mothers Choice which was given to me and the other is a pram with a toddler seat also by Mothers Choice (available in Kmart for about $329). I would be lost without my prams as they keep the kids in tow and also there is somewhere to put any shopping I get.

  18. #18
    Registered User

    Mar 2007
    BrisVegas
    140

    I got away with just a stroller and a sling (ring sling and ergo) for at least the first 6 months after #2 was born (and #1 was 19mths when #2 arrived). I would take the Ergo and the ring sling cause I had a lay-back stroller and if bub was sleeping and toddler was restless in the pram, I'd pop him on my backin the ergo and the bub in the pram. I also ended up getting a skateboard for the back of the stroller so that toddler had other travel options.

    I only recently got a 2nd hand double stroller (umbrella style) because #1 and #2 fight were starting to fight as to who was going to go in the pram.

    Also, #1 wasn't a fan of the stroller early in my pregnancy with #2 but was much more open to it by the time #2 came along. Maybe this might happen for you.

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