82 +/- days. That is it until we are a family of four and let me tell you crunch time has come. We haven’t really seriously thought about buying things to prepare for our new addition – until now. One of the big items we are in hot debate over is the double stroller. Do we need one? If yes…do we want to go double wide or tandem? A stroller for around town or a jogger? How much should we spend? Which of our strollers should we sell to make room for a double? Speaking of room where in the world are we going to store a double stroller?
Is your head spinning? Mine is spinning like a top!!
So first off let’s discuss what we currently have (or have had):
- Bob Revolution SE: This was the first stroller we ever purchased and we bought it just before Edith was born along with the carseat adapter. We honestly didn’t use it much in the first six months because we both prefer babywearing to pushing a stroller. Honestly when we did use it E would often last about 20 minutes before she needed to nurse or wanted to be held so we would then put her in a carrier and use the stroller for carrying our things. When Edith was around six months I started training for a quarter marathon and that’s when we really started to use the BOB. I would use it most days to go for a run and a few times per week for trips to the park and grocery store. Since then it has been a regularly used stroller especially for going for runs.
- Chicco KeyFit Caddy: This was the second “stroller” that we purchased when Edith was about five weeks old. While we loved our BOB it was a bit clunky to take with us to restaurants and stores so we decided to get a stroller caddy for more ease of use. I tried out a few different styles at the store before buying and while this was on the more expensive side it was the most comfortable to push and the smoothest ride. When we moved we sent the BOB with the movers and kept this one with us to use for the next month while staying at my parents. We didn’t end up bringing this one with us and as far as I know I think it is still at my parents house <– maybe we should um….sell this one, eh?
- UPPAbaby G-Luxe: This would be our third stroller purchase. Around 8 months we came back around to the same conclusion as we did at five weeks – we needed something that was easy to take around town and to store in our car. While Edith has always loved being worn and we love to wear her there are just sometimes that a stroller comes in handy. One of the big things that came to mind was summer + hot baby/toddler = hot, sweaty parents and while I don’t mind that if we are just going out near home it’s no fun to have the sweaty imprint of a child on your chest when you decide to go out for dinner or a summer activity. That all being said we did a ton of research on a lightweight, compact stroller and decided that the G-Luxe was the right fit for us. This became our go to stroller for everyday use and the BOB was for more adventurous outings, walks to the parks and for runs.
- Quinny Zapp Xtra: Now we didn’t buy this stroller and we wouldn’t have it at all had I not by pure chance won this stroller via a blog giveaway. It was one of those giveaways I entered just because and then completely forgot about because I seriously never win these types of giveaways. Needless to say I was shocked to find an e-mail in my inbox saying I had won my choice of the Yezz or the Zapp Xtra. I honestly didn’t even remember entering the giveaway that’s how convinced I was that I wouldn’t even stand a chance to win (just goes to show you that anything is possible!) Anyways after talking with Neil we decided that the Zapp Xtra was a better option for us since the Yezz was too close in similarity to the UPPAbaby we already owned. At the time we weren’t really thinking about having two kids but I knew that if we did decide to go that route I loved that you can change the seat position to face you and that it reclines completely and has the option for an infant seat adapter (although they don’t currently have one for the infant carseat we own).
UPPAbaby in the background
So now the big question is do we want/need a double? If yes which of our current one(s) do we keep? Which one(s) do we sell? Hmmm? Thoughts?
So now what? Now we look at how do we choose a stroller single, double tandem and beyond.
Coming up: How to buy a stroller (single, double or dare I say more?), the contenders in our double trouble stroller debate and eventually what we decided.
My little ones are two years apart and once the second one was born, the first never wanted to be in the stroller at all – just wanted to push his little sister around protectively. A double or tandem stroller would have been a waste of money for me, but your adorable family might be different!
That is what I worry about. Hmmmm such a big decision and one we probably won’t be making until #2 makes their arrival.
A good plan, really. You’ll know when the time comes. 🙂
Gosh you have a lot of strollers! Storing them is so tough. We have a double stroller than was gifted to us that I used with Hunter and a little girl I watched for a while, and I actually didn’t like it. It was the kind where one is in the front, the other in the back. The main reason I didn’t like it was because it was just so big. If I end up deciding on needing a double stroller, I’d go jogger. We have a single jogging stroller (which I love) and when I want to take both kids out, Hunter goes in the stroller and I wear Zoe. It works out really well and I’m kind of thinking when Zoe’s ready for the stroller, Hunter will happily walk by me and be able to walk longer than he can now. But we’ll see!
We have been waffling between a tandem stroller for Portland outings since a double wide isn’t particularly practical but I am so torn because I think a double jogger might be a good investment since we both run and we like to do lots of family walks and park outings. I already love our single BOB – now the question is can I find a used double BOB in good condition or do we invest in a new one (so expensive!) or is there another good double jogger option? I really wish there was an option to do a trial of strollers without buying or having to find someone else who wants to lend theirs.
Thanks for sharing your experience in this! There are lots of factors that come into play when it comes to stroller selection and I think you covered all the significant points in this post.
For me, my husband and I knew before hand that we wanted multiple kids (2 or 3), so when child #1 arrive, we bought the City Select stroller which we are still using to date. The only difference is now it is a double stroller – we purchased a second add-on seat.
Cheers,
Evelyn