Anyone not got a double buggy with 2 under 2?

[freddie]

Hi ladies!

I'm expecting number 2 in April when LO will be 19 months old. I really don't want to have to get a double buggy and am wondering if anyone has managed fine without one?

I used a sling/ carrier a lot for LO before being pregnant and am thinking that he could be walking/ in pram while new baby is in the sling...

If I need to hold/ carry LO for some reason I could put new baby into the pram (although it wouldn't have the carrycot on, it would just be the buggy seat which is supposed to be from 6 months but it does lie almost flat).

Has anyone else had this sort of arrangement and had it work well for them?

 

[lhancock90]

I baby wear too but my 2 year old gets tired still and absolutely does need a pram/trike to rest in at times, so if you are wearing and taking out a single that will work. Personally even as a baby wearer I need my double, for long journeys, tired days it's a complete lifesaver. Don't count on a 2 year old walking everywhere, they get really tired.

 

[mommytobe11]

I've been debating this! My plan is to babywear #2 and put LO in the stroller. If it doesn't work then I'll get a double stroller. They're just so expensive and I don't want to potentially waste money

 

[SarahP13]

Honestly it depends on how far you walk and how good at walking your toddler is (probably too early to tell that yet!)

My two are 21 months apart and I am so glad we didn't get a double. We got a buggy board and a sling. Mostly my toddler walked or rode on the board. Once in a blue moon she would want to go in the pushchair so I just kept the sling in the basket and would carry baby if necessary.

However we've always walked loads and we live in a small town where it's not too far to walk anywhere- a mile round trip max. Also the shop doorways are all very old and therefore small! We would never have got in anywhere with a side by side double and I hate the ones that has a second seat slung under the bottom of the main seat!!

It really depends on your own situation but not having one is perfectly doable.

 

[readytotry]

I've bought a (2nd hand) double just for those odd occasions when both are tired at the same time and I want to be able to sit and have a coffee/shop etc without a baby attached. I'd have thought a sling/pushchair combo would work most of the time though.

 

[CT125]

I think I'm going down the second hand route. I have dogs to walk and I think I'll need a double for that, but otherwise I'm not big on long shopping trips or anything. The only reason I'm not confident with a buggy board is if I have a tantrum throwing toddler in a situation where I NEED to put him in the buggy!

 

[Rachel_C]

We have a bigger age gap of 23 months but I am glad we didn't get a double. We did get a buggy board and we also have a couple of baby carriers so we had plenty of options. At first, my oldest would often go in the buggy and I'd wear the baby on my front. It was handy for BF on the go. Then I would switch them round when my oldest was happy to walk for a bit - the buggy board was really handy there as she loved it. I would put my changing bag over the handles of the pushchair so it gave her something to lean back against for a bit of extra security. She could easily use that from 22 months old (we tried it before the youngest was born!) but it would depend on your LO I think. Some come with a seat so that might be an option. As my oldest got bigger, I also got a toddler carrier which was good for putting her on my back if needed.

I won't lie, there were a couple of months where I did wish we had bought a double, but they passed quickly and by the time I was seriously thinking about buying one, the need had passed.

 

[Saphira]

We don't! I have my youngest in the Ergo (or I just carry her) and my oldest in the stroller or push trike. Usually she'd prefer to walk so sometimes we don't bring a stroller at all! It's doable without a double. It is much easier with help. I admit, I rarely take them both out on my own. :S I'm going to have to sooner or later though!

 

[minties]

Thomas still can't walk very far, I did babywear Sophie in a moby a lot but found she got heavy quickly. Perhaps if I had something to do back carries in...? She also wont wear a hat so when carried I worried about sunburn. The double buggy has been invaluble to me, I use it every day.

We do walk pretty far though, no 5 minutë walks. More like 1+hour.

 

[MumToEva]

I have a 17 month age gap, and I'm glad of my double. I have a few friends who tried just using a single pram and a carrier, but ended up buying a double as it just didn't work for them, so I decided to go ahead and get the double from the offset. I went for a tandem (phil and teds) rather than a side by side, which means that i can use it as a single or a double depending on the situation - i sold my single pram on gumtree to help fund it. I also have a carrier, which I do use on it's own and along with the pram depending on what we are doing, but I definitely appreciate having the second seat at times. Different things work for different people though.

 

[Saphira]

I want to add as an alternative - for those that like to bike ride those kiddie trailers are awesome! Some are 2 seaters and can be used as a stroller as well. When we put our oldest in preschool I'm planning on putting them both in there for the walk to and from.

 

[freddie]

Thanks so much for all your replies ladies, it has really given me some great insight I think the best plan for me will be to stick with the pram/ carrier that I already have and just see how we cope when baby arrives... That way I won't waste money now if it's not needed and I will know soon enough whether it is I guess! Also the second hand route is probably a good idea as they're so expensive aren't they!

My sister is getting my LO one of those push along trike things for his birthday and I could try a buggy board too once he's a bit bigger... So plenty of options to test out before buying a double!

Thanks again!