Product Spotlight: Strollers

kboydbowman

Let's talk baby transportation!

dsmith211

Not a whole lot of input but I loved my BOB. I run (ran… not a whole lot of that going on right now 😂) so it was definitely convenient in that aspect. We also like to go to the beach and do a bit of hiking at local parks in our area, so the bigger tires definitely helped with that as well. 

It was pretty expensive but they’re usually on sale often. I got mine on an awesome Black Friday sale. But they also definitely hold up their value and last. I used it quite a bit with my son and I’ll be using it again for this baby for sure. 

jhysmath

I was adamant when we had our first that strollers were pointless and I would baby wear every where. Well, there was an end of season sale that gave me the infant seat I wanted and the stroller for cheaper than the infant seat is by itself so I got a stroller. I didn't use it too much with my first. We used it at the zoo, or when we went somewhere walkable, dirt roads were hard to push it on. It's the Britax Bsafe combo. We use it more now if we want the 1 year old in a stroller and the 3 year old wants to ride her strider bike around town. We don't live on a dirt road anymore during the school year, but we do in the summer. 

We also have a radio flyer stroller wagon, the one you can put options with, that we got for their 1st and 3rd birthday's last year. It is great to have to walk around town with both of them in a stroller and to schlep around their things. We have the larger wheels so it's easier to use on the dirt roads, we have the push and the pull handles as well as extra carry bags. The bottom being flat instead of a seat like the wonderfoldesque ones means when my 1 year old wanted to nap while we were at the amusement park I could lie her down in it with a blanket and she slept and the 3 year old could still be enjoying herself. I think it's a better option than the traditional stroller the only down fall we have is when the children are being pains and the "her feet are touching me" whine comes out and they kick each other. This doesn't happen often so I'll take it for a win. 

maple1422

We'll have 8 years between DS and baby. I loved the baby trend jogging stroller so much that it's one of the only baby things I held onto after DS outgrew it. It's a super smooth ride with tires that can go everywhere. I also love that the baby trend carseat has the triangle at the top of the handle! We'll be going that route again.

serenity_by_van

Would love to hear opinions regarding Uppababy Cruz vs. Vista strollers. This will be our first child and most likely our only child, so we are leaning towards Cruz and buying the bassinet to add. Thanks!

julwanderlust

If you're buying for one child the city mini GT is amazing. We took it to California, NYC, Europe and everywhere in-between. When our second baby came along we upgraded to the City Select. It's a great stroller but it's a beast - we fly with it often and it is a pain to disassemble on the gangway. I may look at the Uppa baby for #3 since my oldest it maxing out the weight limit and is still reliant on a stroller since he'll be 3yo when our newest addition comes around. 

I am also interested in the W4 Luxe Quad Stroller Wagon - but I don't know how practical that is for newborn life. 

blanket_girl

Anyone have experience with the Chicco Bravo Trio travel system? We live in a place where we absolutely have to drive somewhere if we want to take a walk with baby(no sidewalks and absolutely no visibility on our road), so a travel system seems ideal to me! This one seemed pretty well loved and was affordable, but I’m curious if anyone has personal experience with it! 

bigworldlittleg

@blanket_girl I personally don't have experience with it, but that is the travel system my sister used and she recommended it to me. She said she liked the canopy feature because it will cover baby when the sun is out, but there is a mesh portion, so you can still see baby through it. She also said it's durable and folds up easily to put in the trunk. The only negative she had to say about it was that she wishes the handle was leather, but that's a small thing! Hope that helps!

trapperkeeper87

@blanket_girl That's what we started with and the bulkiness of the stroller got frustrating pretty quickly for me (in and out of the trunk of a sedan). I loved the infant seat, but preferred the Chicco Liteway stroller once my daughter was able to sit up on her own (and I got the caddy for when she was still in the infant seat).

babywiik

Does anyone have experience with Phil and Ted? I'm looking at double strollers and it's one of the only ones I've found so far that ships from within Europe. So many good strollers that only ship to the US🙄 I want one where the kids sit one in front of another rather than side by side and it has to have decent size, quality wheels because we have winter here.

laj0217

I think I’m just going to drive the 2 hrs to Jacksonville on my spring break next week and test out all the strollers they have on display at Buy Buy Baby. I’m having such a hard time deciding based on online reviews - they’re all over the place. 

babez_mom

I've started to ask my friends / friends of friends who are mom's, and everyone (11 of 12) have the UppaBaby Vista. The last has the City Select. Not sure if that's coincidence, or what, but seems like that's the popular one to get nowadays around here. Anyone on here have any recommendations or feedback on the UppaBabys?  

trapperkeeper87

@babez_mom I personally could never bring myself to spend $1k on a stroller setup, but I know it's a good one. The Mockingbird is a good dupe, from what I've heard, and at a fraction of the cost.

JRae2015

All my friends who have their first babies under two yrs old have the Uppababy as well! I won’t be spending that much bc it’s my fourth but I’d probably go for it if it were my first … especially if I thought someone (or several people) would purchase it for a baby shower gift. They all love it. 

whitta1015

I've been eyeing the Mockingbird! Anyone have experience with it? The reviews are wonderful.

babywiik

@whitta1015 I was all in for it until I realized they don't ship outside of the US. It's literally the perfect stroller based on what I read online. No actual experience though 

whitta1015

@babywiik Oh no!! that stinks, I guess I'm sheltered, but didn't realize how much stuff doesn't ship outside of the US until this board (maternity clothes thread, etc.) 

babywiik

It was a rude awakening moving here😂 no amazon, all the good stuff is in the US, high import fees on anything you can get shipped and all the stores close at 4pm and are closed on Sundays. Most of the time I'm fine but buying baby/maternity stuff really bugs me. I was all set to order a specta pump but realized that even if I order one, I'll have to use an adapter to plug it in. Gaaaa! I'm so ready to move back to the states😭thanks for coming to my soap box😂 

trapperkeeper87

whitta1015 said:

I've been eyeing the Mockingbird! Anyone have experience with it? The reviews are wonderful.

My friend has it and it's beautiful. It is so smooth and the baby sits high up. If I end up getting another stroller, it'll be that one. But right now I'm finding it hard to talk myself into it since my 2.5 year old isn't about stroller rides and we don't go enough places to need a double (especially since we have a fancy wagon for things like the zoo).

whitta1015

@trapperkeeper87 Those are my same thoughts. I had the Baby Jogger City Mini GT with my first and she's 4 now. So she really doesn't need a stroller anymore, unless we're at like Disney or somewhere. She really doesn't even need it at the zoo anymore. So I could always get the Mockingbird Single for just the baby. Idk it's just so pretty for the price! haha

trapperkeeper87

whitta1015 said:

...Idk it's just so pretty for the price! haha

Right? I had my heart set on it for so long, and I'm just struggling to justify it to myself. My husband knows I wanted it and he was on board, but my sensible side is saying, "but you have a good stroller and don't need a second."

But then I start thinking about how my sister is pregnant with her first and 4 weeks behind me and not in the most financially stable spot, so I could always hand things down to her.

Bah! Decisions! I mean, what if we go for a third? It'll be sooner than it was last time, so we'd probably need it. And I'm pretty sure they now have an option for a third kid, which would be great for the toddler (though she's high percentile, so she may size out before too long...).

laj0217

My local target has a Mockingbird stroller on display so you can test it out. Maybe there’s one near you?

whitta1015

@laj0217 Ohh I'll have to check out my Target and see if they have one on display....or just take a trip to Savannah! haha

whitta1015

No idea why that posted as a quote. I tried to change it and it wouldn't let me. I hate this forum sometimes.

laj0217

@whitta1015 it definitely felt pretty smooth when I pushed it and it looks higher end. 

mamamoomoo12

I really like the nuna strollers I am also planning on getting the nuna pipa lite car seat. That being said this is our first baby so the price doesn't bother me because I see it as an investment and like that the Demi grow has options for more seats. We don't travel much more than locally and go on lots of walks through the city. 

I am having such a hard time! Lol I want pick the right gear. 

melyrae

@mamamoomoo12 our Nuna Mixx Next stroller just came in !!! We pick it up this weekend. And we are getting the pipa car seat to match. It seems overall pretty great I have a friend who loves it !!!

laj0217

So we hit the buy buy baby in Jacksonville. They had so many strollers to try and everything we’ve looked at online. I am glad we went bc I was leaning towards the GT mini baby jogger and my husband ended up hating it. We decided on the Chicco Bravo travel system. We both liked how it rolled and how easy it was to fold. I do think it was a little heavy to lift, but my husband will usually be there if we need to use the stroller. Since we were there, we went ahead and bought it and had a 20% off coupon, so affordable to boot! Although, my parents will reimburse us, as this is their baby gift to us. 

bows22

Lurking from October, sorry to barge in haha 

@laj0217 at buy buy baby, did they have strollers on display that aren’t actually sold in stores? There are 2 strollers I’m looking at that both say “not sold in stores” on their website, just curious if there’s a possibility they would still be there to try. 

pangolindrome

What about strollers that are also car seats? Are those worth it?

kboydbowman

@pangolindrome
those are travel systems.  which is what most folk get, I think.

newbabymama27

@kboydbowman not really. I think @pangolindrome is referring to something like the Doona? Travel systems are simply a bundle deal for a stroller, car seat and base where the car seat easily clicks into the base or the stroller. I’ve heard of people liking the Doona that live in very urban areas with small entrances to restaurants/stores/etc and perfect sidewalks. Basically the worst thing for a place like where I live with lots of gravel roads and grass driving, hence why I got a jogger travel system with large tires. 

pangolindrome

@newbabymama27 I think I meant what @kboydbowman said. We’ll need offroad wheels on ours for the places we live and go, so definitely not something that’s only compatible with sidewalks.

newbabymama27

@pangolindrome ok gotcha! I just immediately thought Doona because that one is literally “stroller that is also a car seat” in one piece. It looks really cool if you live in an urban area. Everyone I know recommended a jogger style stroller (travel system or not) if you’re using it on gravel or occasional grass. Ours is the Baby Trend Jogger Travel System from a few years ago which I like the jogger for because of the large wheels but not a huge fan of the car seat because it’s quite heavy. 

laj0217

@bows22 they had quite a few that were online only. If it’s a drive for you, I’d call ahead and make sure they have what you want to try. I was particularly interested in the baby jogger and Chicco. My husband ended up really disliking the baby jogger when he tried it, so glad we went. 

@pangolindrome we got a travel system which is a car seat with base that clicks into the stroller. We also bought two of the newer bases with the rebound bar for our own cars and will give the base it came with to my parents who live in the same time. 

For anyone shopping in the US, buybuybaby let us use a 20% off coupon for the travel system. The purchase earned us $100 in rewards which we used, along with another 20% off coupon, to buy the 2 bases we wanted. So, their coupon/reward system saved us $200, which I think is a pretty good discount. 

mk2022x

@mamamoomoo12 why are we the same person 😂 we’re also looking at the Nuna Mixx Next and Pipa Lite. I like the look and functionality more of the Mixx over the Grow and while I like the idea of the Grow to be able to use as a double, I just have a feeling that the firstborn won’t want anything to do with a stroller. 

We’re also eyeing the TRVL stroller to take with us when we fly or go on long trips. Have you tested it?! It’s amazing how easily it folds!! 

melyrae

@mk2022x @mamamoomoo12
our Nuna Mixx next came in yesterday and we put it together. I am IN LOVE. It is SO easy and intuitive and everything “clicks” so easily into place. Very happy so far! And it drives like a dream. I’ve been driving it around the living room all day lol. 

runsonanxiety

@melyrae I’m so excited for you! I cannot wait to make a car seat/stroller purchase!! Glad you like that one so much. 

lalarose22

@whitta1015 I think the mockingbird single to double stroller is going to be my big splurge this time! It's sooo pretty and yes, great reviews. If you can't find one in stores, they have a 30 day at home trial on their website!

mamamoomoo12

@mk2022x
We tried it out at Nordstrom when we first found out. I want to go back and give it another test run. But i really liked how smooth it was! The Pipa Lite is great because I am not a very tall human so having a car seat on the lighter side was a must. Also they are really pretty

We are also looking at the Veer wagon because we head up to the Islands and our family beach house a lot. We want to be able to pack everything up and head to the beach. 

@melyrae
You sold me! 

mk2022x

@melyrae ahhh so exciting!!!