Stroller Question

zanephoebe · June 2013

Hey all! FTM here- we are currently trying to decide what car seat/stroller to get. My plan is to baby wear often, so I am not sure what type of stroller to get. Most people I talk to recommend these expensive travel systems, but most don't baby wear, so they get more use out of them.

I see people haul around these huge infant seats, and I really just can't imagine doing that. I am sure I will use it to take baby in/out of the house in cold weather, but not into stores, etc.

So, how much do you use a stroller vs. baby wearing? Am I being naive in thinking that I won't use a stroller all too often? Just to give you an idea, we live in a suburb- drive most places. We walk the dog usually 4 miles a day, so trying to decide whether wearing or stroller would be easier for that.

Any stroller recommendations?

Thanks!!

Emerald27 · June 2013

I was so excited to get my chicco travel system, but I had no idea about baby wearing before I had DS!

We've never used our stroller, and are looking to sell it. We will keep the carseat for baby number 2, but we just didn't have any use for the stroller. It's so much more work than wearing your baby.

cecilyandgautam · June 2013

We did not invest much in strollers, as we were planning to babywear. Turns out our DD didn't like strollers or carriers for the first four months, so she was just hand carried everywhere - eventually adjusted to the moby & later a mei tei. That said, most babies love being worn and snuggled from the very beginning, so a snap n go stroller frame should serve you well. That's all we ever had until she outgrew the infant seat. Now we have a $15 umbrella stroller that we use when we really need a stroller, but over the past 1.5 years, we just haven't had much need for them. We also live in the burbs, drive for our weekend errands, and most places we go, it's either ok for DD to run around or we're shopping and there's a cart she can sit in.

The only time I think a fancy stroller is worth the cost is if you're a serious jogger and want to run with your baby. Then it's probably worth paying for the extra sturdy tires.

salt78 · June 2013

We have a City Mini stroller that I use mostly for walks around the neighborhood and I wear her when we run errands or go places away from home. The stroller was a gift and honestly I probably would not spend that much on one myself because we don't use it all that often to justify the price. BUT having a stroller has been good and she loves going out in it when we do use it.

I'm glad we didn't end up getting a travel system because it would have been a waste. Ditto PP on the snap and go stroller. That's what I used for the first couple months when DD was really small. It was nice to just load her carseat into that and not disturb her because 99% of the time she fell asleep in the car.

Then maybe I'd get a less expensive umbrella stroller once LO is a bit older that you can just keep on hand.

tokenhoser · June 2013

I used the snap-n-go a lot because DS fell asleep in the car every time we went anywhere and I firmly believe in not waking a sleeping baby. I wore him a lot, too, but there were occasions where leaving him in the car seat or using a stroller just made a lot of sense.

carawaynow · June 2013

I found it way easier to baby wear while walking our dog - less stuff for the leash to get caught up in! Our dog was quite a puller though, so if your dog is well trained it might be easier to walk with a stroller

I think the suggestion of getting a snap n go for now and thinking about a stroller later is great - then you can see what works for your baby, etc.

nanabanana06 · June 2013

I have a Joovy Kooper stroller that I leave in my trunk for when I need it. I use it every few months for the bigger outings like the zoo, the museum, ect. I baby wear the rest of the time. I would just invest in a nice lightweight stroller for instances like this. I like mine it reclines, has lots of pockets, a decent basket, easy to steer, has an awesome sun shade, and folds nicely. It didn't cost me too much either. If I waned to upgrade though I'll be getting a City Mini. However, for my needs the Kooper is perfect.

As for Car Seats I used a Maxi Cosi Mico for the first 5 months. Since Cade was born in the winter I used it to mostly just keep him warm. Now that he is a giant and can move up into a convertible car seat I got a Clek Foonf.

blu-eyedwife · June 2013

We skipped the travel system and went with the Baby Jogger Elite. Techinically it could be used from birth, but we got the car seat adapter anyway. I was always planning on baby wearing, but thought it would be good to have something to use with the carseat in case the baby fell asleep. HA!

My kid never fell asleep in the car - he spent the whole time screaming/crying his head off. When, wonder of wonders, he did manage to fall asleep, he would wake as soon as the car stopped. Add to that he hated the stroller with a passion, and we ended up wearing him for the first 3 months exclusively.

In general, I like babywearing better than the stroller, and find it to be more convenient. However, I do use the stroller for things like shopping - because it's very hard to try on clothing AND babywear at the same time. So I do think of a stroller as a necessity, but don't think you need a travel system.

KateLouise · June 2013

I LOVE the snap'n'go (we hired ours). Great for those times when you just want to run into a shop for 5 or 10 minutes, and don't want to wake a sleeping baby.

I think a stroller is great to have for flexibility, but definitely not something you NEED to buy ahead of time, so I vote to put off that purchase until you know a bit more about how your baby likes things.

ncbelle · June 2013

I've only ever used a stroller for running - not that anything is wrong with them; I just find babywearing works so much better for me. If my kids fell asleep in the car, they'd go right back to sleep when I wrapped them (and honestly, there's good medical evidence that it's not ideal for newborns to sleep/spend long amounts of time in carseats as it isn't the best position for their airway). Also both of my kids hated the bucket seat adn were much happier in rear facing convertibles - next time we will skip the bucket as I never took it out of the car.

Dog walking is MUCH easier IMO babywearing vs. trying to push a stroller - although your dog may have better leash manners than mine

I'd call it a wait and see. If you want to use the bucket on a stroller, you can pick up a snap and go cheaply. I wouldn't invest in a giant travel system.

zanephoebe · June 2013

Thanks for all the advice! Good to hear different opinions on what works for people.

Also, good to see that babywearing is good for walking a dog that pulls. We are lacking in the leash manners at least when a bunny is spotted : I have always thought it would be hard to manage her and a stroller so good to hear your experiences!

nosoup4u · June 2013

You can get a fancy stroller and then get the car seat attachment for pretty cheap, or get a cheap stroller that only works with a car seat. If I lived in the burbs, I would probably opt for the latter, and then wait and see if we needed a bigger stroller later.

With DS1, we bought a Phil & Ted when he was about 5-6 months, and wore him up until then. We had a car seat, but didn't drive a huge amount (and didn't really carry his seat around when he was tiny), and wore him when we drove places also.

We did end up getting an umbrella stroller when he was 18 months, bc it was easier to take on public transportation. Strollers are sooo need specific for where you live and what your needs are, you know?

Danni7535 · June 2013

I wish I had never purchases an infant carseat and instead bought a convertible carseat. Everyone told me it would be nice to have the infant seat so we wouldn't have to wake a sleeping baby. I also had a Snap 'n Go stroller that I never used. The truth is we only took the infant carseat out of the car a couple times. It was so heavy and awkward to carry. I hated it!

I have a Britax B Agile stroller. It's like the Citi Mini, but more affordable. I use it every other day to jog, but I didn't start using it until he was 22 weeks.

Otherwise, I've been wearing baby in my Ergo since he was 2 weeks old. I use it at stores, for walks, and even cleaning. I also bought a linen ring sling that I really like to use around the house.
ETA:
I see that many pp say to wait on the stroller. Here's my 2 cents. Do some research. Put one on your registry that you like. We did this and got ours as a shower present. I'm so glad I didn't wait because DH and I wouldn't have bought that nice of a stroller with our own money. We would've ended up with a crappy jogging stroller because we're cheap!

gnomemom · June 2013

I do baby wear a lot, but strollers are nice when you want to try on clothes, when we go to the zoo and can use the bottom compartment to carry all our stuff, and when we go on long walks when it's really hot out. Especially the last one, as LO gets overheated easily and likes to look around and watch the dog walk beside the stroller.

MrsBigTime · June 2013

I love babywearing, but I also love my stroller. I thought I'd wear my DD everywhere, but to be honest, it's so nice to just snap my car seat into my Bob and go. I probably do 50/50 stroller/wearing when we walk the dog, but DH is almost 100 stroller for walks. I do like having the stroller for shopping because I don't have to haul my diaper bag and shopping bags on my body while I'm carrying the baby.

I'd suggest getting at least a snap n go, but I do think having a stroller of some sort is super nice.

Birdies08 · June 2013

We got a snap-n-go, but honestly only used it a few times. It was nice to have the option, though. Then, when LO was closer to one year, we got an umbrella type stroller to use occasionally. We knew what would suit our needs better at that time.

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