Prams

[natalie_1982]

Hello everyone, hope you are well.

Just wondered if could pick your brains re prams / pushchairs and any advice you might have when looking to buy one. As most of you probably know, I am expecting my first and have no experience with babies on a day-to-day basis so don't have a clue about most things.

A friend told me that when she was shopping for a pram the shop asst advised her against getting a travel system as baby should not spend more than 2hours in the pram position because it is bad for their back - is this common knowledge or was the shop asst trying to get her to buy seperate pram and pushchair and car seat, etc?

Being a non-driver I need to consider how easy it is (or isn't) to get a pram / pushchair on and off a bus, I have been told that 3wheelers are really difficult to manouver on and off buses. Anyone else have any advice (or specific models even) that they can share? Many thanks xx

[ethanryan]

hi 3 wheelers are horrible to get on buses. i just have the mothercare pushchair. you can either buy it with the car seat or without. it lies flat for when baby is asleep and has lots of storage underneath. we brought this 2 years ago. i have brought 3 push chairs since and always go back to this one. ot is very similar to the graco travel system but only alot cheaper because it is a mothercare brand it is also very strong. my older son now 3 stands on the back of it and it is as strong now as it was when i brought it. it is light and easy to get on buses and really easy to fold away

[ethanryan]

have a look on the mothercare website for the motercare atlan pushchair. it is nothing like all these modern ones now it is just a standard pushchair but for convienience and easyness i would recommend it to anyone especially those who get on buses like me

[Hellyon]

Although this was 10 years ago I didn't bother with a pram system as babies grow so fast (all the ones I knew had grown out of the pram by 6months) so very expensive and not useful. They didn't have car seat/pushchair travel systems then so I had a borrowed car seat (I knew the history of it) and a pushchair where the back could drop down to a flat position. It wasn't expensive and lasted a good 18 months and then I just used an 'umbrella' type one.

My main tips would be:
Check the handle height -I'm quite tall and many of them where too low for me to be comfortable, push it around and check you are not hunched.
Is it easy to put up - Mine you just pulled it up and it locked itself into place so I could do it one handed, far too many of them are complicated, same goes for putting it down.

Don't spend loads of money - my �78 one lasted far better than my friends expensive �300 ones, price doesn't always denote quality. You and your baby's needs change so better to have a couple of cheaper ones for different occaisions than an expensive one that is never quite right.

If possible borrow one for the babies early days - it's lovely to have all new but in the first year they grow in and out of everything so fast that you end up wasting money on things that only get used for a couple of months!!

Good luck

[Psychick]

Hi natalie,

Unfortunately my needs are different to yours its seems, so what Im getting will actually be of no use to you. Im getting an Obaby pram with baggy base for later on. I live 5 minutes walk from town and anywhere else we might go, we have a car for so I dont need to worry about using buses etc.

I just wanted to comment on the shop assistant saying about babys being in the pram position for more than 2 hours. Sorry, is she for real? lol Since when has it been bad for a baby to lay down? Most travel systems now have a lightweight carrycot you can get for use with newborns and we was originally looking into getting one ourselves but I decided I wanted a proper pram. My nephew has just turned one and my sister has always used a travel system for him, one without the carrycot, and his back is absolutely fine. I know of so many others that have used them without problems as well. I really have never heard of that and, although someone please correct me if they have heard different, I would say she was definately trying to get you to spend as much money on seperates as possible.

[natalie_1982]

Well it certainly worked Psy, because my friend then bought a proper pram and everything seperately - her daughter is only 2 next month aswell so it's not like we're talking 10years ago when travel systems weren't really around.

[Ice.Maiden]

I had Silver Cross prams for both of my children. These turned into carry cots and also pushchairs. It's each to their own, but I like this make, because not only are they sturdy and comfortable, but almost every part's washable. I've no wish to sell my prams, but if I did, with a couple of replacement wheels, they'd look as beautiful as the day they were bought.

[annie0000]

I had an emmaljunga husky pushchair which you coul lie flat for a new born and I had the toddler seat for it, so it did both my kids up till they were 3 when I made them walk everywhere. It was still going strong then, so I gave it to a neighbour. It was quite bulky, but really strong It was great for walking with and to go on buses and also fit in the car. I did feel the base for lying on was a bit hard for a newborn though, so I had a sheepskin liner in it. As for babies lying on their back - what do they do in a cot? My sons both have perfectly strong backs - my mother in law used to particularly comment on what lovely backs they had - but then she was a bit senile!

[donn1901]

hi. I love the travel system pushchairs. i have only ever used mamas and papas. mainly due to the fact that a car seat is usful in case u do get a lift and your legal in the car. then i had a pramette underneath so if i fancied a stroll it lied flat facing me! when baby can take in veiws you can turn around facing forward and that takes you till about 2-3 years. especiallhy when the child is asleep facing forward the backrest goes flat back in order to give a peaceful sleep. I highly recommend one of these! the suspension is just so great and easy to use. there about four hundred but to have for 3 differnt things for 3yrs is great happy shopping

[natalie_1982]

Thanks for all of your answers, that's really helpful.

Hellyon, thanks for the tip re height - I am quite tall too so that is something I will have to consider and I rules out looknig online until I know what model I want! I don;t mind that though as I am quite excited about going out and looking at all these new things that I have no experience with LOL

Thanks again, have a great weekend everyone xx

[Ethel]

Maybe the shop assistant was thinking of flat head syndrome, which is becoming increasingly common as babies spend more time in car seats and so on:

http://www.safekids.co.uk/FlatHeadSyndromeInBa bies.html

[gina32]

try and get a copy of WHICH? as they have recently done a survey on pushchairs and it seems that the cheaper ones far outdid the more expensive ones, might be worth a look

[gina32]

a friend of my daughter who had a baby didnt buy a crib/moses basket, she just kept teh baby in the car seat at night! she said the midwife thought it was a good idea but i cant see that myself

[jessiebear]

i dont know if this will help but the best advice i will say is a small baby is not designed to be sat in an upright position (ie a car seat) so that is why the limit of 2 hours is there.(that would include travelling time in the car.)
i cant bear to see babies forced into this upright position with their heads flopping to one side when people are pushing the travel systems around. in my experience the mamas and papas ones are the worst example of this as the seat unit is bolt upright! i think people forget that the main purpose of a car seat is to trasport babies safely in the car. it is not just somewhere for them to sit all day! my advice is leave the car seat in the car, take baby out and put them in the pram.

if you do travelling by bus the particular model i would reccomend is the 'silver cross 3d pram system' it is a lightweight stroller design which comes with a soft carrycot liner, so your baby can be facing you in a proper lay flat pram. it then easily converts to a simple forward facing stroller. you can also buy the car seat which will attach to the pushchair if you wish. it costs �299.99 from mothercare.com, and comes with puschair, carrycot insert, footmuff, changing bag, raincover. the car seat is 89.99 definately worth considering. youll have no problem getting it on and off a bus. hope this helps.