The time has come upon me sooner than I expected. I knew I was going to need a good lightweight double stroller when the baby came, but I figured I could wait until, you know, after the baby was actually born. But the other night I took the kids on an outing, and when I went to pop Rilla into the sling, there was a big old belly in the way. I guess it had been a few weeks since I wore her—I haven’t been out much since the food poisoning nightmare. All of a sudden toddler-wearing is impossible. And because Wonderboy’s developmental disabilities mean he is much more like a two-and-a-half-year-old than a four-and-a-half-year-old, I can’t finesse group outings unless he’s in the stroller. It’s sort of like being six months pregnant with two-year-old twins.
I need a stroller that can contain both twins.
We have an ancient sit-and-stand stroller dating back to our New York days. I have rosy memories of wearing baby Beanie in the sling and pushing Jane and Rose down a steep hill to the little white church at the bottom. I would jog a little and get up some speed, and the tiny girls would hold up their hands and wheeeeee all the way down. (My memories of getting back up the hill after daily Mass are less rosy. Jane’s too, I’ll bet—I always made her walk home. That was one heavy, heavy stroller.)
The sit-and-stand still works and is great for our walks around the neighborhood. But I can’t lift it in and out of the minivan. Pathetic, I know. What can I say? I am a spaghetti-armed weakling.
So: what I’m going to have to find is a double stroller or sit-and-stand that doesn’t weigh very much. And doesn’t cost a fortune. And which can take abuse. Easy-peasy, right?
Any suggestions?
I really recommend a Maclaren stroller. They are very sturdy, lightweight, and wonderful to use. Since they are very pricey new, look on craigslist. I see them all the time in great shape. You will love a Maclaren!
I’d recommend the MacLaren brand….though it doesn’t really fall into the doesn’t-cost-a-fortune category. But I’ve had my single MacLaren since my own NYC days (7 years ago) and it is still going strong (discounting it’s looks….it is pretty ghastly at this point). I know they make a nice double that is side-by-side and lightweight and folds like an umbrella stroller.
Good luck to you!
If Wonderboy could handle standing and not-jumping-off-without-warning, the Peg Perego Pliko is great. I slogged around the city for years with heavy kids and library books in various stroller, backpack, sling combos for years.
It wasn’t bad for folding and lifting.
The new ones look exactly the same as the one I bought a decade ago!
I had a tiny little Saturn XL2 when I had my second child, so I needed something small and lightweight that would actually fit in my car. I ended up with a Maclaren double stroller that was able to fit a newborn and a 2 year old very easily. I love love love it, and it still is in great shape 6 years later. I found one on-line here: http://comfortfirst.com/p-44465-maclaren-2008-twin-triumph-double-stroller-free-shipping.aspx Right after I bought my stroller, Combi came out with a double stroller, which bummed me out because I think my combi single stroller is the best invention ever. So if I were to do it again I would get a Combi like this one:
http://www.albeebaby.com/combi-twin-sport-2-turquoise.html
Well, I like my Maclaren, too, I wore one out and bought another one used. If you get to this point, you can also have the wheels on a Maclaren replaced, I definately wore out one set of wheels in my city days!
I have a Valco double jogger, too, which I love for walks close to home, but I can’t get it in and out of my car!
Apparently everyone loves McClaren, I’ve never used one so I wouldn’t know… I do know that the Jeep All-Terrain double is great and it’s lightweight as well. And one seat reclines if you did need to put the baby there before he/she was old enough to sit up http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3082737
Here’s a cheap alternative. Graco. Through neighbors or our own purchase we have owned quite a few strollers including two very expensive European models. When Lucy was born four years ago, we purged the garage of strollers and I bought an “inexpensive” Graco that is a knock off of the much loved, narrow, lightweight Combi. I think it was around $50, weighs about 9-10 lbs, and has a substantial basket. They change the name of this model frequently, so it won’t do me any good to give you that. I know it also comes in a double (front to back). Anyway, it is by far our favorite stroller. It is easily maneuvered, truly folds with one hand, and fits into the back of our Odyssey minivan without folding (although a double would likely need be.) I thought this would be a one child stroller, but honestly it has handled use and abuse without negative effects, and we are now using it for Evelyn. The negatives: It is not as plush as far as fabric and cushioning go. Not a problem here, but may be for some. Otherwise, it is by far the most user-friendly stroller we’ve had. Good luck!
We bought a Graco double stroller (front and back) about 8, no that child is 10!, 10 years ago and it is still going strong. I agree with everything Sarah said in the last comment.