As suggested by Hels, anyone care to recommend (or otherwise) a pushchair?

I have a micralite fastfold. Babybabychickens is now 3 months old and is still using the cot attachment, so i don't know about the pushchair part of my pushchair yet, but I think I can firmly recommend the micralite fastfold newborn plus (newborn = comes with cot, newborn plus = comes with larger cot that attaches via adaptors that also fit maxi cosi car seat). The baby has been sleeping in the cot (as her main bed) for the first 8 weeks of her life, and as it's compatible with the car seat, has been getting an awful lot of use out of the frame part, too. It's pretty light, can be collapsed with one hand, and the wheels are big enough that the ride isn't too bumpy.

Marks out of 10?

9/10.

Drawbacks - availability - we actually couldn't find one in sheffield, and had to wait until visiting my parents near peterborough to go to kiddicare to see one. Also, it was rather expensive. Available from this link;

http://www.groovystyle.co.uk/productpages/micralite/fastfold-nb-plus.htm

We have the micralite as a buggy and it is great.

Though my boy is 18 months old and I wonder how the straps would suit a younger baby as the are pretty high up the neckline.

But it is so light and easy to fold up and stick in the car that I love it.

I decided on the 'Bebe Confort High Trek' pushchair and 'Bebe Confort Creatis Newborn Car Seat'. After 3 months of use here's what I think:

Advantages:

* The car seat can be added to the pushchair chassis quickly and very easily.
* The car seat appears extremely comfortable and is ideal from birth because baby can virtually lay flat.
* Adjustable back and cushion pad is useful.
* It gives a lot of all-round protection.
* It looks super cool and gets a lot of admiring glances and comments where-ever we go!
* The chasis is 3 wheeler and is very easy to manouvre.
* The car seat or pushchair seat is positioned quite high up so little one is located nearer parent and further away from low-level car fumes etc.
* Both car seat and pushchair seat can be positioned forward or rear facing.
* Very easy to switch between car seat and pushchair seat.
* The wheels area quickly and easily detachable making the chassis fit in smaller boot spaces and also lighter to lift.
* Car seat is designed so that little one can stay in the 'reverse' facing position for longer, which is apparantly a lot safer.

Disadvantages:
* The two wheels at the back make it wide and can be tricky in tight spaces.
* The chassis is pretty heavy and although it folds down it still takes up a fair bit of space in the boot of the car.
* Fitting the car seat takes a bit of getting used to.

If I could change anything:
* I'd make the chassis lighter

I've only found it on the internet (babyworld.co.uk) but they were very quick to deliver.

Cost:
Pushchair - £280.00
Car seat - £88.99

can anyone give me a bit of advice? i have a 2 year old who is a brilliant walker (no car) and a baby due in 6 weeks, would i be better getting a double buggy (if so which) or a new single and a buggy board? my mamas and papas pushchair has just broken (spring which keeps it closed, but its done well since we use it everyday) so any one have any advice!

my husband would prefer a 3 weeler (dont they all)

Hiya, Weve got a babies r us twin buggy twin explorer its called, Was fab my ds is 2 and dd 4 months and theres plenty of room in it for them both, not to heavy unlike mothercares,


Ive also gt a mothercare single in red and its lush, ideal when ds is wanting to walk or im wanting to knacker him out :hihi:
we havent got a buggy board but im after one for the single,

hth
Angie

can anyone give me a bit of advice? i have a 2 year old who is a brilliant walker (no car) and a baby due in 6 weeks, would i be better getting a double buggy (if so which) or a new single and a buggy board? my mamas and papas pushchair has just broken (spring which keeps it closed, but its done well since we use it everyday) so any one have any advice!

my husband would prefer a 3 weeler (dont they all)

When my eldest two were small I used to have a Graco Tandem pushchair which was excellent as it just felt like pushing a normal pushchair - I still see mum's struggling with those really wide 'side by side' double buggies and IMHO these are just too wide to be practical!

:)

i really wanted an old fashioned Silver Cross:love: but had to settle for a new style one with matching car seat. The pram changed into a buggy when he got older and can with a stand (never used). We also got bought a cheap and nasty Chicco london stroller -which i hate but it was handy for nipping to shops and ive just bought a lightweight summer one - brill for airport/plane etc..
Id def buy a silvercross again, got it from Babycare World inShalesmoor
Pros- Beautiful pram, everyone comments how nice it is, comfortable it looks and safe. converts really easy to buggy. car seat also attachs to wheels (never did)
Cons - Babycare had POOH aftercare, cost a fortune for extras like shower cover and sun canopy, ITS BIG! and you cant get into little shops, its also a bugger to keep inside of hood clean (white)

can anyone give me a bit of advice? i have a 2 year old who is a brilliant walker (no car) and a baby due in 6 weeks, would i be better getting a double buggy (if so which) or a new single and a buggy board? my mamas and papas pushchair has just broken (spring which keeps it closed, but its done well since we use it everyday) so any one have any advice!

my husband would prefer a 3 weeler (dont they all)what about those buggyboards? or those pods you can attach to buggys?

I found it really hard to lift the front and im not small but im not tall, couldnt even lift it with ds in and hes only 24lbs.

My sideby side is only 1and a half stroller widths so not very big at all

can anyone give me a bit of advice? i have a 2 year old who is a brilliant walker (no car) and a baby due in 6 weeks, would i be better getting a double buggy (if so which) or a new single and a buggy board? my mamas and papas pushchair has just broken (spring which keeps it closed, but its done well since we use it everyday) so any one have any advice!

my husband would prefer a 3 weeler (dont they all)

I think one of the Phil & Ted buggys can be converted once the older child no wants to be using it and you just have 1 child to push about.

I love my Mama and Papa's Pramette.

We have it in the pram form at the moment and we'll convert it to a pushcahir when our daughter is older.

It is fairly light and easy to fold. Though I would check it will fit into your car boot before buying, as it isn't the smallest when folded.

I would NOT get the carseat that goes with it, it was a hassel to fit on the dummy carseat in the shop and so we went with a Britax carseat instead but the actual pushcair is fab.

We've got double buggies coming out of our ears, one in outlaws 'darn sarf', one in his car and one in mine.
My fave is the Kingswood 3 wheeler side by side sandwich fold by John Lewis, easy to deal with, robust and very comfy with loads more room for when they get bigger.
He's got a Mclaren F1, I mean McLaren umbrella fold side by side which is great for shop doorways etc and takes up much less room in the car but no shopping basket and the shoulder straps are too high making the girls look quite uncomfortable at times.
We have a Graco side by side at the outlaws, umbrella fold but with a decidedly flimsy feel to it.
We have a Mothercare tandem which I use purely for getting to the car and back because our gate is so narrow, the harness points are a bit wild and useless for actually restraining the babies and whoever sits at the back gets bored very quickly. It's also a pig to fold unless all the bits are in the right place. I'm told the weight issue gets difficult with kids of different ages too.

For doubles I recommend any McLaren umbrella fold but check on the straps and make sure it's not more than 73cm wide for doors. The Kingswood is great if you have a big enough car to hold it but can be a pain in doorways, unless you shop in town and M'hell a lot.

can anyone give me a bit of advice? i have a 2 year old who is a brilliant walker (no car) and a baby due in 6 weeks, would i be better getting a double buggy (if so which) or a new single and a buggy board? my mamas and papas pushchair has just broken (spring which keeps it closed, but its done well since we use it everyday) so any one have any advice!

my husband would prefer a 3 weeler (dont they all)

We have a tandem for our 3 year old and 9 month old. When the youngest was smaller the back seat was lie flat and also would take her car seat. Both seats have hoods/sun canopies too, which was helpful for when we went to Spain. We took it on the plane without any problems. The advantage of the tandem over a double was it fits through shop doors easier and you can actually get through shop checkouts! Ours is a Mothercare/Graco Mirage tandem and I bought it second hand. Yes its big and bulky, but not the heaviest tandem or twin, and it folds dead easy.

I think Asda have got a sort of buggy board/seat that attaches to the back of other pushchairs that may be suitable if it's only needed for a rest/occasional use?

Asda have got a seat to go, need to get one for my older sprog

Hi

Anyone know any good day nurseries near Sheff city centre?

Ta

Ok Im in the middle of a war here.
An arms race with Buggies as weapons.

Let me explain...

I want one of those three wheeled stroller things.
Know what I mean?
But my other half hates them and insists theyre too heavy and cumbersome and are hard to fold down to get on a bus with.
I no longer drive so we have to take the occasional bus to get into the middle of the small town thats close to where I live but i take lots of walks and a three wheeler would be perfect for me to go for walks with AND it`d get me and the baby out of my partners hair for a few hours each day and thats going to be good for her, yes?

I COULD persuade my other half to take driving lessons but--and I dont want to appear ever so slightly sexist here-but there are more than enough women on the roads and we really dont need more do we?
IM JOKING!!!

My other half wants one of those lightweight things with the little eight wheels and such that cost about a tenner at argos-know the type i mean?

So, what are your experiences? Whats the best one? Dosh is certainly no object-as it shouldnt be for kids n babies.

those flimsy things are rubbish, they break, the footrest snaps off.. lah blah blah. I don't like the off road 3 wheelers either (friends say they are rubbish)

You want a proper pram that can double up as a chair, sleeping place and exciting ride to keep kids amused.
Like this one (http://www.kiddicare.com/invt/bugslvr3dprmsysapo?N=373)

If dosh is no object get one of each.:)

Exactly how many arms/tentacles/fingers do you have?:suspect:

Your avatar has changed twice while I've typed 1 post & I don't doubt there's a few more posts by you also.:confused:

Do you also type with your feet?:gag:

those flimsy things are rubbish, they break, the footrest snaps off.. lah blah blah. I don't like the off road 3 wheelers either (friends say they are rubbish)

You want a proper pram that can double up as a chair, sleeping place and exciting ride to keep kids amused.
Like this one (http://www.kiddicare.com/invt/bugslvr3dprmsysapo?N=373)
Thats more or less the one thats shes after.... its too girly!!! I cant push that, itd do endless damage to my street cred!

If dosh is no object get one of each.:)

Exactly how many arms/tentacles/fingers do you have?:suspect:

Your avatar has changed twice while I've typed 1 post & I don't doubt there's a few more posts by you also.:confused:

Do you also type with your feet?:gag:
I could type with my feet.... for a small fee.....


yeahhhh im kinky too!

We just bought this (http://www.daycaremall.com/images/ang/buggy_canopy.JPG) for the nursery (well the 4 passenger version) now thats what I call a buggy :D

We just bought this (http://www.daycaremall.com/images/ang/buggy_canopy.JPG) for the nursery (well the 4 passenger version) now thats what I call a buggy :D
Bloody hell shes having a kid not a litter! :D

those flimsy things are rubbish, they break, the footrest snaps off.. lah blah blah. I don't like the off road 3 wheelers either (friends say they are rubbish)

You want a proper pram that can double up as a chair, sleeping place and exciting ride to keep kids amused.
Like this one (http://www.kiddicare.com/invt/bugslvr3dprmsysapo?N=373)
God shes seen it and wants that one now!!!!!!! Its not my style! I want something hard and manly just like me!


Damn I just broke a nail...

Try to get one where the baby/toddler faces you ... I hate to see all those poor little children being pushed into the crowds, they can't talk to the parent, the parent can't see what's happening with them, opportunities for parent/child interaction are almost nil. i notice that even on the bus, parents seem to park the pram facing away from them and proceed to totally ignore the child :confused:

And those three wheeler things are an abomination .. they take up far too much room, jsut imo :)

Let's have a campaign for backward facing buggies!

Most prams are two way Ruby, its just the parents who cant read the instructions to change it (or cant be bothered)

Most prams are two way Ruby, its just the parents who cant read the instructions to change it (or cant be bothered)

Hmmmm, that's interesting. The complaint I've heard most is the two way ones are outrageously expensive ... the pram part usually faces the pusher, but when they come to fit the buggy later, it's forward facing?

You couldn't have those three wheeler things facing you, could you? Some of the newer ones are getting ridiculously oversized now, though. Someone came with a buggy the other day that looked bigger than my armchair at home!! She couldn't get in the shop with it :D

We just bought this (http://www.daycaremall.com/images/ang/buggy_canopy.JPG) for the nursery (well the 4 passenger version) now thats what I call a buggy :D
That's the bees knees, I'm not so worried about having a second set of twins now I've seen that!

That's the bees knees, I'm not so worried about having a second set of twins now I've seen that!

You wouldnt believe our luck. Total retail new for that prambulator is £1600 with covers etc. (4 seats and baby foam inserts) we got it in mint condition with two sets of spare canopys for under £120 on ebay :thumbsup:

Just got to brand it with the nursery logo, it will certainly turn a few heads when the staff take the children out to the park in it :P

I was rather hoping that the three wheeler things would be more popular-especially as i intend to do a lot of walking with the new sprog in the woods and stuff. It might be an idea to get a girly buggy for the sake of my other halfs sanity and a three wheeler for walks.
Although saying that, shes likely to accuse me of wasting money.

Jabberwocky, you can both win...the ultimate Daddy's pram is the Quinny Zapp - you can tuck a baby carrier in it facing either direction, and after 6 months you replace it with a seat. It folds down to the smallest possible size and even has a bag you can put it in, and it's light and easy to carry. It goes up very quickly too once you've got the hang of it. It's a 3 wheeler, but a small zippy one - I am five foot nothing, and can stand still and spin the pram around 360 degrees with one hand. It's perfect for manoeuvering around shops and small spaces, AND is very, very sturdy.

We have one because it was the one thing Farmman wanted to choose, and this was what he wanted - I often hear dads asking for one.

As for Mummy approval - it doesn't do too well at off roading, and there is no place to put your shopping, etc, it will overbalance. But for sheer manoueverability and ease of use, I can forgive it.

Price - shop around!!!! They retail for about £150, but ours cost £75 on the web - sorry, can't remember where from.

Jabberwocky, you can both win...the ultimate Daddy's pram is the Quinny Zapp - you can tuck a baby carrier in it facing either direction, and after 6 months you replace it with a seat. It folds down to the smallest possible size and even has a bag you can put it in, and it's light and easy to carry. It goes up very quickly too once you've got the hang of it. It's a 3 wheeler, but a small zippy one - I am five foot nothing, and can stand still and spin the pram around 360 degrees with one hand. It's perfect for manoeuvering around shops and small spaces, AND is very, very sturdy.

We have one because it was the one thing Farmman wanted to choose, and this was what he wanted - I often hear dads asking for one.

As for Mummy approval - it doesn't do too well at off roading, and there is no place to put your shopping, etc, it will overbalance. But for sheer manoueverability and ease of use, I can forgive it.

Price - shop around!!!! They retail for about £150, but ours cost £75 on the web - sorry, can't remember where from.

Thanks for that! Ill have a squiz around for one!

Ok found one!

http://www.samueljohnston.co.uk/acatalog/Quinny_Zapp.html

Looks perfect. Ill get the Dragon lad--- my other half to take a peek at the site.

Yep, that's the one. Really the only two regrets are not having a space for 'stuff', and the slight trouble over really rough terrain - though it's so light it's easy enough to throw around and lift up when necessary. It also does steps without too much trouble - it's very tough - and my mother has been known to take it on the escalator because it's light enough to get away with it.

The cosytoes you can get for it is waterproof, can tighten up to form a little cocoon, and is very nice and cosy indeed.

I use those brightly coloured baby links to attach toys and drinks to the pram, with no problems (except the fact that I have become known as 'the child catcher' to friends and family because small children are attracted to them and grab on, and if I don't notice, and their parents don't, I end up with little stow-aways, lol). It will also fit those diabolical child-diverters that have a little steering wheel and gears and a horn and play the same evil tune over and over and over and over and over and over.

Or let the wife buy the pram she wants and buy a sling to go walking in. They are cheap and cheerful and perfect for walking.
I have a maya wrap ring sling and mei tai and my daughter loves them :)

I found the Baby Bjorn sling invaluable - gets you fit carrying the extra weight too! My priority for a buggy was weight, because you end up lugging it in and out of the car a lot

A sling.

now theres an idea...

Walking with a baby in a sling is like... progressive resistance training. The bigger and heavier the kid grows, the more weight you have to carry, the healthier it is for you, the more your body adapts to carry the weight...

I like this idea.

I wonder if its possible to build a barbell out of toddlers...

Oh well, my other half, in her wisdom has put the kybosh on the sling idea.

We've just bought another pram as our other didn't fit in the car when we changed the car. We've just bought the Beb Confort Loola (http://www.mothercare.com/invt/la0229). The seat can go either way so your child is sat looking at you or away from you. We've bought the car seat as it is one of the most laid back ones we have seen, and we didn't like how our daughter was all scrunched up in our old one.

Let's have a campaign for backward facing buggies!


Funny you should say that, I came across this (http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/talktoyourbaby/pushchairs.html) website whilst surfing.

We've just bought another pram as our other didn't fit in the car when we changed the car. We've just bought the Beb Confort Loola (http://www.mothercare.com/invt/la0229). The seat can go either way so your child is sat looking at you or away from you. We've bought the car seat as it is one of the most laid back ones we have seen, and we didn't like how our daughter was all scrunched up in our old one.

How do you find the weight of the Loola? We're thinking of getting that because it folds up slightly more compactly than the mamas and papas pilko pramette and our boot isn't that big. The Loola seems pretty heavy though. Agree that the creatis car seat looks more laid back than others, but it seems more faffy. How do you find getting it in and out of the car?

I'm a self-confessed pramaholic, in 19 months i have had 30 pushchairs :loopy: and the one pushchair i can recommend for everything you need other than public transport is a Bugaboo, seat can face either way, carrycot can be used as a moses basket, light weight, dream to push, brilliant for off roading and brilliant for shopping, its everything you would ever need. Plus you can change the colour of the seat for about £60 (cheaper on ebay) so your wife could have pink and you could have something boring like black if you'd rather! I'd definately get a Bugaboo and then a stroller for public transport, a stroller i would definately recommend is the Maclaren Techno XT or Classic, suitable from birth, umbrella folding and very lightweight.

The Zapp i agree is brilliant, i got rid of mine because it was rubbish for shopping if you don't have a car or a other half to carry your bags, plus the way it folded drove me mad because its so fiddly and can't be done one handed.

The Loola is the one of the worst pushchairs i have owned, i got rid of mine when my son was 8 months old and he'd outgrown the car seat (the car seat is fantastic, fiddly to put in the car but easy after a few times) The Loola with the seat unit on is uncomfy to push, heavy, awkward and there's no padding in the seat for the baby unless you add a footmuff. It's like marmite, you either love it or hate it and i hated it.

A great 3 wheeler to off road with is the Phil & Ted's E3 which is super lightweight at just over 8kg, it makes it lighter than a Pliko P3 Pramette and almost as light as a Maclaren.

If you want to ask any other questions, give me a shout.

Bugaboo - http://www.glasgowpramcentre.co.uk/shop/product.php?product_id=1812

Maclaren Techno Classic - http://www.glasgowpramcentre.co.uk/shop/product.php?product_id=1866

Maclaren Techno XT - http://www.glasgowpramcentre.co.uk/shop/product.php?product_id=1865

Quinny Zapp - http://www.glasgowpramcentre.co.uk/shop/product.php?product_id=1743

BebeConfort Loola - http://www.glasgowpramcentre.co.uk/shop/product.php?product_id=1827

Phil & Teds E3 - http://www.glasgowpramcentre.co.uk/shop/product.php?product_id=1132#

Pliko P3 Pramette - http://www.glasgowpramcentre.co.uk/shop/product.php?product_id=1673


Links for all pushchairs i've mentioned. Definately shop around online for the best price though!!

The pram is a bit heavy and I do struggle a bit. I have thought about taking the seat bit off before putting it in the car, so that I'm puttting in the frame seperalty which would make it a lot lighter. But as I'm not getting it out all the time I don't find it too bad (and I am a weakling ;-))

The car seat is a bit of a fath, but so was our old one (mothercare's cosy tot). The creatis is a lot better though as the car strap goes under the seat, so you can just take the baby out and leave it strapped in the car, which is great.

If you are going on a bus you definitley need an umbrella folding pushchair. And for heavens sake DO NOT get a pushchair that doesn't have swivel wheels at the front.

Well this is persoonal taste but I hate, loathe and detest all 3-wheeler pushchairs! And I personally think they are unsafe, especially if you are getting on and off buses. Imagine having all your shopping on the handles (as we all do) and then getting on a bus - you'll have to lift the front wheel up to go up the step onto the bus, then lift the back wheels up.........meaning that all the weight is balanced on that one front wheel, and if your shopping isn't evenly balanced, you're quite likely to topple over if you don't have wrestlers arms! With Junior inside, scary!

I had a Maclaren Techno XT (about £150 ish) which was fabulous. Sturdy, folds up small, safe, good looking, and the handles extend which was the main reason I bought it - because I'm tall and most other pushchairs are too low and give me a bad back!

And if anyone is interested in slings, I can really recommend this site:

www.littlepossums.co.uk

Well this is persoonal taste but I hate, loathe and detest all 3-wheeler pushchairs! And I personally think they are unsafe, especially if you are getting on and off buses. Imagine having all your shopping on the handles (as we all do) and then getting on a bus - you'll have to lift the front wheel up to go up the step onto the bus, then lift the back wheels up.........meaning that all the weight is balanced on that one front wheel, and if your shopping isn't evenly balanced, you're quite likely to topple over if you don't have wrestlers arms! With Junior inside, scary!

I had a Maclaren Techno XT (about £150 ish) which was fabulous. Sturdy, folds up small, safe, good looking, and the handles extend which was the main reason I bought it - because I'm tall and most other pushchairs are too low and give me a bad back!

I don't think i've ever seen a 3 wheeler with seperate handles to be able to hang shopping off :confused: i don't find getting off a bus with a 3 wheeler any different from a 4 wheeler so long as the driver lowers the bus.

Maclaren XT's are excellent but i don't think they're very comfy for a newborn, i got my first XT before my son was born and returned it before use, i got my 2nd when he was 3 months old and he was still teeny in it and he's a big lad.

I don't think i've ever seen a 3 wheeler with seperate handles to be able to hang shopping off :confused: i don't find getting off a bus with a 3 wheeler any different from a 4 wheeler so long as the driver lowers the bus.

Maclaren XT's are excellent but i don't think they're very comfy for a newborn, i got my first XT before my son was born and returned it before use, i got my 2nd when he was 3 months old and he was still teeny in it and he's a big lad.

Aaah - I have always owned those hooks you use to hang shopping off the hanles/bar of a pushchair! They still freak me out - I know how un-coordinated I am when tired and stressed!

I got my Techno when my daughter was about 4 months but she's always been on the chunky side!

Anyone got any advice regarding prams?

Ive been looking at travel systems.

Firstly - I have a 2 door car and cant afford to change it. It also has front airbags that can not turn off.

So with this in mind, the car seat needs to be in rear seat - where there is no door.

Although acording to Britax seat finder my car should have isofix points - i can not find them!



So what would you say is the best travel system! Bearing in mind having to fit the seat in the rear seats with no door.

I think my boot is large enough for most of the travel systems! I would also like the car seat to be able to be used in my mums (babysiter, lol) car!


Thanks

hi, i also have a two door car and found the best travel system was a graco with the auto base for the car seat. You fit the auto base in the car with the seat belt and can just leave it in, the car seat then very easy clicks in and its easy to get out with the baby still in it, but with no faffing about everytime.

Hi,

I agree with cheekyone. I have the Graco Tour Deluxe with the auto base for the car seat. My baby isn't here yet (I'm 3 days overdue!), but my husband has fitted the autobase and we've practiced putting the seat in and out of the car. We have a VW Golf 2 door vehicle and find it really quite easy.

xxx

i agree totally, i also had graco travel system with the auto base, and was so easy to just raise front seats fwd and click seat into base then faffing around with belts etc, and no clambering over seats.....lol

also great for not disturbing baby when there asleep, just lift car seat off and click onto pram, and off you go

[QUOTE=Yellowrose]We have been using Elmore Kindergarten on Middlewood Road, both of our children go there, no problems. Im sure now Ive posted this someone will give it a slating, but I havent any problems with it and have turned up unexpected a few times. ............QUOTE]
i know a few girls there, so it put me off and also the spikey plants in the garden and every time u walk past staff are talking about their weekends! Think im just really picky, i probably subconsciously dont want to take him anywhere and find fault with em all! i also dont like the fact that everyone can see the kids playing.
congrats on ur little boy learning to read tho! thats cool!

Not noticed spikey plants! But I think their outdoor play area is really good our little boy loves it. As for staff talking about their weekends, you'll get that everywhere. Well, each to their own. If we all liked the same place it would definitely be full.

Just read your OP. If you just want to take him to improve his social skills, why dont you use a toddler group? That way you will be there all the time.

Thanks!!

I have been looking at a Graco one in Toys r us that has got loads of things with it.

I read that its a exclusive material to toys r us too - BUT it is also the only material i like, looking at the graco website (saying that i know they look different in the pictures)

How long before they change the materials again?
Does anyone know if you get 1 years faults guartee with it? If so I assume this starts from the date of purchase!

Im still very early in pregnancy but im so eager to start buying things and getting ready!!

Thanks again for all your help!

Just read your OP. If you just want to take him to improve his social skills, why dont you use a toddler group? That way you will be there all the time.
thanks im thinking of going to Zebras at methodist and already go to a church one on wed-its just a pain as he has a sleep 1-3 ish and thats when all the groups are!

i had a travel syetem from mothercare it was fantastic but be warned they can be quite bulky when folded so make sure it fits in your boot before buying.Ours fit in our fiesta boot but you couldnt fit anything else in though like shopping etc:thumbsup:

i know a few girls there, so it put me off and also the spikey plants in the garden and every time u walk past staff are talking about their weekends! I also dont like the fact that everyone can see the kids playing.

The thing that puts me off (and I know I'm biase but its a valid point) is that the play area is smack bang next to Middlewood Road, I wouldn't personally think its very pleasant playing with all the traffic noise and fumes in the garden all day.

Hmmmm I don't rate Graco's at all, i find them very plasticy, bulky and impractical but rate the Graco car seat highly. I'm a self-confessed pramaholic, on number 30 now in 20 months :loopy: To be honest travel systems aren't very good due to the recommendations that a baby should not be in a car seat for longer than an hour (i think :confused:) at a time due to the car seat not being flat and so baby's back is scrunched up. You'd be better getting a laid back pram, just my opinion. If your set on a travel system though, i'd recommend a Mamas & Papas Pliko Pramette, not only is it a pram for the early days but it also takes a car seat which has a base that can stay in the car. Word of advice though, buy it on ebay cheaper, Mamas & Papas aftersales stinks (i had to threaten with legal action before i got anywhere) plus ebay has some great deals, if you really want a warranty (which in Mamas & Papas case, isn't worth the paper its written on) then buy from an online shop. If you were to buy it in the Mamas & Papas store, the warranty can be valid from date of birth.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MAMAS-and-PAPAS-Pliko-Pramette-Primo-Viaggio-base_W0QQitemZ170048196544QQihZ007QQcategoryZ66705 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Thanks for that - i will have a look at the mamas and papas pramette.

Its the base left in the car that I want the most i think!

Its correct about the baby not allowed in the car seat for over 2 hours, therefore the graco one i was looking at had a lay flat pram base with carry cot, so the baby can lay flat.
With the added extra of being able to place th car seat to the pram when "nippin" out for an hour!

Since posting the message I had also thought about the warrenties etc as id not thought about that before - and decicded it was better to buy nearer the time of birth due to losing out on warrenty whilst the pram is sat waiting for the baby to arrive!

Please can I ask why you needed the mamas and papas after sales?

Thanks

Amanda

ive got a silvercross baby seat to sell with its accessories £40
have you thought of using a sling? or a hippychick when shes/hes older and just getting umbrella buggy?

Does the baby seat come with car base?

I have a nice mammas and pappas one which fits fine in my 2 door

Does the baby seat come with car base?
hi
if ur replying to me its just a car seat upto 20pounds(weight) or when they can sit up properly-but i do have a silver frame thing that you can attach car seat to - would sell that for £10-brand new never used it. Bought it with silver cross pram but they all match and fit together. not ready to sell pram yet its godsend! have you tried babycare world at shalesmoor? they usually give you 10% off ur 1st purchase-so just buy everything together!

Hate Graco stuff too - find them bulky and plasticy! Also a pramoholic here...in your situation would certainly suggest Mamas and Papas pramette which is fantastic from birth - I bought it with my first baby and am using it now on second (with about 12 other trials of different prams in between!)...I had a two door car with my first baby and the pramette is great if boot space is tight. However, I didn't like the primo viaggio carseat as I found they were too upright and my daughter's head fell forward so I went and bought a britax deluxe rock a tot which again am using with second...

Just as an extra point of advice...take your car into a mechanic because most the time airbags can be deactivated - it's a matter of finding the fuse (I had a mechanic do it for my peugeot 2 door)...that would make life much easier for you as baby could go in front and you wouldn't be forced into buying car seat that may not be perfect...

Finally - on car seats, both Mothercare and Babycare at Shalesmoor will actually let you try the seats in your car and you can get a feel for how they work...

Hope this makes sense...my brain is still like mushy peas after giving birth a couple of months ago so am just learning to talk/put sentences together again!!!

p.s would avoid buying second hand car seats if you don't know the seller...

Hate Graco stuff too - find them bulky and plasticy! Also a pramoholic here............Hope this makes sense...my brain is still like mushy peas after giving birth a couple of months ago so am just learning to talk/put sentences together again!!!
have to agree - hate graco too, looks cheap and not a fan of chicco although have two of their prams(yes i know one baby and 3 prams-dont ask!)
theres also a place opp hills barracks, he sells new prams CHEAP and hires out second hand ones so you can try b4 u buy. i got my summer chicco from there for only £35, and its £55 in co-op, great for chucking around (cars, airports etc..)
Anyway, dont rush your decision have agood look around, sometimes if u find it cheaper on net, shops will match price

Please can I ask why you needed the mamas and papas after sales?

Thanks

Amanda

PM'ed you with the details lol!! Post was far too long on here!!

What has everyone got? I've had a mothercare travel system, Chicco london stroller a 3 wheeler kidz cargo and a bruin stroller.

Where to start! We have a Mothercare double umbrella fold, a Kingswood double sandwich fold, 2 single Graco travel system buggy's and 2 Maclaren umbrella fold single buggy's. We also have a "one in front of the other" style buggy to get us down to the garage from the house which is either Graco or Mothercare and another sandwich fold buggy but can't remember the make.

what one was the best?

All depends on where we are going or what space we have , the 2 Maclaren singles are best for ease of use and being so light and compact they are easy to transport, only problem is you need 2 people to push so no good when you are on your own. The kingswood is best if you are outside because of the big wheels but it doesn't fit through standard size doorways. We use the umbrella fold double buggy most of all which is Macalren or Mothercare, can't remember right now and it is in the boot of my car.

i have a mothercare hoxton double buggy!!! and i love it :D

Im gettin the Silver Cross 3D. Its lovely, versatile, and most important light and not very big! IMO

Someone said it was best to get a pram that has a car seat too, so that new babies can lie down in the car. Any advice on this?

They won't be lying down in the car. Integrated car seats still sit up. The pram with car seat is a good idea, but you actually need to take them out of the car seat attachment when you're walking for a while and lay them in a flat pram 'bed'

I have to disagree here, bébé confort has a pram out now where the carry cot can be used as a car bed as well. Sadly it is only suitable up to six months, suppose it is to do with the babies starting to sit up then or trying to at least.

Have a look here: http://www.babybirds.co.uk/CarCots.php

And here is their website (it tokk ages to load though):
http://www.bebeconfort.com/

I have to disagree here, bébé confort has a pram out now where the carry cot can be used as a car bed as well. Sadly it is only suitable up to six months, suppose it is to do with the babies starting to sit up then or trying to at least.

Have a look here: http://www.babybirds.co.uk/CarCots.php

And here is their website (it tokk ages to load though):
http://www.bebeconfort.com/

Blimey. Well, you learn something new every day. I've never seen one of those before. But yes, it has a very limited life.
Bonus for those times when you need to drive them around in the middle of the night to get them to sleep - no worrying about getting them out of the seat and waking them up again. On the other hand, I know several parents whose babies slept in their sitty-uppy car seats regularly because it was the only way to ease their colic...horses for courses, I suppose.
Thanks for that monstermummy

Oh, and welcome!

Thanks for the welcome cosywolf!

And no problem, I only know about it as one of the mums had one of those at the postnatal yoga, the course has finished though so I won't be able to ask her opinion about the car cot.

Agree though that it is much easier for these nighttime drives, luckily we did not have too many of them.

weve got a silvercross, a buggy and a lightweight buggy for summer. just on the look out for a double for when baby 2 gets here!

Ive just sold our tandem buggy. I still have a Graco travel system which I hardly use now.

I want a quinny zapp but my OH wont let me have one cos he says theyre overpriced. I want it because its small and light and will fit in the footwell of the car. Ah well!

Reports state the car seats that lay flat aren't as safe as the other ones though unfortunately, although the only report i have read about is the Jané Matrix one but i should imagine the Bebe Confort one would be along the same lines.

Pushchair wise i have had over 30 in 18 months, i just love them and have an addiction (known to the other pram nutters as being a pramaholic :love: we even have our own message board :hihi: ) I must say i have been sober for 6 months now and haven't bought one since, although i do drool over them on ebay and such like :hihi:

I currently have a cheapy stroller Chicco Ct.06 which i had to buy when i forgot my buggy on a shopping trip! I also have a Maclaren Quest which i love except the brakes are dodgy and wind me up (and a lot of other people!!) I have a list of 7 or so which i must buy before DS (2 years) no longer needs a pushchair or i may just have to persuade OH to have another baby!

I have a Quinny Zapp. They are very expensive for what they are (a glorified stroller) - but hey, you never, ever have to pay full price for anything these days, so have a good look on the net!

The Zapp is unbeatable for maneouverability...I can hold one handle with one hand and spin it around 360 degrees without moving an inch. It's excellent for pushing in shops, in busy and tight places. Ideal if you're holding onto a toddler as well, as it's easy to push and control one handed. It is also small and light - we took it to America with us this year and were able to stow it overhead on the plane.

BUT, if you want to pile it with shopping or baby bags, you will have to take the child out. It will NOT hold bags - cosycub went over backwards more than once while I tried to get used to that after a big travel system, bless him. And it definitely takes a knack to fold it...husband still kicks it into submission. It does not recline at all. And it isn't too great on really rough ground.

Saying that, I've only had two pushchairs - the big baby travel system (free from a neighbour, Mommas and Poppas, great all-rounder, now in the loft for number two should that ever happen). And the Zapp. And I don't intend to get another one.

Ive just sold our tandem buggy. I still have a Graco travel system which I hardly use now.

I want a quinny zapp but my OH wont let me have one cos he says theyre overpriced. I want it because its small and light and will fit in the footwell of the car. Ah well!
we got a pram from that guy opp hills barracks a lightweight green summer pram for £35 instead of £55-think its graco, comes with cover and handle for going over ur shoulder

Ive driven past that shop loads of times and wondered ... its only open Thur, Fri Sat though! So are they second hand or new or what?

I wouldnt mind a Maclaren as they are light, Ive also discovered the Bebe confort Vit which is really light.

I went to the babycare centre at Shalesmoor today and sat Freya in a Quinny Zapp. She seems to fill it and she is only tiny. (14 months and only on the second centile). I did wonder how long it would last her, given that her brother (now 4) was still using the tandem last year!

i think he does sell 2nd hand but we got new-cant go wrong for £35
think he also rents them out too-but not sure
shop is bit of a squeeze!

Right, I'll have a look. Tempted to buy online but its better to see it isnt it?

im just looking on ebay for a second hand double but to be honest i think ill try that shop and also the one at shalesmoor-i like to look at what im getting and test run!
actually found colebrothers to be good and not that expensive as they will price match-good aftercare too

I did a bit more research and bought a Maclaren from Boots with 15% off. I used to have a Maclaren years ago and it lasted my two kids with no problems. They are simple but well made I think. I didnt want a wishy washy pastel one as they tend to soon look dirty, I wanted plain red and thats what I got. I also didnt want a barbie pink one as I think they look a bit cheap.

As for the babycare centre in Shalesmoor, they used to be so good. I used their Chesterfield branch before. But when I went in the other day they were a bit indifferent. I dont like pushy, but I felt as if I was being a bit of a trial to this woman asking how they folded etc...

micralite fastfold for babybabychickens. been very happy with it, and would certainly recommend to others. it inspires regular pushchair-envy, too, always a bonus! think it might be a bit unwieldy to take overhead on a plane, though, so will be looking for a truly collapsable pushchair in about 5 months' time prior to babybaby's first trip abroad.

........
As for the babycare centre in Shalesmoor, they used to be so good. I used their Chesterfield branch before. But when I went in the other day they were a bit indifferent. I dont like pushy, but I felt as if I was being a bit of a trial to this woman asking how they folded etc...
find them good for price-buy lots and get good discount but aftercare sucks

Cant wait for our new buggy to come!!! (pathetic isnt it? I need to get a life ... well I had one and then came the kids:) )

hi does anyone know where in sheffield i can but a bebe confort vit, ive seen them on the net but would like to try cheekymonkey in one first to see if ok but up to now no luck in finding one to try:(

hi does anyone know where in sheffield i can but a bebe confort vit, ive seen them on the net but would like to try cheekymonkey in one first to see if ok but up to now no luck in finding one to try:(

I thought these were OK too but couldnt find anywhere that had one in Sheffield. I thought it was a drawback that the seat didnt recline though.

Reports state the car seats that lay flat aren't as safe as the other ones though unfortunately, although the only report i have read about is the Jané Matrix
Tinkabel can you tell me more about where you read this? We had just about decided on the Jane Matrix system as the buggy has great suspension (have hounds to walk), folds quite small and seems the best to handle of all those we have test driven! The bonus being the flat car seat. All the reviews I have read suggest this is much safer due to lower risk of depressed respiration etc ttp://www.whizzywheels.co.uk/jane_slalom_pro_matrix_travel_system__m614. "It was made "Best Buy" in Which Magazine last year and enables baby to travel safely while in a flat position". It all sounds good & I can only find good comments on safety. Would be keen to know about any sound evidence to the contrary before we make a mistake and splash out on what isnt exactly the cheapest of options!!

co-op in town have big nursery sale on as theyre closing that dept!! im off there tom!

Oooo thats worth knowing. Dumb question but where is it!!?

Just by the Argos Megastore thing, Snig HIll, round the back of Primark.
I've no idea what floor the baby stuff is on but for the sake of the pregnant ladies - there are lifts on the the back wall once inside the store, with the post office on your left and the lifts are on your far right - saves the steps when you're carrying an extra person.

bought quite a few things from there for new babes - all half price

Anybody want to buy a Cosatto Riga 2 in 1 pram/pushchair? Classic pram style which converts to a pushchair and can be used rear facing or forward facing. Sorry ladies I know you all have prams/pushchairs but this pram is just taking up too much room.

We bought a BeBe Confort pram with carrycot, was told the carrycot would fit her until 10 months, as she was such a long baby she only used it for 3 months at best! It cost us £480 new for all the stuff and with hindsight I should have bought second hand for what bit we used it, if anyone interested I have it on sale in the classifieds here very cheap at £25 as we need to clear the loft, if anyone's interested PM me!

Does anyone have, or have seen, the babystyle quicksmart pram? (mothercare sell it online) Does it really fold up as small as it looks? My son is due to get a wheelchair soon and I'm panicking about how I'll fit that, and my daughters pram in my car, really dont want to have to change my car as I'd struggle to get insured on anything bigger! I'm therefore curious about this pram (supposed to be one of the smallest folding ones apparently!) and whether they look ok, lay back easy ect. Or if you know a shop that stocks them so I can go have a nosy! Thanks!

I haven't come across this pram in person, but found this clip on the web, which shows it folding - http://www.babystyle.co.uk/2007/Web%20Ready/Animations/Quicksmart-Animation%20Easy%20Fold.mpg

I think the Quinny Zapp folds down even smaller than this pram though. Mothercare usually have it on show, so you could check out how small it folds.

The only thing I would say about the Zapp (I have one) is that honeyb35 mentions it laying back easily...the Zapp doesn't lay back at all and is suitable only for 6 months and older.
BUT you can push it with one hand quite easily and it is incredibly steerable, good if you have your hands full.
oh, and it does fold very small.

Sorry, I don't know a thing about the other one.

thanks, i found out today the zapp doesnt lay back so thats a no go! my daughter is 6 months but theres no way shes ready for something like that yet, she cant even sit up in her bumbo yet!

Hi all,

As most of you know I'm expecting baby number 2 (I'm 20 weeks todat) DD is almost 10 so I have none of her previous things and I'm starting from scratch.

My question is where is the best place to go to or get a pram online?

I really like the mammas and papas travel system but at nearly £600 not including rain cover, parasol bag etc it's pricey.

Any help would be great

i agree £600 is a little bit pricey for a pram but i suppose it boils down to what kind you want and what you can afford really...:D

i got alot of things for my kids from here http://www.babycarecentres.co.uk/ some of there stuff is a little pricey but i loved their prams and car seats...:)

here's a thread that may help:

http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=187522&highlight=prams

And another:

http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=270973&highlight=pram

And one more:

http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=150503&highlight=pram

I am selling a Bruin Buggy if you are interested, black/grey, its looks practically brand new apart from obvious wear to tyres, fabric and frame not a mark on them. Top quality with, adjustable seat positions, hood, cosytoes and liner, shopping basket and 2 raincovers, 1 to be used with hood, the other without hood. I paid £120 from Toys R Us and I am looking for around £30 for it, PM me if you are interested.

I got my pram from babies r us (Inside toys r us at meadowhell retail park) and it was a graco mosaic in black/blue it had buggy, car seat to attach it too, footmuff and change bag, although the raincover is £30 seperate! But overall my pram cost £150 without the raincover. Because it was meant to be £180, had £20 off instore and a £10 off voucher in their catalogue. So I was impressed by the price of my pram, cause it's lovely and snug, you get all them headhuggers ect. Babies r us also had a pram which was cosatto, in darkblue/lightblue, it had the laying flat seat what you can use as a bed for the first few months, it had the seat adaptor so it turned into a buggy and also an optional car seat. It was really nice and I wanted it but was about £300 and as money is tight...£300 just wern't in our budget (At all) Also.. theres a shop in hillsborough whos open mon-fri 10-5 and sat 10-4 he does cheap prams, so if it's cheap your after go to him, he's excellent. He has second hand and brand new prams.

I've seem to become a pram expert lately, so if you need anymore advice or help :) I'm here..

Gina x

My advice is not to get one like this http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://image.abcaz.co.uk/productimages/157/12204189.jpg&imgrefurl=http://nursery.abcaz.co.uk/5_7149620/pushchairs-and-carrycots/mothercare-trenton-deluxe-pushchair-travel-system--mocha.html&h=332&w=250&sz=10&hl=en&start=3&um=1&tbnid=ovnTkTf6Z_wgbM:&tbnh=119&tbnw=90&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dtrenton%2Bdeluxe%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D 1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN especially if your shopping alot etc. They're just too big and bulky, my sister ended up buying a buggy type for my niece when she was 3 months cause it was simply huge. :)

Have a serious think about what you'll use you pram for our first pram was a mamas and papas pram and i know lots of people who have been very happy with theirs but i found it was a real city pram, it was for getting out of the boot of your car at meadow hall pushing around the shops i wasn't driving at the time and mine started to come apart when baby was 6 months old, mamas and papas wouldn't fix it because its guarentee ran out 6 months after the date of purchase, we bought it 4 month before she was born so it had been sitting in a box most of the time. we ended up buying a different pushchair.
When number 2 came along we did lots of research and went for an expensive pram but one that comes with a 2 year guarentee and a good resale value as well as a carry cot for a new baby as i found that the recommendations is that newborns should not be in car seats for long periods of time as it can increase the risk of sids also look for a pram that can face you so you can see your baby when they are small. I have found ebay excellent for buying baby stuff and you can read great reviews on mumsnet, just don't buy a 2nd hand car seat. Good luck

Get one of those Quinny's they look ace ! :D

Look at the prams in shops and then see if you can get it cheaper on-line...

List your needs

Size of your car boot - if a tiddy car then some of these big un's just won't fit well with any shopping or luggage.

Will you be doing lots or walking? If so what terrain? We did lots of walking in wood land and ended up buying second hand 3 wheeler to trash cos' our new pram was too lovely to destroy!

Do you want 2 handles or one that goes across so you can push easily one handed?

Will you be on public transport? If so something nifty may make it easier for you.

What about space underneath the pram to stash your equipment? Make sure it's easy to get into.

And remember by the time your tot is walking age you might want a really light weight buggy and not use the hefty bulky system.

If I was to be buying again I would probably just get a pram cos' we ended getting a really decent light weight buggy as soon as he was on the move which has been brilliant.

Mothercare claim to have the biggest range of prams online (apparently) but I think you really need to know what you want, otherwise you're better off going to a shop and pushing some around. You could turn into a 'buggy stalker' like one of my friends who used to run up to mums in the street who were pushing nice prams and ask them lol, funnily enough most mums loved to tell her all about the pram!
With my son I had a graco travel system which I loved, it was so easy to get him out of the car without waking him. When he grew too big for the car seat though, after a few rides in just the pram it developed the 'graco groan' on one wheel which apparently is common! He's also had a chicco buggy which is lovely, a mothercare aulto stroller (which I have for sale for £20....lol), when my daughter was born I just got a simple buggy which although it did the job she never looked very comfy in there so I bought a 2nd hand bebe confort trophy which I love, it can be rear facing which is what I wanted so I could talk to her, and the shopping basket is massive. Its similar to the bebe confort loola which I've heard fantastic reports about too, it was just a bit out of my price range!

We don't drive so we don't have the luxury of just getting in and out the boot with it.

My mum is going to pay half of the pram (up to £300) but I still feel if I pay £300 for one the other £300 I would have spent on mammas and papas would buy almost everything for the little one.

I don't like 3 wheelers, they just don't look safe to me - I know they are safe and I don't mean to offend anyone that has one.

I want a new pram this time. I don't mind a second hand cot/bed or almost everything else to be 2nd hand but I had a god awful pram with dd and was embaressed everytime I put her in it.

I know things are different now to 10 years ago but I always promised myself I'd get a new pram next time.

I think I'll try the going up to mums with nice prams - good way to meet people with babies too!!! lol

I think I'm going to have to push some as both me and my oh are tall (i'm almost 6' and he's 6'4) so we need something that wont hurt our back to push.

We only use public transport and walk alot but only on the pavement/footpaths.


ARRRGGGGGHHHHHH............ it's so complicated!!!

If your walking up and down hills you deffo don't want a bulky travel system, and from my own shopping experiences, mothercare staff will try and sell you the biggest pile of expensize tosh saying its excellent when it really isn't! (Commision I think...) If you go to plenty of shops, babies r us, mothercare, that big baby shop on shalesmoor etc you'll find a decent one! :D Good luck! x

Thanks guys x

And pop over to AnkleBiters on Abbeydale Road - heard lots of good things about the advice they give to people on what pram suits the pram-pushers lifestyle and needs.

Does anyone have experience of either the Sheffield Children's Centre on Shoreham Street or the Grapevine Nursery on London Road? Am considering both for my little one (nearly one year old) and would be interested in any feedback good or bad? Thanks

Have you checked out the ofsted site for their most recent inspections, thats always a good start.

An even better way of finding out info in my opinion is to go have a look and talk to other parents.

I find OFSTED rather unhelpful in these situations. e.g. monsterbaby's nursery had a satisfactory but all the staff are lovely and they do loads of things with them and he has come on really well since going. We sent him there as we felt it to be the right place and on recommendations from other mums.

However, we also had a look at a nursery that had a good and were not keen on that nursery at all, the staff did not engage with the children, it smelled of dirty nappies and the kids looked bored.

OFSTED only comes every so often, things can change very quickly though and they only see a snapshot of what is going on.

I can give you firsthand information on Grapevine, I send my son there.

He's been there for nearly 2 years, and we both love it. The staff are friendly, know what they are doing, and my son adores them. There is an emphasis on their training, I believe, and it seems they are encouraged to pursue qualifications and expand their knowledge, which in my mind equals staff who are keen on what they are doing, are motivated, and are constantly learning more.

Liz, the Manager/Owner, is an ex head teacher, I believe. As well as being very approachable and hands-on, she uses her educational background to make play a learning experience without turning it into lessons. I am always very impressed at what my son learns there, but all he knows is he is having fun. They provide daily written reports that tell you what they ate, how long they slept, and what they mostly played, and they talk to you about it when they hand it to you, they don't just tuck it into the bag.
They also do quarterly reports - what your child has enjoyed, what skills they have been working on, communication and development, and six-monthly 'parents meetings', though as I have said, they always have time for you in between as well.

Cosycub is very, very well socialised because they pay attention to how the children interact and use positive reinforcement to very good effect. I have rarely ever seen any altercations when I'm there, and the children are all happy and sociable, I adore seeing them all when I get there.
Their discipline is all about positive re-inforcement and 'thinking time' and works marvellously.

I have even been known to ask them for parenting advice in the past, lol. And if that isn't a good indication of how much I trust them, nothing is.

The biggest downside is the lack of green grounds, but they have a large asphalt area downstairs and a smaller one upstairs for the little ones. I've found it's less about the limited space and more about how they use it. They spend a lot of time outdoors, have loads of equipment (cosycub is mad on the various bikes) and play games. Even rain and cold doesn't necessarily put them off as long as the children have suitable clothing, so I am guaranteed he gets quality outdoor time. If it helps, I can assure you that there are kids there whose parents work at Sheffield Wildlife Trust and Heeley City Farm, so the outdoors bit can't be too bad.

I wouldn't dream of moving my child, and despite all my early fears about disliking leaving my child with a nursery, when his time there was threatened by our job uncertainty, I was gutted, as he was loving it and really benefiting...and he's still there, hoorah!

Well, blimey, if that isn't enough, feel free to PM me about it. Lmao.

Your little one is bit too young to join us at the moment but you are free to come and visit us, or perhaps come to our parent and child group.

Apologies if this is the wrong forum for this!


I am looking for a day nursery for my son and Just for Kidz is the most convenient geographically. Does anyone have any experience of it good or bad?

Many thanks.

moved to parenting group for you :)

Hi, just wondering if anybody has ever sent their child to 2 different nurseries once they got their free nursery hours. My little girl will be 3 in feb and eligible the following easter for her free nursery hours she currently attends nursery 9-5 on a thursday, its a really lovely local nursery and she likes it but has never been very enthusiastic about it, she's terribly shy (i don't know where she gets it from) but she has lots of friends who go.

The problem is i would like her to continue there as her baby brother will start on the same day and i think it would be nice for her he's the total opposite and would go off with anybody and he seems to bring her out of her shell, however i would've liked her to go to montessori, my grandma was a montessori teacher and we've all been. Has any body sent their child to two nurserys? was it good? do you think i'd be putting her through too much? I think she'd really like it but i'm not sure. :confused:

If she's quite shy, I'd be hesitant to do so...but you know her best. What I would do if you decide to split nursery, is ensure that everything else in her life is in a good, strong routine before changing something big like that - she'd need to feel that the rest of her life was dependably, absolutely normal.

If you just send her to Montessori, she'll make new friends soon enough, and you can invite her best friends from the old nursery for tea, play dates, etc.
Or just keep her where she is if you think anything else will be too difficult, she won't miss what she never had, and if you're already happy, and she is, you don't have to change a perfectly good situation for a potentially hard one.

Thanks cosywolf the thing is she will be attending her own nursery for more days with the free nursery places come easter anyway which may be a little difficult for her at first as the children will be different on the other days. I was thinking of sending her to nursery on the thursday as usual and then montessori 2 mornings a week, so she would still see her friends from nursery just have the added montessori.

Even if they are at the same nursery they probably won't see each other through the day as they will be in different classes for different age groups. And if she is clingy to him or wants to be with him, it may make it very hard work for the staff to separate them when they spot each other. Personnally I would let her spread her wings and go to the other nursery. My son is 2 and is painfully shy, but slowly he is coming out of his shell at nursery and its wonderful to see him grown on his own (i'm so sad, sometimes I stand at the door before he can see me and watch him playing etc!)
Good luck in whatever you decide to do and I hope it works out for the best.

Hi guys, thanx for all your help, especially CosyWolf, it's great to have such in-depth insider knowledge!! :D

We have visited the Grapevine and got a good feeling about the place, we thought the way the staff interacted with the children was great and were impressed with the way learning and development was integrated into the play, but just had a couple of niggles about the baby room - no separate area for babies to sleep in, the cots are in the main baby room which is very brightly lit, and my little angel won't settle unless ALL distractions are removed!

and my little angel won't settle unless ALL distractions are removed!

Wouldn't worry too much about that. Monsterbaby would not sleep without a boob in his mouth (well, not the whole one :)) or without being frantically pushed backwards and forwards.
Now he is sleeping on a cushion (just not at home...)

Like monstermummy said, I think you'll find he does things for them he won't do for you...for instance cosycub has never knowingly napped at home without a serious cuddling session where he nods off in my arms...but at nursery he happily curls up, dummy-free and puts himself to sleep. WHY can't he do that at home????
He was at Grapevine from 5 months old, btw, and settled in fabulously.

I wouldn't recommend that a child attends two different settings as it can be confusing for them. If you are keen on Montessori education then I would send her to that nursery only and no other. I say this as Montessori has a strong ethos and a routine which your child will get to learn, if you then send her to another nursery she will try to continue this there and vice versa and could end up feeling a little lost.

Yeah, back on-line after a week nursing poor baby back to health after a nasty cold - and that's just hubby!

I know what you mean about not doing things at home that they do elsewhere - like snuggling up to granny to have a bottle but only taking it from me whilst sitting in highchair!

Hi all,

Me again. I've decided on the pram I want. It's not expensive, looks amazing, has all the things I want/need in a pram and isn't like anything I've ever seen before.

My only problem is, as there hasn't been a huge amount of them sold in the UK there isn't any reviews that I can find on it. As we're on a budget and it's for such a precious thing I always like to get "user" reviews.

Any idea where I can find a review on the Hauck Traxx Marlin 4 Wheel Travel System (with the car seat attachment) I want the one in grey (not that it makes a difference to the review :) )

Hi, i've had a look on google and havn't found nothing. But i've been informed by a friend that the cheaper hauck prams are known for going abit rocky after a while. I've not got a hauck myself so wouldn't know if this is true or not. But on saying the cheaper ones they are talking about the £40-£60 ones.

This one is nearly £300 with all the stuff. It does come with a 12 month guarantee (as I assume all new things like that do???) it's proper hard to find something but I right like it!

Well, £300 for a pram, I doubt it's going to be anything naff hun! 12 month guarantee is good, mine doesn't come with that. 3 months on mine and it'll be up 27th Jan 9 days after my due date :hihi: If you like the pram, then get it. :) If your anything like me you'll have 6 stored before baby arrives!!

Maybe you could use the lack of reviews to your advantage? How about writing to the manufacturer, pointing out how much you like the look of their product and pointing out that as a member of a busy internet parent/child forum you're in an ideal position to spread the word about how great they are? You might wangle yourself a hefty discount......
Of course you might not, but it's worth a go.

Good idea Halibut. Only problem is the manufacturer, doesn't sell directly to the public in the UK. There website is a bit tosh to be honest. I found one review of the 3 wheel version on Amazon but the one I'm getting has four wheels!

I Think I'm going to get it anyway. If I don't like it I can always sell it I suppose.

Hi Annie,

I used babycentre when I was pg. (I don't know how to do a link - sorry). They have a section which I think is called Buying for Baby (or soemthing very similar). You might get some response from there if you put a post on. I found it very helpful. There is usually someone who can help.

On a slightly different note, although you like this one if you can't find reviews put a thread on here asking for peoples tips comments on what they used. It might help if you see anything else & may be useful?

I have the Mothercare Urban Detour system. I do love it & its great to push & is fantastic for country walks but it has its downsides. Its very heavy & bulky & the car seat weighs a ton. Its also prone to flat tyres. I think if I had my choice again & would have gone for a Quinny. It seemed expensive at the time but you don't need a seperate pushchair, which you end up buying with the travel systems so its probably not that bad.

I am enquiring for my daughter, my grandson will get his free place starting this month, This is 12 1/2 hrs per week.

The private nursery he goes to now have said he has to go 2 1/2 hrs every day, my daughter would like him to go only 3 days and use his hours that way because due to work this would be better for her.

The nursery have said this is not allowed, the governments say so not theirs.

Does anyone know if this is correct, we have been told it dosent matter when you use the hours.

he is already at the nursery and got a permanent place, it would be ideal if the 12 1/2 hrs were just deducted off the monthly fees.

Thanks for reading.

I am enquiring for my daughter, my grandson will get his free place starting this month, This is 12 1/2 hrs per week.

The private nursery he goes to now have said he has to go 2 1/2 hrs every day, my daughter would like him to go only 3 days and use his hours that way because due to work this would be better for her.

The nursery have said this is not allowed, the governments say so not theirs.

Does anyone know if this is correct, we have been told it dosent matter when you use the hours.

he is already at the nursery and got a permanent place, it would be ideal if the 12 1/2 hrs were just deducted off the monthly fees.

Thanks for reading.

i dont think that all nursreys do this my daughters nursery offer a service that you can pay for extra sessions in the day could that be a option for your daughter my daughter stayed for an extra hour and a half 3 times a week and it was £54 a month

Yes, the government only pays for 2 1/2 hour sessions, but you can take a morning session, pay for the lunch hour yourself, then take another funded session in the afternoon. As long as the funded sessions are separated by an hour it IS allowed. UP to you whether you're prepared to pay for the middle hour..Hope this helps...

i didnt know you could do that thats a good option to have

Yes, the government only pays for 2 1/2 hour sessions, but you can take a morning session, pay for the lunch hour yourself, then take another funded session in the afternoon. As long as the funded sessions are separated by an hour it IS allowed. UP to you whether you're prepared to pay for the middle hour..Hope this helps...

Thanks for that, thats very helpful to know.
What it is, my grandson goes to nursery mon, thur, fri 8.00 til 1pm, = 15 hours can the 12 1/2 hrs be deducted from the 15, then she pays for just 2 1/2 a week, the nursery say he has to go everyday for 2 1/2 hrs or if he dosent go everyday ineffectively looses the 5hrs and presumably she will have to pay for the 7 1/2 he has on his other 3 days when she thought she would only have to pay for 2 1/2

sorry if this sounds long winded, i have explained the best i can my daughters dilemma.

The nursery places should now be for 5 * 2.5hr sessions per week. It is increasing to 3hrs per session but i'm not sure when or if it has aleady happened.

As far as i know and i'm sure this is government rules you can link up to 3 sessions per day as long as you attend nursery 3 days per week. You definately don't have to take 5 sessions on 5 separate days.

My little girl goes to nursery 3 days per week for 5 hours each day and all we pay for is 1 x 2 1/2 session.

edit: You can link 2 sessions per day which will be funded by the government. So your daughter will only have to pay for 1 session just as I do.

You might want to look at the information that your nursery receive about the NEG.

As far as I am aware, your grandchild can access the full 5 sessions over the 3 days and you be charged for the shortfall. Look at this link then scroll to the bottom of the page and download the documents about the NEG. ALL nurseries claiming the grant for parents must adhere to this!

http://www.sheffield.gov.uk/education/services-to-schools/eyecs/nursery-education-funding

Pay particular attention the the supplementary guidance document.

Thanks for that, thats very helpful to know.
What it is, my grandson goes to nursery mon, thur, fri 8.00 til 1pm, = 15 hours can the 12 1/2 hrs be deducted from the 15, then she pays for just 2 1/2 a week, the nursery say he has to go everyday for 2 1/2 hrs or if he dosent go everyday ineffectively looses the 5hrs and presumably she will have to pay for the 7 1/2 he has on his other 3 days when she thought she would only have to pay for 2 1/2

sorry if this sounds long winded, i have explained the best i can my daughters dilemma.

In answer to your original question - yes you can take your sessions over 3 days rather than 5, and my daughter did this.

However, its not just about the total number of hours. The "free" hours are actually 5 sessions of 2.5 hours and are intended to be "pre-school" / early education-type sessions, and so you have to take these when the nursery runs the sessions...
This will be one in the morning (9.30ish - 12 ish) and then one in the afternoon (1 ish - 3.ish). As another poster has said - you can do a morning session followed by an afternoon session - but you would need to pay for the gap in the middle (Lunch time).

The hours that you describe (8-1) would therefore only cover 1 session per day and so you would need to do 5 days to use all the sessions.

Hope this makes sense

Is every child entitled to these free sessions? Do you have to make a 'claim' for them?

Is every child entitled to these free sessions? Do you have to make a 'claim' for them?

Every child aged from 3 - 5 years (until the term after their 5th birthday) is eligible. You don't need to make the claim as the nursery do it for you (and is a registered provider) and deduct it from your bill. You need to ensure that you are giving the correct info to the nursery though because if you are claiming sessions at different providers and they total more than 5 per week you will end up with a large bill. You also need to provide your child's birth certificate now.

In answer to your original question - yes you can take your sessions over 3 days rather than 5, and my daughter did this.

However, its not just about the total number of hours. The "free" hours are actually 5 sessions of 2.5 hours and are intended to be "pre-school" / early education-type sessions, and so you have to take these when the nursery runs the sessions...
This will be one in the morning (9.30ish - 12 ish) and then one in the afternoon (1 ish - 3.ish). As another poster has said - you can do a morning session followed by an afternoon session - but you would need to pay for the gap in the middle (Lunch time).

The hours that you describe (8-1) would therefore only cover 1 session per day and so you would need to do 5 days to use all the sessions.

Hope this makes sense

Thats very helpful thankyou very much and I think I understang how it works now.
I will pass this info onto my daughter and she can decide wether to send grandson on the other 2 days or loose out.

thanks everybody for your help.

Hi, I am just looking at nurseries at the moment. the one I am thinking of taking my daughter is. Thorncliffe.
does anyone take their child/children there? can any1 tell me what they think?
thanx

Hi, im not pregnant as of yet but i saw someone in co-op in Aston with a fantastic pram and i cant find it.....ill try my best to explain and if you get an idea please help me.

It was a double buggy,4 wheels, but it had an all over material cover like netting so kids can see out, it had 1 big seat in it but with2 sets of straps inside, it was like a little play room on wheels lol where kids would be fully enclosed but could be secured in with straps...the person who had it had it in navy/black but i dont mind what colour.

Sorry description is shocking ill keep looking but as of yet i cant find anything near what im looking for.

Thanks

that sounds disturbingly like some of the pet strollers I've seen on american websites :?

further googling revealed the same company make those as kids' buggies which seem to be constructed of the same fabric and frame

That doesnt sound too good :( ill keep looking but unless i can find one thats strong and good enough to carry a little bundle of joy- once i get pregnant- i wont buy one will have to keep looking hehe

Have a look on ebay as a research tool. We were given a fantastic pram by my outlaws and didn't know anything about it so we googled/ebayed for a picture and found one which meant we could then find the name and more info. Turned out to be a Kingswood which I understand is John Lewis' own brand.
A similar sort of thing to the one you describe but with a small piece of fabric which creates a semi divide between the two seats.
From the POV of a parent with twins I can say our McLaren Twin Techno is our best pram because it has a steel bar between them and helps keep some squabbles low key :D

Yeah it sounds like the pram im trying to find.....will keep looking if you have a link that would be great....im not planning on having twins but if i did it would be great! just loved the idea of the pram kid can play with space around them while in pram hopefully keep them entertained well thats the idea haha

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.mumsnet.com/images/doublepushchairs2002/twinbuzz.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.mumsnet.com/pushchairs/doubles/503.html&h=231&w=165&sz=15&hl=en&start=2&tbnid=ok9ivjBfebKIHM:&tbnh=108&tbnw=77&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dkingswood%2Btwin%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DG
Here's one but the photo isn't quite right for the model we have.
It might also be worth looking at Silver Cross carriage styles but there are also some terrific Italian twin models about, I fell in love with one but back out of love with the price tag of £800.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Vintage-Silver-Cross-Twin-Pram_W0QQitemZ270211467222QQihZ017QQcategoryZ66700 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Also item number 190200214565

the one im looking for is more off road style too.

has 4 wheele for obvious reasons, ls.

It is suitable for one child, or 2.

You can open it up along the front, like normalish buggys but fully enclosable for rain and stuff.

It didnt look like there were actually seats. but there were, quite strange really.

I can't do links, but I was bored so I had a look on google and I found something called a "Baby Jogger City Series Double Buggy" which sounds like it might be what you mean. Otherwise, could it have been one of the bike trailers that converts to a pushchair? :)

Yeah, the bike trailer sounds like it.
This one Dane-katie?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2-in-1-Bicycle-Trailer-Jogger-Kids-Cycling-or-Pram_W0QQitemZ230164687945QQihZ013QQcategoryZ98932 QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQ_trksidZp1638.m118.l1247Q QcmdZViewItem

Yeah looks like that but 4 wheels and doesnt hook up to a bike so its flat that the front no bit sticking out.......getting along the right lines here.....im still looking hopefully will find it hehe

i obviously have to much time on my hands but have a look on this site under jogger strollers. http://www.bebeloveusa.com/

or this one has four wheels. both can be used as jogger/ stroller or bike trailer i think. http://www.bikesandtrailers.com/children/cts-description.html

Hi - I'm gonna be needing a double pram around the beginning of june for a newborn, and my daughter who will be almost 12 months old. The last time i used one was about 7 years ago, and i had a graco stadium duo. I'm now looking at both the phil & ted's double sports buggy or the mamas n papas twin aria. I can't decide whether I like the thought of a young child being so close to the floor on the P&T but it does seem to have rave reviews. Does anyone have any experience of either of these, or indeed any other recommendations?

I have the Phil and Teds and was also worried about them being so close to the ground, however its not as close as you think and my children love it. Its also very easy to manouvre and because its so narrow great for getting around the shops.

ah right, thanx for that. Did you use it for a newborn? It looks to me that when the newborn is in the cocoon, the older child is virtually sat on top of the baby. Can you actually get to the baby while the older child is sat in it's seat?

or this one has four wheels. both can be used as jogger/ stroller or bike trailer i think. http://www.bikesandtrailers.com/children/cts-description.html[/QUOTE]

LOL sorry I had to laugh at the "ski" mode one, that will definately come in handy!

I was looking at that Ski one, i think thats brilliant, Hook dogs up to it and can kill 2 birds with one stone! Excersise dogs/walking them, while taking youngens out for a stroll!

HAHA

They are looking like what we saw. Not me thatslooking though,my other half. Might make it so i can sit in it too so can be pushed round :D

I used for my newborn and 2 and half year old. The newborn does go in the cocoon and you can either simply lift the cocoon out with your baby in or unzip the cocoon. both can be done while the older child is in their seat. If you live anywhere need abbeydale there is a great baby shop on Abbeydale/London Road and they will very kindly demonstrate it to you

thats great, i'm not far from there at all. Thanx for your help.

now that sounds like a plan!!!

which bit, dogspulling it around or me sitting in it too? LOL would be funny,as im 6ft6 and a bit! (the bit does count)

I hated the tandem style prams, as our girls did. The one at the back/below hated not being able to see.
We decided to try out a few at Babies R Us and it became essential to us to buy one which fitted through a standard door at 73cms.
So, we bought a McLaren Twin Techno, which if you have a look at the website is rather nicely designed and fits through all doors so far.
Our girls are happier, the resale value is high and the quantity coming up on ebay is good as lots of people buy them for the transfer time until the older one walks.
We tried a Graco sandwich fold and hated it, it felt rickety and took too much space in the boot.
Had a Kingswood twin but left it at my parents for trips into Rother Valley as it's too wide for general use and doesn't have a swivel wheel.
Also had a mothercare tandem but the front heavy weight is a nightmare.

Well happy now found them thanks everyone!!!!! gonna get saving and buy one i think they are well cool hehe just need to get pregnant hehe

We had our second child on the 12th, and we have a 16 month old. We've got a graco from babies r us, its good and comfy, but it is heavy and bulky, it's hard to get in boot.

May have to re-think, but they're just so expensive.

I decided against a tandem, so that both children get a decent view of everything lol. I've ended up getting a twin mamas n papas aria. it's wonderfully light and very compact. Thankyou everyone for your input.

Can anyone recommend a nursery in S10? We've already been to look around the nurseries for both Sheffield Uni and Sheffield Hallm Uni, but would also like to look around a few others. My wife works around the Sheffield Uni area, so we would like for it to be within walking distance of there.

There's one behind the Hallamshire - I forget what it's called (Beech Hill Nursery, perhaps), but I liked it when I looked around there. It's walkable from uni.

Don't have my child in nursery but have heard very positive things about the Broomhall one (looong waiting list) and the YMCA one in Collegiate Crescent (my friends kids went to the latter and they still talk about how much they loved it! They're nine now, very sweet!)

i'm in much need of a double buggy i have a 6 month old and a crazy 2 year old wh just runs.

im only a small person so some of the prams are far too big for me

also they are so expensive

if anyone has one they no longer neew and wishes to let me have it please pm

my daughter scares me to death when she sets off running

it doesnt have to be FREE if you could let me know what you have and how muchfor thanks

I have a tandem for sale at £20, Mothercare's own brand but I'm not in a position to give it away. It has rain hoods, 5 point harnessing, shooping section underneath, all the usual stuff really and it's clean and fairly tidy.
Can probably deliver for petrol costs.

Broomhall gets my vote... all three of my girls have been or go there!! Well worth the wait! :)

just had my new pram delivered yesterday and not sure about it now lol just wondering what make or brand does everyone else like or got .

We have a Phil and Teds 3 wheeler, but then we are at the allotment and out walking quite a bit so it's ace.

However, we didn't pay he full almost £500!! Wow! Nah, ebay. We found a rare shop that was selling last years version of the pram, but it was stuff that wouldn't shift due to some very tiny scratches on part of the chassis. Got the basic for £200 and have nicked the accessories off my sister-in-law, and will buy any other stuff as we need from ebay.

It will also take Adam til 4 years old and another baby on the same pram.

We had a huge, heavy, nasty Mamas and Pappas travel system last time, donated free by a friend of the family. We ditched it for a Quinny Zapp as soon as cosycub was old enough to sit in one, and despite the lack of space to store things, I never looked back.

Thankfully, when I told the in-laws we were expecting again, they admitted they had thrown the old M and P pram away (hooray!!!) and would pay for a new one. We popped down to Anklebiters on abbeydale Road and tried a few out, and fell in love with 3:

I liked the iCandy Cherry - so light you can lift it by it's hood, but the OH thought it was too flimsy, tho I disagree

The Quinny Buzz - all the manoeuverablity of the Zapp, but larger, with storage space, and bigger weels, so better off road. The OH was totally enchanted by the fact that all you have to do is push a button and pneumatics open the pushchair automatically, lol.

And the surprise one we'd never heard of before, the Mutsy 4Rider. My absolute favourite of the 3 - light and maneouverable and covered in pockets, lol.

All go for around £350 - £500 for the full system (well, pushchair and carrycot, we weren't in the market for a car seat.) All will take a maxicosi cabriofix carseat.

To me those prices are outrageously out of our budget - how does anyone afford that??!! So we hopped on to ebay as well...picked up a Quinny Buzz with pushchair seat and carrycot for £140. Bargain. Pity we couldn't find a Mutsy for quite so low a price...

PS Anklebiters are great...let you play and will spend ages showing you how they all work. Honest opinions on the prams, as well.

I'm fed up of looking at ones I like but can't afford :rolleyes:

i have a graco tsb deluxe, worst travel system in the world.
we ended up having to get a bigger car (we could have done with one anyway) as the pram is so bulky, great for if your a big shopper like me though. we are realising that the little one will be growing out of the car seat that came with it so we will have to buy a combo one as she is too little to go forward facing.

imho your better off buying seperate it will save you money in the long run. get a good combo carseat, will do them till they are 4, rather than an infant carrier, and then get a really good pushchair. try out loads, i fell in love with the graco many years ago and had blinkers on, not good

wish I had tried out loads, on the look out for a buzz now, really really want one. other half not impressed lol
new pram and car seat???? im not in the good books lol

i have a mothercare trenton it i big but thats one of the good things and i love it

I had a bebe confort trophy which I absolutely loved, I've just sold it cos little un is nearly 15 months and I can't justify having anything that big now, I manage with a little umberella fold buggy and a mei tai sling now........
Lovely pram tho, comfy, reversible seat, huge shopping basket.....
I've seen the bebe confort loola's and I really like the look of them, shame about the price tag tho

I was a real pramaholic with my first 3 kids, tried loads! First one ever was a newly released mamas n papas lightweight chassis (it cost £180 for the basic pram, no raincover or anything, 12 years ago) It was absolutely fantastic, and even tho i had loads more prams, still kept going back to this one. Had a huge tandem pram when the boys were little, then bought a Graco single one cos the shopping basket was sturdy enough to stand the toddler on if he got tired. This time around, I had a ladybird umbrella fold buggy given to me. It's a lovely pram but soooo heavy for a buggy! I've just bought a mamas n papas twin aria in preparation for having 2 babies again and its so light and easy to maneuver, i cant wait to use it. When I'm ready to go back to a single pram, will definitely go for the single version of the aria. So, having tried..... Silver cross, mamas n papas, Graco, mothercare own brand, ladybird, maclaren, britax, and probably a few more i cant remember, give me a good, lightweight mamas n papas pram every time!

I have got a Bugaboo Camelion and I love it. The only down side is that it does not fold up small enough. My daughter slept in the carrycot part for the first 5 months of the life! Even now she sleeps really well in the pram...I love it.

ive just got a new silver cross ,coast ,travel system from mothercare .now ive got it at home it doesn't seem to look like it did in the shop :huh:.
oh well ill have to get used to it now and ill have to wait 2 weeks to see how it drives outside:D

I have a bebe confort loola. I didn't opt for the carrycot bit, as I felt it was flat enough for the little time I was going to be out and about with my DD at the beginning. The seat can either face you or go outwards, which is great, I enjoyed being able to see DD so easily. The raincover is slightly hard to put on and the storage on the bottom is not so good. But you can get a bag that snaps on the handle bars. It's lighter than some, but still quite heavy, it has swivel wheels that can be locked and they can be done without moving from the handlebars. It's very easy to manoeuvre. It's an umbrella fold and you can get a car seat to put on it if you wish. We did have the car seat, didn't use it on the pram, but the car seat has an added cushion for newborns so they seem to lay flatter in it. I believe there is a lighter version of this pram now.

Also opted for a maclaren techno once she hit 1 years old. It's light, has an easy to put on raincover, swivel wheels, the seat can lay back, the basket is easy to get into and is easy to manoeuvre.

You really need to know what you want from your pram and test drive some in a shop before deciding what to get.

I first bought the mothercare atlan in red & black, sold that when I was still pregnant, bought a Graco Mosaic travel system for £160. Lovely pram, easy to push, is a little heavy but its not bulky like a mothercare trenton, or graco deluxe. Its buggy style pram but turns to travel system. When charlie was 5 weeks we bought a mothercare aulto, and use that but kept the graco for days like yesterday when it was snowing, the graco just seems warmer... :S!

By the way, for those who have turned their nose up at the otherwise excellent Quinny Zapp because of the lack of storage...we have belatedly found that you can buy big, roomy bags that fit underneath beautifully on ebay for about £5, not Quinny branded but created by enterprising parents who saw a problem and fixed it...thank goodness for them! (a bit late for us, lol, as we took possession of our new Buzz yesterday, which comes with 2 bags)

im after the mamas and papas afternoon tea pram the cream one with red spots.

i am obsessed with prams so dont wanns pay loads as ill buy another next week, ive already got 3 prams but eager to buy another anyone know of anyone getting rid of one

I have a bebe confort loola. I didn't opt for the carrycot bit, as I felt it was flat enough for the little time I was going to be out and about with my DD at the beginning. The seat can either face you or go outwards, which is great, I enjoyed being able to see DD so easily. The raincover is slightly hard to put on and the storage on the bottom is not so good. But you can get a bag that snaps on the handle bars. It's lighter than some, but still quite heavy, it has swivel wheels that can be locked and they can be done without moving from the handlebars. It's very easy to manoeuvre. It's an umbrella fold and you can get a car seat to put on it if you wish. We did have the car seat, didn't use it on the pram, but the car seat has an added cushion for newborns so they seem to lay flatter in it. Agre withall the above. I have one too and love it. Best thing is it's rear facing so you can chat away and interact with your lo and second is the amazing foot muff an extra but very worthwhile. You really don't need the carrycot if you have one of these as the buggy can be laid almost flat and the footmuff is as cosy as any bed when you do this. I have since bought a cheapie M&P mu (£25) and this is great for a "spare" pushchair, taking on holidays. going on the bus ornipping to the shops, although if my lo needs a nap, I always use the loola to take him out in as it's way comfier than your average pushchair and he's usually out for the count by the time I'm at the end of the road. It is a little heavy but I'm still using it with a 17 month old and pushing it round with him in it has certainly helped me lose all my baby weight and a bit more on top!

HI theres one on ebay at barnsley but they started it at 200 quid and sumone bidded already item number 290217257865 thats if it is the right one

thanks ill have a look

Mamas and papaps o-zon pram
Does anyone have one of these?

Any feedback good or bad would be much appreciated :D

:thumbsup:

I have a bugaboo chameleon also. Found it slightly cheaper on the internet and got a further discount as they didn't have the colour I originally wanted. I really like it, and although expensive for us, I see it as a good investment and I'd have been envious every time i'd have seen someone with one!!

I'm thinking of buying this for Lulu, what do you guys think to it?
http://www.toysrus.co.uk/Product.aspx/bruhome/brutravel/brutravelgraco/722243

I love my bugaboo it was one of our best buys and is in perfect condition despite all the use, they have a good resale value so overall not as expensive as you might think. It also has a 2 year warrenty which is brilliant.
My last pram was a mamas and papas p3 and it was rubbish, we had the travel system and every thing about it was bad. we only got a years use out of it before it had to be chucked away. That was a costly mistake. When my oldest was 2 months old the wheel broke and although we had only been using it for 2 months they wouldn't fix it as we had bought it 5 months before baby was born and therefore was out of its warranty we ended up paying an extra £25 quid to have it fixed. Terrible customer service at mamas and papas too.

ollie kitten from experience i wouldn't buy a pram where the baby couldn't face you to. I know the car seat faces you but i did some research before i bought my latest pram and new babies shouldn't be in the car seats for more than 2 hours its bad for there backs and apparently reduces there lung capacity. Thats why more and more car seats are made so the baby is nearly lying flat. I would really recommend a pram where the baby can lie flat and be facing you, they are happier when they can see you reducing the amount of time you end up carrying them whilst pushing a pram.

It's a few years since I had my youngest, but my sisters have babies. Personally I would buy a silver cross as a main pram & a maclaren stroller as a 2nd pram. I had many prams, including Graco, Mama's & papas etc, but none seemed really robust to me, and rather bulky too. I can't comment on quinny, as we have never had one in the family, altough babies seem to look uncomfortable in the zapp whilst asleep.

ive just got a new silver cross ,coast ,travel system from mothercare .now ive got it at home it doesn't seem to look like it did in the shop :huh:.
oh well ill have to get used to it now and ill have to wait 2 weeks to see how it drives outside:D

Have you got the 3D?

I love mine.

I must admit though as a baby, i hardly used the car seat on the pram - firstly, i hate to see babies in the car seats on prams
and secondly, if you have the baby in the carrycot on the pram, you have to take this off and change the hood around to change it to travel system!

Now my little one is 10 mths, we love it - he looks great, comfy and higher up than others.

If i could turn back time, i wouldnt have bothered with the matching car seat and would have bought the britax first si, which can be rear facing from birth, then turn around till about 4 years!

Silver cross are great too, I broke the zip on the hood. I will admit i was a little heavy handed. Took back to the shop and cos it was last years design, they replaced the entire pram, carseat, bag, footmuff - everything to the new 2008 design!

I had the Silver Cross 3D. I thought it was great whilst my baby was little. Once he was about 6 months though we bought a Maclaren Quest. It's just so much easier to manouvre, fit in the car etc. But as far as larger prams go , I was pleased with my 3D pram. We didn't have the car seat as it wouldn't fit in our car. Also its only a 0 car seat not 0+ so it can only be used to 10kg not 13kg like most of the others.

Hi all,

We fell in love with the Silver Cross Freeway on Linear chassis. It would have cost over 400 pounds had we bought it brand new in the shops but we also went on ebay and won one for 176 quid. It was second hand but had hardly been used, was clean etc and came with all of the accessories we could ever want.

We have found it a really sturdy travel system, the good points are that it is all lined with soft fluffy material which keeps bubs warm, the car seat bit goes onto the frame and does not sit inside the pram section (no mucky marks on the fabric after the car seat has been on the floor) and the height adjustable handle is perfect for a 4"10' mum and a 6"5' dad.

Bad points, a little bit on the big side, it takes up the whole of the boot of our estate car and is no use if you are travelling on a bus which does not have a low floor.

In general though we are really impressed and will save this for our next one (if I give in to my husband and agree to have another one !)

I use a mixture of systems... I have a Mamas and Papas Pliko with SIP car seat which I've had since DD (4 years) - it's done brilliantly.. I updated the car seat before DS as I wanted the side impact one..

I use a Phil and Teds as a double... amazing... can't credit it it enough - tried various side by side and tandem models including Graco one, Jane and McClaren.. nothing compares!!

Day to day DD walks now so I use my little McClaren.. I did have a Mothercare Jive but wheels wore down really quickly thought it bad value for money :-(

It depends if you do a lot of walking or are going to be folding it up a lot to go in the car on the bus etc. For a fold up one I loved my mclaren techno xt. It folded up really small and was easily collapsed. It had a shopping bit, detachable hood and pockets and went from sitting to lying down position really easily if little one drops off. It had quite big robust swivel wheels and is light so very easy to steer, and not too pricey like some of them. If you do a lot of walking to shops etc it's good to have one with a big solid shopping basket underneath- little one sits in their big throne all cosily but they are big for putting in car or on bus lots. Big inflatable tyres are good for rough ground and 3 wheelers with a front swivel wheel are easy to steer
I've got a double and had a tandem with small wheel which killed my back then got a phil n teds which is great. Personally I probably wouldn't use a phil n teds for 1 because of the price, even second hand like mine, but for 2 it's great.

Hi, I'm a bit of a pramaholic although now DS is coming up to 2, I've settled down and now only have one pushchair. Some of the ones I've had (can't remember them all!) include:

Bebe Confort Loola - bought this when DS was 2 moths old as I wanted a rear facing pram, it was great for that. Didn't get the carry cot as he was fine with it laid as flat as it would go. I liked the way the bag hung on the handles and I found it a really sturdy pram, plus it was easy to fold and fitted easily into the boot of my Clio. It was a little heavy, especially as DS grew, but it was the one I kept longest and I only sold it a couple of months back. I kind of miss it - when I see one I can't help but look longingly at it!

M&P Aria - cheap, flimsy and not very sturdy, plus I didn't like the harness at it wasn't fixed at the shoulders so DS used to lean forwards a lot in this and it didn't feel very safe. Nasty.

Quinny Buzz - used it twice then sold it. Absolutely hated it, not only were DS's feet right at the bottom of the footmuff but it was unsteady to the point that it nearly tipped over on a hill on it's second outing, which scared the poo out of me and I immediately put it back onto Ebay (and sold it for a profit!). It put me off 3 wheelers for life.

Maclaren Techno XT - great strollers, I got mine off a friend 2nd hand and my parents have it now for when they have DS so it's still going strong and it's about 4 years old!

Maclaren XLR - this is what I have now. It takes kids up to 65lbs so I'll be keeping it until DS doesn't need a pram anymore (sob!). It's lightweight, roomy and comes with a gorgeous, warm footmuff and raincover, so you don't need to buy any extras. Plus the colours are nice.

I hear Bugaboos are great but you have to take the pushchair seat off the chassis to put it in the car, which would right royally annoy me - that's why I've never bothered trying one. I refuse to spend £500 only to have to take the thing apart to put it in the car! Hauck Infinity are supposed to be really good and similar to Bugs, but they are much cheaper and they fold as one unit. I also love ICandy Cherry and Apple and if I ever have another baby I think I'd go for an ICandy or Infinity.

HTH and let us know what you decide on.

Aqua
xxx

Right,
A Bebe Confort Loola.
Or
A Chicco CT 0.4?

Or any other suggestions? I had a mothercare Aulto (Fell out with it) And ive had a graco mosaic (Which ive fell out with and cant sell that on!)

:)

Got to be suitable from birth, and for a boy :hihi:

thanks

This is the loola http://www.mothercare.com/gp/product/B000QTNXGI/sr=1-3/qid=1207412514/ref=sr_1_3/203-2295197-6193561?ie=UTF8&mcb=core

This is the Chicco http://www.practicalparenting.co.uk/imageBank/cache/c/Chicco-CT-0.4_e_5dcffe7a0245d406befbcfadb3d2b241.gif

how about mine http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery.fcgi?p=999&gid=18732350 ;)

failing that i'd say the loola :)

M&P Aria, I love that pram

I'd say the loola, it looks lovely :)

[QUOTE=*Peaches*;3348684]M&P Aria, I love that pram[/QUOTE

i think all m&p pram are nice,but was gunna get the loola myself from mothercare in red it looks lovely with carrycot

I need a swivel wheel lol. Any other reccomendations for prams? The loola ends in about 90min on eBay lol. I really like the Chicco 0.4, the wheels are huge so easy to push and turn corners... :/

Right,
A Bebe Confort Loola.
Or
A Chicco CT 0.4?

Or any other suggestions? I had a mothercare Aulto (Fell out with it) And ive had a graco mosaic (Which ive fell out with and cant sell that on!)

:)

Got to be suitable from birth, and for a boy :hihi:

thanks

definatley the loola :)

M&P Aria, I love that pram

Me too! I've got the single AND the twin version, ready for the next arrival!

The Loola is one of the best things we've bought. It can be front or rear facing and this means that you can face your baby and chat to them and see how they're doing (instead of the back of their head). Apparently this also improves their language skills! The rain cover is pretty swish too.

As for extras, we also had the travel seat rather than the carry cot. I don't know how they compare in price (I think I remember the carry cot being quite a bit more expensive) but I would say that if you get the footmuff which is fantastic like a big snuggly cocoon, you won't need a carry cot as well as you can put the seat into recline, zip up the footmuff and it's as good as any carry cot and less bulky. We're still using our's now and my son's 17 months.

The downside is it's quite heavy compared to some of the super lightweight prams you see around these days but for me this just meant I lost my baby weight more quickly cos I burned more calories with each push :hihi:

We've just bought the Silver Cross 3D. Will let you know how little one likes it when she pops out x x

We're going down to Devon in July and off to Spain in October so I decided that since it will get 2 definite uses we'll need a new pushchair. I love my pram (a Britax Vigour) and my LO looks so snug in the carrycot but its so big in the back of the car we'd not get any luggage in! So I've just bought a Maclaren Quest. It looks great and so easy to use compared to the travel system plus I've ordered it in the Lulu Guiness bed of Roses fabric and I think it looks gorgeous :love:

Its got me thinking though.... have I been seriously ripped off by buying into the whole pram thing??? By the time we'd finished adding carrycots and car seats to our travel system it was about £500. The Maclaren looks so easy compared to mine. Mine comes in 2 pieces that you have to interlock which is easy enough but when its thrashing it down and your trying to juggle 2 pieces of kit so they don't get wet on the floor its not so good. I went out with DPs cousin a few weeks ago and htere was no chance we were going to get 2 prams in the car. Also storing it has been a bit of a problem. Lugging the chasis and the carrycot to the car each time I needed it was becoming a bit of a nightmare so I just ended up leaving it in the car permenently. I've also come to realise that next month my LO will be paying more attention to what is going on around her so the carrycot attachment is slowly going to become redundant. I know as soon as we get the Maclaren and LO is old enough I'll use that all the time just for the fact its so easy (it was aonly supposed to be a holiday buggy). Does anyone else feel the same?

I dread to think what DP would have done if we'd have bought a Bugaboo as planned... I'd probably be pitching a tent in the garden

I thought at first this was going to be a 'wear a sling instead' post, and was all ready to point out that when your baby starts life at just under 11 lbs it's time for a rethink, lol.

Prams are a rip-off rather than a waste of money, I think. I'm always astounded at how people say they are pram addicts and are on their 4th, 5th, 6th pram. We struggled to get one, and that's with two of us working - they are shockingly expensive. We used ebay to get the one we wanted at a very reasonable price, but even then I couldn't have justified buying another (and where do you put them???)

I love my toddler's pushchair and I love the pram system we got for the new baby ...I love having a place to stow a tired, whingey toddler, I love having a place to dump my shopping when he wants to be a big boy and walk holding hands, I love having a place to dump my coat, and I will love having the little one in the carry cot gurgling up at me - so a waste of money, no. But a great big rip-off, yes!

Manufacturers, a great many of us parents are not made of money! Price your prams reasonably...PLEASE.

I just paid £129 for a M&P Aria, and just looked at the carseat prices :o £129 too! I'm in shock!

I had a Silver Cross 3D pram which I used until I got my Mclaren Quest when my baby was 5 months old. We mainly got that for our holiday but since then I've used the Silver Cross a handful of times if that, so at the price it was (can't remember how much, must have blocked it out!!) it probably was a waste of money. But then I needed something for those months before I got the Quest and I did like my baby facing me. Maybe the way forward is to buy second hand. Bit late for me now. Hopefully the Silver Cross will make a reappearance when I have another baby.

They're a huge rip off! We got a deal on a pram and matching car seat at Mothercare in the sale for around £150 all in, I would under no circumstances have paid more. It's very heavy, but it's also damn sturdy and stands alone when folded. The car seat was also one of the best around, which is very important to me. We'll have to get a cheapo pushchair if we go on holiday as it takes up too much boot space, but at least I can get it on the bus unlike the massive 3 wheelers the sales people were trying to get us to pick.

I often wonder if there'd be any mileage in a pram/pushchair hire service?

How on earth mums on benefit go on I have no idea. It also makes me feel sick to the stomach when I see people who just chuck prams, cots etc onto the tip when they're done with them. :mad: I get so annoyed I've seriously thought of opening a second hand shop where you could get the flashy jobs cheaper and mums with less cash could save a few bob and maybe get a good second or third hand pram for around £30.

Well if one of my friends have a baby they'll be more than welcome to borrow it because it looks like it attic bound until I have another. Although TBH if someone said they'd lend me a pram when I was expecting I probably wouldn't have accepted because its part of the fun... learnt my lesson now though.

We are off to Portugal in June HUUUUURRRAAHHH and need a pushchair to take on the plane that is suitable for a 6month old. It needs to be lightweight and fold easily/small, and it goes without saying, not break the bank. Any suggestions?

tescos have some really basic ones in pink blue and black for about £15 each

almost all my prams have been 2nd hand, my favourite was a graco travel system I had, barely used, for £12!!! I love different prams but would NEVER pay the prices they charge new. I'm just good at bargain hunting.
And I use a sling lol, can't beat them!

We're on benefits and mine came from the catalogue, along with the cot bed and the mattress

Mothercare do some good ones for about £35 nearer the summer, or ebay

All our pushchairs and prams and carseats (about 9 items in total) have added up to less than £150, so no, I'd say they are very good value for money. (over 6 years, mayeb £20 a year)

I think if you can afford to spend £500 on baby & toddler transport, then it is up to you whether to do so or not, but you know that there are more economical ways.

I happen to think that some of the incredibly high prices for buggies etc are clearly less to do with manufacturing costs, and more to do with creating exclusive products with exclusive price points. You get what you pay for, but above a certain price, most of what you pay for is cachet.

Where do people get these dirt cheap bargains from in Sheffield? My parents have one of those local papers that has a dozen pages of ads for second hand goods and cars each week - they've got us a virtually new highchair for £20 - but I can never find anything round here :(

We are off to Portugal in June HUUUUURRRAAHHH and need a pushchair to take on the plane that is suitable for a 6month old. It needs to be lightweight and fold easily/small, and it goes without saying, not break the bank. Any suggestions?

I need one too! Not going to Portugal but I'm still worried about what a flap it might all turn out to be going on holiday with a baby...:help:

We are currently looking for a pushchair, the only one I have seen which would be suitable so far (Rachel is still only 2 months old) is the Maclaren Quest Sport. It is one of the lightest I saw and has a very handy carry handle and shoulder strap. The downside is that it is over a hundred pounds although I dare say it would be cheaper on good old ebay.

My mum keeps telling me to get a carry case for the pushchair though, they are available fairly cheaply and will provide some protection whilst the pushchair is in the hands of 'careful' airport baggage handlers.

I took my buggy with us to tenerife and they broke it on the flight out. After 6 months arguing with them they refused to compensate us. Ask on freecycle maybe?

We bought a Silver Cross Freeway, new it would have been over 400 pounds, however we bought it on ebay. It had only been used twice and was still pristine. We are now considering buying the Maclaren Quest Sport (so am pleased to hear you find it a good pushchair) just purely because the Silver Cross is not practical to take on the bus. We will still be using the travel system at all other times.

I would not have been happy if I had bought it new is what I am trying to say, although it is fantastic, it is a LOT of money.

It's the Quest Sport that we have. I've been really pleased with it. It even fits in the boot of my KA! It does claim to be suitable from 3 months though and I don't think it is really. At 5 months my little boy didn't look completely comfortable because as he couldn't sit up unsupported he used to slip down the buggy.

We also intended to carry on using the silver cross but it didn't happen. When I push that now I feel like the swivel wheels aren't even on and they are, it's just the Mclaren is so whizzy!

The quinny zapp although more expensive folds really small and is very light. I regret getting rid of mine!

The quinny zapp although more expensive folds really small and is very light. I regret getting rid of mine!

I agree, I love mine, and it survived 4 plane rides and the tender mercy of the baggage handlers to the States and back last year...but it isn't exactly cheap.
Try ebay...

Woolies has a £24 swivel wheels umbrella fold with a removable raincover.

I got my first pram from kiddicare.com for £80, it was travel system and the pram part of it was not used very much more the car seat. this time i am gettin this one http://www.kiddicare.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/productdisplayA_54_10751_-1_14051_35804_10001_14051
I dont see the need to spend an absolute fortune for something i will not be using for more than 12 months!

Where do people get these dirt cheap bargains from in Sheffield? My parents have one of those local papers that has a dozen pages of ads for second hand goods and cars each week - they've got us a virtually new highchair for £20 - but I can never find anything round here :(

The baby shop at hillsborough.


Ive got a..
Graco Mosaic (Pram, Carseat, Footmuff, Change Bag and Raincover) MIL bought it. £150.
After 3 weeks, I didn't like it, so I got a Mothercare Aulto (Currently trying to sell on here!) So I bought a graco mirage in coffee for £40 (Pram, Footmuff, Raincover and Parasol.)

Then my sister gave me her Maclaren XT.

So, i'm on benefit's and got 4 prams. All in all though, i've spent £40. One was a gift, Aulto was an easter gift (Instead of chocolate as i'm on a diet), £40 for the mirage (Which I adoreee!!!) And the XT was a freebie!

The baby shop at hillsborough.


Whats it called, gina?

Every time my OH gets the belly up she INSISTS on buying a brand new pram. Usually theyre big bloody bulky things that SAY they weigh only a few kilogrammes but in reality they weigh more than a family car.
They take someone with the mind of Einstein to fold and unfold- especially when youre at a bus stop and the bus is heading your way and once they ARE folded, they seem to have grown to about 10 feet long.

I want one of those three wheelers next time but SHE wont let me have one- the pram we have now is only a little over a year old and its already knackered.


And.... Breathe....

Whats it called, gina?

The baby shop.

Quite literally, the baby shop.

It's across from the people (Non-car) entrance to morrison's, opposite and up a little from hillsborough interchange, ripley street (Might be road)

I'll grab the number from them next time I pass if you like?