Week 26: Double Delight

Week 26 and everything is progressing nicely. I’m starting to get some serious kicks as baby tries to find a comfortable position in there. The extra weight is starting to throw my back out, despite efforts to keep supple with yoga, and all in all I’m looking forward to carrying my baby in my arms rather than in my tummy!

Now I have nothing against attachment parenting, and own a Baby Bjorn, Ergo and Bubba Moe sling for transporting baby around hands-free, but I do find it much easier to get around for long periods of time with baby in a pram rather than strapped to me, putting all that pressure on the back.

In fact, call me a pram tragic, but one of the small delights in finding out I was pregnant was knowing that this meant a new pram was in order.

At the age of two, my son can walk down to the shops just fine, but inevitably starts whining and wants to be carried on the way back. I need a pram that fits a newborn and a toddler, and can be wheeled down the narrow streets of inner Sydney.

Our Maclaren Daytripper has been invaluable until now – we initially bought it for travelling but has now become the everyday stroller as it’s just so light and compact.

Our first pram was a rather forgettable – though entirely practical – four-wheeled reversible number on sale at Target. They were the pre-Pram Obsession days, prior to the professional hazards of being constantly exposed to the coolest wheels in the world in my inbox every day.

This time around. I had to decide between a tandem, side-by-side or limousine double pram, or just a single pram with a toddler add-on.

Limousine prams don’t deal too well with newborns, and side-by-sides won’t be much help in a year or so when my son should theoretically be walking most places. The Mountain Buggy Urban in Baroque pattern was very tempting though, particularly as it can be configured so you can have one seat in bassinet mode and one upright.

Looking at the add-on options, there’s the Bugaboo with toddler board (a rather pricey option), or a 3-wheeler like the Valco Runabout with Toddler Seat. The advantage with these is that they are easily convertible back to a single pram.

In the end, we settled on the good old Phil & Teds tandem pram. With an excellent reputation, relatively narrow wheel base and a host of nifty features, the Phil & Ted’s Sport it is.

Now it’s just a matter of choosing accessories. After struggling to scrub down pram seats in the past, this time I’ll be organising some liners. Reversible Marimekko designs – what’s not to love?

Happy shopping everyone.