Babies, horses and buggies -help please

F

fuzzymooch

Well-Known Member
Joined
17 July 2015
Messages
119
Visit site
Hi, please bare with me on this, really hoping some of you lovely h&h peeps might have some advice as tried mumsnet and not one single person replied :(.

Dd 1 has been down the yard with me from day one. Loves it. Sits happy 90% of the time watching the fuzzies and listening to music. I keep her in the pushchair most of the time for safety just in case. She is 17 months and toddles about fine but has limited understanding (or perhaps willingness) of come here and no :).

Problem is dd2 is due in 2 months which leaves me a dilemma. I have three options it seems and with no experience of any of them I'm really confused.

I can get a double buggy which puts them side by side but looks very wide and unwieldy considering where I'm at.

There are tandems but I've heard the Greco stadium duo which is the one in my price bracket has limited space for the older one which could be a prob.

Or the buggy board and seat which clips to my current silver x reflex. But I don't know how stable they are. If dd1 leans back or sideways while parked will it tip over? Can it handle worn bobbly concrete?

Agggghhh! Milk and cookies for anyone who stuck with me, please someone help!
 
I have no direct experience of double buggies but I would look for something second hand that would be out of your price range new. Are there Phil & Teds or Jané doubles out there? I had 'yard' pushchair that lived at the yard and could get as muddy and dusty as it wanted to.

Could you use a sling for the new one and keep the other in the pushchair?

Do you need to be able to move them both around? Could baby be in the car seat on the floor or in the car and the other in the pushchair?
 
I reckon for a few months when number 2 can't move you could get away with putting a clean rug in a wheelbarrow and using that for a while. Or similarly wedged on a rug in the hay bar like I did. Then number 1 might be nearly 2yo and better at following instructions by the time you need to do anything else!

The Phil and Ted's double stack buggies are great once your second one is a bit older (able to sit up?) I got mine for £40 off ebay and it's had 3 hard years of dog walks and holidays being shoved on planes. It was used last week for two 3yos in a ski resort. It's a bit broken now, think I might need to buy spares or another ones before mini SF number 2 arrives in April.
 
Also agree with Phil and teds. I got one with 2 seats and the baby insert and rain covers for £100 on eBay- knew it was just going to get muddy anyway! At the moment my lo is 4 months and mostly kicks on a changing mat or is in a sling. But he like the buggy. I plan on getting a travel cot to contain him sometimes!

Phil and teds is great over terrain- easily goes a bit off the beaten track (within reason!) and feels robust. When 2nd baby arrives they can sleep flat on the bottom bit and the toddler seat can be in the front so they can see everything going on! This will be my plan in a few years!

Agree double wide bugging don't look very practical for the yard.

There are plenty of second hand Phil and teds- I think because they do last so well, so children grow out of them and they still have life left!
 
I'm in agreement on the sling- contact your local sling group/library if you haven't used one before for advice. I'd also go for the tandem buggy, to make the space it takes up smaller- but I'm at livery and space is limited. Good luck!
 
Hi thanks so much for all the replies. I know what everyone means about yard buggies getting mucky, silver cross looks about as clean as big guys rugs! :).

I did think about using the car seat for tiny for a while but I usually ask the yard girls to watch dd while I turn out, she gets wheeled around and 'helps' change rugs so its best if they are both portable.

Will def look at the Phil and Teds 2nd hand, how old will they take dd1 too?

As for sling, I tried this with dd1 and she hated it, was just assuming dd2 would too. Jokingly said to yard girls I was going to get big panniers for the furry mooch so he could just carry them for me :).
 
I would recommend buying an old out and about double from eBay. They are about £30 if you don't mind split foam on the handle (a common issue on the older ones) the older models are 76cm which is 2cm wider than most standard doors on public buildings built before about 2004 you can get them through but you have to do one back wheel then twist the buggy to get the second one in. So if you shop in a new shopping centre no issue but an oldie worldy high street it's a nightmare. I had/have a (mobi) sling and a single buggy for shopping. Son was 21 months when daughter was born.

My out and about has been around badminton Xc, the ridgeway, dog walks, camber sands it just keeps going. Depending how good your horse is/flexible you are it is light enough to be pushed from horseback across a field. It can also be hosed down and dries pretty quickly. And the footplate at the front can support tired older siblings for short journeys and makes a good seat for feeding. I genuinely miss mine (stored at grannies as son is walking/not needing restraining so much.)
Good luck with the search

Ps with some tandums keep an eye on weight restrictions on the seat as at 21months my son was already exceeding a lot of them (he's a lump but even still I think they are surprisingly low)
 
Have you space at the yard to store a folded buggy? If you do then buy a cheap double either tandem or side by side and keep it there...

If not, the Phil and teds with the second seat and the baby insert/carrycot secondhand as it should be slightly smaller to get into your boot...

Fiona
 
I got a Phil and teds when eldest child was 24months and youngest was 4 months. God knows how I survived till that point. I can't remember why I put it off so long but I struggled about for the first few months of dc 2 life. Tried a buggy board but dc1 kept randomly stepping off which was annoying. Tried a side by side but can't get it thru stable doors etc too wide. Then I got a Phil and ted and what a difference. It's so narrow and the dc in the bottom seat (which was my eldest) can see lots from the side.
I used the front one for baby and reclined it back. Eldest in the bottom still had enough room with front reclined. Added bonus of the one in the bottom easily popping out/in of you need them too.
The rug in the wheelbarrow plus baby in car seat also works well for field trips etc
 
Still trawling classifieds ;) but have ruled out side by sides. Thank you again for all the replies is really helpful.

Pc2003 out of interest was the buggy board stable? I looked at one with a seat and harness but thought it probably wouldn't be up to the task, imagined they'd be flimsy and tip.
 
Don't know if this may be an option but when my boss had two littlies we used a fold away travel cot as a playpen for the toddler. He'd sit quite happily in it playing with toys then baby slept in the single pushchair
 
Might sound completely ridiculous but could you leave them in an empty mucked out stable with a rug (not neccesarily a horse one) to sit on and something to do? Obviously with people around and not for too long😅
 
OP I know you said you've ruled out side-by-side double buggies, but I really would add my recommendation for a secondhand Out 'n' About Nipper. I have twins and from friends who have the inline buggies, after not very long their children hated being the one underneath. The Nipper, although it's side-by-side, fits through all standard doors, and collapses quite small as the wheels are easy release. It's brilliant off-road too, so would easily cope with your yard terrain. Just my tuppence worth, but might be worth looking at?
 
What does your YO have to say about buggies been left on the yard? It sounds like a health and safety nightmare to me and not something I would want on my yard tbh
 
fuzzymooch said:
Still trawling classifieds ;) but have ruled out side by sides. Thank you again for all the replies is really helpful.

Pc2003 out of interest was the buggy board stable? I looked at one with a seat and harness but thought it probably wouldn't be up to the task, imagined they'd be flimsy and tip.
Click to expand...

Ye it was pretty stable but just a step on and off one so my daughter would randomly decide she wanted to get off and would step off mid me pushing normally resulting in her falling over.
Maybe one with a harness would be okay but they are pretty flimsy things and we got the proper/popular branded one and it was over 60 quid and a pita to fit so wouldn't go there again.

Re safety on yards etc my yard has been absolutely fine with buggys etc as long as we keep to our bit and no horses about. Our stables are in barns/blocks of two so no one else around my bit.
 
Hi all, looked at lots now, side by sides, front back .... Found one front to back where they sit one behind the other which is our favourite so far, but thanks to everyone for their replies.

If we kept at home empty stable and rug would have been a great idea but at livery.

As for ym she's great, even looks after tiny if the girls aren't about and I need to get the furry in :). She's fine with pushchair as are other liveries. We keep to our own bit and communal areas. Most people quite happy about it since we're sensible and now not one horse on our yard is scared of pushchairs or children noise :). There are other children too though not there as Much :).

Took pushchair down long before I had teeny and wheeled it around, minus child so they could all see it, the big guy even walks along with us now. Ym keeps telling him he's not a dog but he just snorts a bit at her and carries on mooching behind us :).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top