Resources for Single Mothers

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Many brands sell baby pushchairs, buggies, strollers and prams, and searching for the right one for your baby can be a daunting task. If you’re about to have your first child you probably won’t have gone through this process before so it can feel quite difficult, as there so many brands and styles to choose between.

To help make your decision easier have at look at these tips for choosing the best baby pushchair for you and your baby.

•    Functionality
the first thing to consider is what you actually need, whether it is a pram, a pushchiar, a buggy, a stroller or a complete travel system. This decision is based on the age of your baby, for example a new baby needs a lie flat position, how and when you travel, for example every day, by public transport or in a car, and where you’ll be using it, in town or in the countryside. On holiday you might want a lightweight stroller but for every day use you may want a complete travel system that incorporates a pushchair, a carrycot that can make a pram, and a car seat.

•    Kids
The second decision is based on how many children you have and their individual ages, and whether you are planning to expand your family in the near future. So will you need a tandem or a twin pushchair, or the option to add another seat or a ride-on board at some stage? If you have two children already you need to think about whether you want them to sit one in front of the other or alongside each other, or whether one of them is old enought to ride on a board that attaches to the pushchair or buggy.

•    Budget
It is important to think about how much money you want to spend and look at which brands are within your budget, as prices can vary vastly. There are many very good quality yet affordable baby ppushchairs as well as more expensive designer brands. It can be worth taking the time to look around for special offers and sales if you want a particular brand that is a bit beyond your budget. Remember that if you do your research well and get the right pushchair now it is an investment for your baby for the next few years of their life, and longer maybe if you have another child.

•    Weight 
Think about how strong you are, the weight of the pushchair and whether you’ll have to lift it and carry it on your own? How do you travel, by car or on public transport, bus, train or plane? Where do you live, for example, do you have to carry the pushchair up and down stairs often? Don’t forget that when you test the weight of a pushchair it’s minus the weight of your baby so take that into consideration!

•    Manoeuvrability
It’s really important to consider how easy it is to manoeuvre a baby pushchair and to think about where you’ll need to manoeuvre it. Will you be going around town, in and out of shops and other tight spaces such as doorways? If so you probably want a swivel front wheel, but a lockable one for using over rougher terrain. If you are thinking about going off-road, for example on the beach or in the countryside, check out the suspension as well as the manoeuvrability.

•    Compactness
If you’re looking at pushchairs in a shop they will probably be unfolded so you’re able to look at the features so remember to test how easy it is to fold, and how compact it is when folded. Have a think about how and where you’ll store it at home and how easily it will fit in your car? Find out whether you can fold and unfold it using one hand, and check whether it has quick release wheels, which will make it easier to get and out of the car? If you’re researching online remember to find out the sizes when folded as well as unfolded, for storage purposes.

•    Style
Although the functional features are the most important things to think about it is also important to decide on the style you like and the colours you prefer. Styles of pushchairs also vary based on what usage or terrain they’re aimed at, e.g. 3-wheelers are often more rugged and look sporty with large, pneumatic tyres aimed at rough terrain.  But there are now all sorts of styles available, in 3-wheelers and 4-wheelers, from contemporary to classic, minimalist to chunky, pretty to funky, etc.

•    Extras
You might just want to buy a basic pushchair to start with but it’s worth considering whether you can you add extras to it? Can you adapt the pushchair by attaching a car seat or a carry cot to move your baby without disturbance? Is it possible to add another seat or a ride-on board if you need to as your family grows? Some brands have whole ranges of matching extras that can be bought separately, and as your needs change it’s good to know you can adapt without having to buy a complete new pushchair. Some pushchairs also come with more accessories than others included in the price but many come with a mathcing sun hood, rain cover and a basket. Lots have a range of matching accessories that you can buy separately, for example parasols, sun shades, footmuffs, blankets, insect nets and weather shields. Remember to check what accessories are included and what you can buy as extras.

Comfort of Seat
One of the most important elements to think about is whether the seat is comfortable for your child. Have a look at how many seat positions it has, and whether it includes a lie flat position if you have a new baby as not all pushchairs are suitable from birth. Check for features such as an adjustable footrest, adjustable straps, a headrest, and removable pads for small babies. Some pushchairs have forward and rear facing seats so you need ot think about whether your baby will face forward or look at you, or whether you’d like the option to change the seat around as your baby grows.

•    Parent Comfort
It’s important considering how comfortable you are going to be as well as your baby. How long will you usually be pushing the pushchair around for and over what sort of ground, rough or smooth. Look for an adjustable handle height (if you’re tall some handles can seem too low). Check out how the brake works, is it a hand brake or a foot oprated brake for a hands free opration so you have you hands avaialble to deal with other things? Is it easy enough to push with one hand while holding the hand of another child? Is it easy to fold with one hand?

You may have thing to consider as well as the things listed here but if take a little time to think about these and have a look around you should end up with the best baby pushchair for your needs. Use the tips here as a starting point for your search, write a list of the things you need and then compare similar baby pushchairs made by different brands before reaching a final decision.

This entry was posted on Saturday, April 4th, 2009 at 8:31 pm and is filed under Parenting. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.