With some good weather upon us here in Bethesda, Maryland, my daughter and I went to Target earlier this week and purchased a Cosco Juvenile Altura stroller. It cost about fifty dollars and was middle of the road in terms of price.
It took about fifteen minutes to assemble, which was a little bit less time required compared to the Graco stroller I’d put together in the past.
Here’s a picture of the completed product:
Review
I’ve taken two longs walks with this stroller and it works fine for me. The handle grips are a little lower quality than I wanted. I doubt that they will last very long, but handle grips are not essential and are relatively easy to replace or do without. The wheels work fine and one thing I like about this stroller as opposed to the Graco I’ve used before is that the foot brakes don’t lock when accidentally kicked while walking.
My daughter seems comfortable enough, though she can’t talk yet so I’ll have to wait to ask her what she thinks of the stroller!
One thing that isn’t directly related to the function of the stroller that bothered me was the strong chemical smell that emitted from the unit components after I opened the box. The smell I’m talking about is the “new car smell” which some people like, but is considered by some to be toxic. I realize that plastics are a cheap way for manufacturers to produce durable goods, but if they put our health at risk, is it worth it?
We bought a bike trailer a few weeks ago and since we had a hard time finding feedback on bike trailers, I wanted to give a review for the one we bought. We looked around a lot, in person and online. We ride bikes, not avidly but we enjoy taking a ride now and again. Our daughter is 2 and a half and a tricycle rider, and a lackadaisical one at that. Rhode Island (where we live) has a bike path, partially under construction, that will eventually all be connected and span the entire state. So we decided that it would be fun for us and her to get a trailer so we could all enjoy riding together.
What we found is there is a huge variation in price- you can spend $99-$600+, since we are occasional riders, we didn’t want to spend tons of money. We also took to Craigslist to search for a good deal on a used one. We called on a few but they were snapped up immediately so if you go that route, be prepared to act quickly with cash in-hand. We decided that we would spend about $150, and after much deliberation we decided on the InStep Rocket, InStep is a Schwinn company. It’s tough to decide when shopping online, but it’s where you find the best selection and price. We ordered it from BabyAge, which had the best price around at $139. It was a bit slow to get here (I think it took 15 days) but once it arrived my husband put it together in about 20-30 minutes (a little hampered my daughter’s inquisitive excitement). My husband gave the wheels a spin and one was slightly warped (I would have missed that). Regardless, they went out for a ride right away and she loved it. He said the wheel defect didn’t hamper the ride too much but we decided to call and see if it could be replaced. We hadn’t even sent in the registration yet and they said no problem and sent it right away. The customer service was really pretty great.
Overall, it’s a good trailer for the price, it came with the handlebar for the stroller conversion, it seems pretty comfortable, easy to break down, set up, and hook to the bike*. On the high end of the bike trailer spectrum, just out of curiosity, I looked at the Chariot trailer/stroller at REI, and it’s very nice but it’s quite expensive. And the conversion kits are sold separately, although they do have some cools ones like a X-country ski kit, I couldn’t justify the price. For our use and budget, this one is just fine and would recommend it.
* not every trailer can hook to every bike so do a little research or call the manufacturer to double check if it will work
As a follow-up to Strollers 101, written by my sister-in-law and my article Registering for Baby, one of my favorite sites, Kidoinfo, just did a comprehensive review of some of the most popular strollers out there. In our articles, we talk about trying to make the right choices in some of the big purchases you’ll make for your baby- specifically here- strollers. Used by the reviewers and their families, each carefully look at all the pros and cons of the tested brands and give an honest write up of what you’ll want to know: Is it heavy? Hard to use? How does it maneuver? How much space does it take in my trunk? and Does it look good?
Their article, “Walk on the Stroller Side” was a week long expose/review session on 7 top brand strollers. With a toddler and an owner of 3 strollers, I still am interested in what they have to say. They are great unbiased reviews- which is hard to find with strollers. As they say in their article and I have said as well- there is no perfect stroller and doing the preliminary ground work helps make the right choice for you and your family.
The list of the reviewed strollers from Walk on the Stroller Side includes:
Bumbleride Indie
The Mutsy Urban Rider
The BOB Revolution
The Peg Perego Pliko P3 Classico
The Phil & Teds Sport
The UPPAbaby G-Lite
The Quinny Buzz
Don’t miss their contest to win a lightweight Mutsy Spider!!
If I did it all again- I think I would go with the Mutsy. If we have two- I’d go for the Phil and Teds, and for running still keep my BOB…
I am currently 25+ weeks pregnant and I’ve just started making a baby registry. I had no idea how daunting this process would be! It’s much more complicated than a wedding registry- I have no idea what I need! Today I’m investigating strollers.
As somewhat of an exercise buff, I initially thought that I would only get a jogging stroller- with those sturdy wheels, jogging strollers seem like they would be perfect under any circumstances- WRONG! Apparently, jogging strollers should not be used for children less than 6months of age. Moreover, jogging strollers do not fold as easily as other strollers and therefore are more cumbersome to transport. Also, their big wheels can make them awkward to maneuver in tight spaces- like those you might find in the mall…
Next option to consider- the shape/style of the stroller. While most strollers are forward facing, some strollers have the option of being forward or rear facing. This option is appealing as it allows mothers to position their newborn so they can easily peak in on her as they go for a walk. Many of the rear facing strollers are also adjustable- featuring different settings for newborns and older babies. Another feature to consider- in some strollers the seat is elevated so that the baby has a better view of peoples faces rather than their legs.
A couple other considerations: I want to make sure the stroller is sturdy and won’t tumble over on uneven ground or under the burden of a few shopping bags. I also want to have adequate storage space for a diaper bag, bottles, etc. No one wants to be carrying around extra bags while they’re out for a walk.
Yikes- so much info and I’m no closer to making a decision. I think this is an item best bought after careful in-store evaluation. I think I’ll make a trip to Babys R Us to try out a few different brands.
In the mean time, here are a few cool websites that helped me narrow down my selection:
Parents.com (excellent site recommended by my sister-in-law)!
BabyCenter
