The Baby List - Wheels of Steel - The Stroller Rant Continues

Oh who for art thou Phil, and Ted and haloed be thy name for thou hath created so hardy a vehicle, and thin, like I used to be, to scoot through shopping isles and around rude women and mindless men and old people who feel like demanding respect and rude as hell is the same thing.

Thy name I invoke oh Phil, and Ted thy praises will I sing for long ago I bought your metro pack when I had to trade in my sling.  A sporty yummy mummy, I raced around Bondi, I worked out your 3 wheeler with my head held high.

Love love love P&T

I could go on but the corn is even getting to me... So... here 'tis - LOVE my Phil & Ted Sports, have it in black and bought it before baby number two, because I knew I would need to seat two children and a pram truly has to last you till about age five, for those long late night treks where your angel really just needs to sleep somewhere.

The Phil & Ted is a hearty and well thought out piece of machinery.  It is as compact as pos (obviously not talking about the vibe).  And here is some bullet points of the pros:

• Narrow frame
• Solid
• Great steering (one handed steering a breeze)
• Easy for jogging and walking - and I shop with it quite easily too (although I could have a concrete ankle bracelet and do that)
• Heaps of under pram space.
• A simple bike pump (which I keep in a handy under pram pocket) pumps up the tyres.
• Easy conversion from one to baby with toddler or child with toddler (heavier one in front)
• Rain and Shade covers though expensive are 'faultless' and great quality
• Compact enough to fit in any car boot, the wheels even come off easy if more space required
• Beach friendly

OK - there are always Cons, here they are:

• Heavy frame (which is rectified in the alloy models of Dash and Vibe)
• Quite awkward to fold down (I can never catch the old buses with this pram), it's fine with cars and with the disabled buses which you can roll onto, but too hard for any quick fold down situation (both hands needed)
• ..... can't think of anything else.

All I can say is Phil & Ted which is a New Zealand brand's products basically rule.  They're really well thought out, good quality and you really pay for what you get.  I've also got their Metro Pack (the backpack for 6 months to 5yrs (which I would never do by the way!), but it has been on many bush walks and music festivals with me... Awesome, love it and the kids love sitting in it too, they feel like they're better than you because they're taller than you, which is REALLY important in their little egotistical lives, I know some people over the age of 12 where it still is.

Phil and Teds are now sold at most major chain baby supplies, they retail for around $500 for the classic up to $950 for the Verve.  Then there is all the add ons, the adapters, the doubles kits, the rain cover, the cocoon, the shade cover etc etc etc.  But, you don't have to buy everything, and you don't have to buy it all at once and as I said before ****SPEND MONEY HERE**** 

Top pointers are:

1. GO TO THE STORE AND TEST DRIVE
2. DON'T LET THE PUSHY SALESWOMAN TALK YOU INTO ANYTHING BUT DO PUMP HER FOR INFORMATION
3. KNOW YOUR HABITS AND YOUR LIFESTYLE, ARE YOU ACTIVE, DO YOU HAVE A SMALL CAR - BUY THE PRAM THAT SUITS YOU!!! OTHERWISE YOU'LL JUST HAVE A WHOLE LOT OF PRAM AND NO BOOT SPACE FOR SHOPPING OR LIKE ME BE TREKKING ACROSS CENTENNIAL GARDENS WITH A PRAM THAT IS MEANT FOR WOOLWORTHS...TRUST ME IT JUST AIN'T CUTE!
4. SPEND MONEY HERE!!! PRAMS CAN LAST YOU A LIFETIME IF YOU BUY RIGHT AND THEN BE SOLD ON FOR GOOD MONEY.
5. YOU MUST BE ABLE TO STEER THE PRAM WITH ONE HAND WITHOUT KILLING YOUR CHILD OR ANY PASSERSBY.

And that's the current completion of my rant on prams, strollers and what comes in between.

xx

The Baby List - Wheels of Steel - Prams and Strollers

$$$$$$$ THIS IS WHERE YOU SHOULD SPEND MONEY FOR RELIABILITY QUALITY AND CONVENIENCE!!! $$$$$$$

Yo, Holla!  Okay, a pram you will use everyday, several times a day and for years on end (if you buy the right one that is.  I have three, and have sold one in the past. And I still use all three that I have.

Things to consider:-
What is your life style?
Active = 3 wheeler pram with large wheels that handles a large amount of walking over uneven surfaces.  Shops only, the brief outing = you can get by with a good stroller, easy fold with four small wheels that is suitable for paved surfaces.
How big is the back of the cars I'll be using?  Take a good look at the rear of the cars you'll be using.  Make sure you can fit the folded pram/stroller in the car with room for shopping also.
MAKE SURE YOU TEST DRIVE IN STORE!! TAKE IT FOR A TEST DRIVE, INCLUDING FOLDING DOWN AND UP.

Personal Experience

Peg Perego
My first pram was the Peg Perego, the model would be equivalent to the Uno.  It caters for babies from newborn to 17kgs (about 4-5yrs age).  Reversible handle, which is awesome with newborns when you want them to face you, there has been a significant amount of study done, that recommends that babies face you in the pram, it assists there verbal development when they can watch you speaking to them and others.  And then the rest: 

- reversible and height adjustable handlebar.
- child tray with drink holder that attaches to the front bar.
- opening hood with zipper transforms into a sun canopy.
- detachable cover with zipper.
- backrest reclines to several positions 
- leg rest adjusts to 2 positions.
- two carrier handles for carrying the stroller.
- large, practical basket that snaps into place.
- fold-up closing. when closed, it is free-standing. 
- cup holder.
- five-point seat belt.

I loved this pram, it was easy to manage, hard wearing, good one hand control, really easy up and down (2 steps).  

Looking back it was totally inappropriate for me, as I did cross country regularly, walked everywhere, and was going to require a pram for a long time as I don't have a car. 

This pram and this style of pram would be suited to absolutely anyone that had a car (even a small car) who was going to use the buggy primarily on paved surfaces.  Just not for the active, walking jogging parent who goes to the beach as often as I do.  Saying that, my peg stood up to my punishment, and was still sellable at the end of all that.

Mclaren Volo - the second pram, the first stroller

As my little person was getting less and less reliant on the buggy and more and more keen to walk, the idea entered my mind to get one of those convenient little strollers, SO my mother stepped in to buy me a decent light stroller that will last a long time, and be good for travelling overseas.

It was at this junction we found the maclaren volo.  At 4kgs, it is light and lovely.  Fantastic for travelling on public transport and aeroplanes.  With its easy one action fold (one hand) this stroller RULES.  Maclaren has truly taken the hard work out of travel with baby.  It doesn't matter if you have a struggling toddler in the other hand and shopping over your shoulder, this baby is going down!

If I could do anything different with this one, I would have got the next model up so that I still had the layback option, which is still necessary for so long with kids.  But other than that, the rain cover is great, the steering is amazing... Just a superior stroller, is worth the extra money for sure!

Stay tuned for the Phil and ted fan rave....