Sunday, November 15, 2009

Bugging me, Bugaboo (ah-haaa)

Regular bwb readers will know that Louis and his buggy don't exactly always see eye to eye. Not the one he's pushing in the picture but the one that cost us a small fortune that I thought I 'had' to have before he was born. These days he seems to spend more time 'buggy surfing' than actually sitting in it. Which means that I too have a love-hate relationship with his pushchair. As fellow bloggers will know, there's nothing like writing about something to vent your wrath, and I got to do that in spades this week, with a comment piece about, yup, buggies in the wake of the great Maclaren saga. I'd be interested to know if anyone else feels the same.

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Susie

Your son just gets cuter and cuter (liked the piece too) Natalie

Julie Kubal said...

My favorite photo to date!

sara said...

I absolutely agree it has been a long time since we were successful at strapping Alex into a Stroller ... Not to mention keeping him from surfing and sky diving from his high chair! and you're article was fantastic! I loved it :) Not to mention Louis is getting more gorgeous by the pic and we still miss you guys! xoxo, sara

Dorset Dispatches said...

For some reason I can't comment on the Independent piece so I've come back here instead!

We ditched the buggy completely when my youngest was 18months - it wasn't compatible with the roads/non existent pavements round here. I feel liberated without it. Youngest is now 2 1/2 and will walk for up to an hour without too much problem. I do however have biceps of steel from carrying him when it all gets too much or I've been a bit ambitious for little legs. The down side though is that I do tend to use the car more. If I time it wrong, a pleasant 15 minute stroll to pick up something from the local supermarket turns into a 2 hour trip from hell and I've still got to get everyone back AND the shopping.

BTW my sons had little pink pushchairs and they LOVED them. Hours of amusement and got them both walking no problem!

Dorset Dispatches said...

PS - forgot to say. If you have a bad back, it can be impossible to carry your children in slings. When the boys were tiny, there was no way I could have not had a buggy.

Dorset Dispatches said...

How many comments can I leave in one day? But, I was just going through some old posts looking for a completely different post, when I found one I wrote about not having buggy.

http://britsinbosnia.blogspot.com/2008/11/footloose-and-buggy-free.html

I remembered that the key thing about buggys for toddlers is not so much for transporting them from a to b, but for strapping them in so they can't run around and create chaos when you have to go somewhere like the bank. I miss my buggy every time I go to the post office!

Babies who brunch said...

Thank you squared Natalie!

And Julie, high praise indeed. Unfortunately Daddy J took it, so I can't claim any credit....

Sara - do you know, I actually wish they could buggy surf together! How cute would they look?!

And Fraught Mummy - I too have the arms of a former Communist shotputter.... they just keep getting bigger and bigger. I liked your post. For me the problem is that I just CAN'T strap him in. He goes nuts.... It's my fault because I encourage him to play with the 'clicks' to entertain him, so he hates being actually strapped in. Your youngest one sounds impressive though.

Babies who brunch said...

PS I was actually a big fat hypocrite yesterday because I took the buggy out all day... granted, Louis wasn't in it for much of it, but he did take a useful nap at one point and it make a handy shopping trolley in the supermarket, not to mention helped me lug three bags of shopping plus Louis home. Not a short distance either....

Unknown said...

He's so gorgeous! And I completely agree-I feel like an idiot most days pushing an empty stroller around the neighborhood.

Iota said...

Mine all loved pushing a stroller, but wouldn't make do with a doll's one - it had to be their own. This meant that they were pushing it blind, as they couldn't see over the top. Didn't seem to matter though.

They did enjoy sitting in it too, at various stages. Like so much of parenting, it seemed to be in stages.

Josie @Sleep is for the Weak said...

LOVE that photo! We have a little stroller on Kai's Christmas list.

I can sympathise with the stroller stress. Kai is fine half the time, UNLESS he's been allowed to roam free for a while and then needs to be put back in, at which point he becomes a snarling, hysterical, biting plank.

Funnily enough though I use my stroller much more these days. I could have got away without one for probably the first 10 months but then Kai just got too heavy to ride in the sling for long any more. I think, though, that when his stamina is a little better we may ditch the pushchair again and just alternate walking/sling riding when his legs get tired.

Although... where then would I hang all my shopping?

P.S. A whole week with just 3 night feeds!!!!!!! Worthy of the exclamation marks I think x

A Modern Mother said...

We just got out of the buggy phase. I cut it off when HM started reception (age 4). I don't want to know how many buggies I have actually owned. With three lil nippers so close together ... I've tried them all. I have to say my favourite was the little McLaren one (we actually bought three of these). I could not have got along (or out) without it. But now that our youngest has started reception, they have all retired to the garage. Only to come out, as you say, at the airport.

Jacqui Paterson said...

Hi there! I'm a new convert to your blog. The Independent piece made me laugh, because it rang so true! Where I live you can't travel two feet without tripping over a Bugaboo. I admit that I wanted one too, pre-my daughter's arrival, but my partner put his foot down after hearing some so-so reviews, and seeing the price tag. There were days when I actually felt self-conscious about the fact that I seemed to be the only Mum in my entire borough who wasn't pushing one! Now I don't give a hoot - as long as it gets my daughter and me from A to B. Next time I'll definitely be using a baby sling though - it's so much easier, especially since I rely on public transport to get around.

Babies who brunch said...

I can really recommend the little stroller - it's v popular. I had to get one after I got bored of Louis just nicking them in the playground. Although, as with Iota, Louis also pushes his own.

I honestly tried v hard NOT to buy a Bugaboo as it felt just too sheep-like. But in the end I gave in. Am desperately trying to hold out and not also buy a Maclaren though...

PS Jacqui, welcome! And thanks. Next up, a paean to my baby carrier, the Ergo....