I finally bought my double stroller!!!

So I guess every parent that enters into the blog world eventually ends up writing about their experiences shopping and comparing strollers (or carriages as my husband calls them). With our first born I researched until I was dreaming/having nightmares of strollers in my sleep! We finally settled on the Peg Perego Pliko P3 and got the travel system to match. We never regretted the choice, not once! We traveled quite a bit with the stroller and my husband even took it out during an unusual dumping of snow/ice! I will say the stroller was NOT designed for this type of outing but it survived my husband shoving it through the mess beautifully! The stroller was used every single day of it’s existence. I don’t have a car during the day since my husband takes it to work so every outing my first son and I had was on foot and with the stroller. So, BIG THUMBS UP from this family if you are considering this one.

Here's Peter (10 months old) in his Peg Perego:

Now that we have baby #2 in the house and since our outings are never shorter than 2 hours, a double stroller is necessary. Our oldest is 2 years old and can definitely walk for short outings, so for these I strap the baby on my back and head out the door. But for our typical daily outings – a new double stroller was needed. I won’t lie, I was very excited about getting to buy a new piece of equipment and had been eyeing the new Phil & Teds whenever I was at the playground. I was determined to like this stroller and buy its latest greatest sleekest version, the Vibe. I had my husband convinced it was the only stroller for us. Living in the city the sidewalks are narrow and more importantly, our door to our 100 year old house is narrow (as are the steps leading up to it). I needed something with a small footprint so-to-speak. So off we went today to get my awesome swanky and sleek Phil & Teds Vibe with all the extras (a rain canopy, a sun canopy, a snack tray, a mommy tray as I call it – yep, all of this must be purchased ala cart)…our bill for this stroller was expected to reach $1000.

Now, for the local moms and dads, I have to say if you are in the market for either a stroller or a car seat then Great Beginnings out in Gaithersburg is the only place you need to go. The salesperson that helped us knew everything about every stroller and demonstrated every feature. It’s my understanding, through talking to other moms, that this has been their experience too. Don’t think for a minute that all this training their employees go through requires they work on commission – it does not! What this means is they are truly suggesting strollers they think fit your particular needs rather than pushing the most expensive one in their store. I am proof of that. I walked through the door with a few minor questions I needed answered before I bought my new Vibe. The man who helped me couldn’t be quicker to answer: Is it true, I asked, that the Vibe does not come with all the attachments and extras such as a sun guard and rain canopy that the Sport comes with? True he answered, and he even went so far as to explain that I most likely would need the “Dash” over the Vibe or Sport versions. The Vibe and Sport models, for those that don’t know, are the two most expensive in the line. Further, when he started explaining that second seat doesn’t get any sun protection at all (this is where the baby would be sitting/laying) I started to falter on my determination to get the Vibe or even a Phil & Teds. Finally, he explained the weight limits on the stroller…the bottom seat in the Phil & Teds, at best maxes out at 40 lbs. If I were to consider a side-by-side stroller I could push that maximum weight limit to 50 lbs.

So, I moved on to examining the side-by-side strollers. Now, anyone that remotely knows me knows that I have long “decided” that the side-by-sides were just too wide and cumbersome! I had long ago decided the Phil & Teds was our stroller, so for me to move away from that was/is a big deal! So, what did I come home with today? The City Jogger Mini.

Here's my husband pushing our sons in the Double stroller:
(And no, that is NOT the way you are supposed to strap your baby in the fully reclined seat...it's my husband's way of doing it!)

We took it out for it’s maiden voyage to the DC Cherry Blossom Festival today. It was just a dream to drive. Peter looked soo much more comfortable in it and the sun shades that come with it are so sufficient I didn’t feel the need to purchase the sun cover that wraps around the carriage. I did, however, purchase the rain cover. Not so much to shield against rain as to shield against high winds. The sun canopies that come attached to the stroller come so far down I couldn’t see needing extra protection from rain – unless it’s a major downpour. So that’s it woohoo!!! So the cost of our double stroller, including my rain cover and mommy tray was $399!! My husband was sooo, sooo happy we didn’t spend $1000!

Here's a shot of a beautiful tree in downtown DC from our outing today. It's NOT a Cherry Tree

Happy stroller hunting!