The Stuff of Parenting

by Sarah Dahl

It's Raining Umbrella Strollers!

November 24, 2008

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Everyone needs an umbrella stroller. Really. Unless you live in a completely isolated place and don't plan to take your child out in public before the age of 6, this is an investment worth making. A lightweight, well-made umbrella stroller (so named because they fold right up and are relatively portable) is so easy to navigate in crowded shopping malls and airports; it takes up little room in the trunk of your car; and it can usually be operated one-handed, a godsend if you rely on public transportation. Their only major drawback is that you can't use most of them before your baby is six months old; they either don't recline far enough or lack the support a small infant needs. (For the under-six-month-set, a car seat frame is ideal - you can simply lock the seat into the frame without having to take the child out. They get to keep sleeping! Brilliant!)
However, once your child is old enough, some of the larger umbrella strollers can actually serve quite nicely as your only stroller, if you only have the space or cash for one.

When looking at umbrella strollers, some good questions to ask are: what is the frame made of? How sturdy is it? Does the seat recline? How easy is it to fold up when my hands are full? Is it fairly light and easy to carry? Are the handles high enough for a taller parent to push with comfort? What is the maximum weight capacity and how quickly will my child outgrow it? How much space will this thing take up in my trunk, anyway? Go to the store and test drive. If your baby hasn't arrived yet, or is still too small, borrow a friend's or take a large doll. You might feel silly, but you'll know exactly what you're getting.

If you plan to use your umbrella stroller at all regularly, it's worth investing in a good one. I keep our Maclaren Triumph in the back of our car, and use it even more than I anticipated: now that Annabel can walk, keeping her strapped into the stroller (and well fortified with bunny crackers) is just about the only way to make it through a shopping mall in anything like a straight line, with  minimal destruction in my wake. Here are a few models that are safe, well-made, and worth your dollar. They'll stand up to daily wear and tear, airline luggage handlers, and busy toddlers:

Maclaren Triumph - $175

This is the umbrella stroller we chose, and it has been worth every cent. Things I love: I an fold it while holding Annabel, taking off my shoes, and handing over my boarding pass; the aluminum frame only weighs 11 lbs and is easily hoisted in and out of the car; it comes with a carry strap; it maneuvers well in tight spaces; the back-wheel brakes are easy to tap on; the seat reclines slightly for rest. Things I don't love: it isn't the best stroller for napping in; the storage basket is pretty small and a little hard to get to; the handles are a little short for my 6-foot-tall husband. Overall, this is a well-designed, simple to use, hardworking stroller.

Maclaren Techno XT - $280

This is the stroller we would have chosen if we were only going to purchase one. The Techno XT is larger than the other Maclaren models (excluding the doubles, of course), and will definitely grow with your child - its listed weight capacity is 55 lbs. It's slightly heavier than the Triumph at 14.3 lbs, and it has some nice features: adjustable handles for a taller parent; a five-position reclining seat; front wheel suspension and well-padded seat for a comfortable ride (a must if you'll be doing much walking); and Maclaren's signature easy fold and carry. If you live in a big city and get around mostly by walking and public transit, this stroller comes highly recommended.

UPPA Baby G-Lite - $100

This stroller is smaller and more lightweight than the Triumph or the Techno; it also has a much more reasonable price point. The aluminum frame is a remarkably light 8.3 lbs, which makes it a perfect travel stroller, and it stands upright when folded (a nice little convenience), unlike the Triumph. The sunshade is also a bit more generous than the Maclaren strollers; it folds down farther to block light from your baby's eyes. This is a lovely, stripped-down-to-the-basics piece of gear - nothing luxurious, but nothing superfluous either. Think of it as the "form" of the umbrella stroller - and at $100, an excellent buy.

So You're Looking For A Stroller...

November 7, 2008

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When I was pregnant with our daughter, Annabel, I managed to stay pretty unfazed in the face of all the baby gear she would apparently require. That is, until it came time to choose a stroller. I started shopping for one at about 20 weeks (of pregnancy) and didn't actually buy one until she was 6 months old. After reading countless reviews, test-driving them every time I went into a baby store, and polling everyone I knew, I at last came to the decision that I just wanted my husband to make the decision. Which has also been my experience every time we have purchased a car, incidentally. Maybe I just don't do well with transportation.

Actually, I think my reasons for paralysis in the stroller and car decisions are pretty similar: once you've eliminated the no-brainers (extravagantly expensive; good-looking but high maintenance; cheaply-made lemons), you're left with several equally good options and no clear "best" choice. It's easy to choose between a Jaguar and a Subaru if you're looking for a family car; it's a lot harder to choose between a Subaru and a Toyota. Either would be a good choice, and so it comes down to personal prefences: do I like where the cupholders are? Are the headrests too high? What about the layout of the dash? (Maybe I'm the only person concerned with these things - but if I have to operate something every day, I want to like its interface as much as possible...)

It's much the same with strollers. Whether you're looking for an umbrella stroller, a running stroller, or a travel system, there are several well-made, comparably priced options that work pretty equally well. So rather than trying to scout out the "best" brand of each stroller, in the posts to follow I'll offer some recommendations as well as share the choices we (finally) made, and why. Hopefully your child can enjoy a walk outside in the stroller before six months.

First, though, some basic criteria. What should you think about and look for when you're shopping for a stroller?

1. How do I plan to use it?

Your answer to this question will help you decide if you need more than one stroller, and to decide where to put your stroller dollars. For instance, I knew that I wanted a stroller for walking and/or running outdoors in our neighborhood in which Annabel would be comfortable for longer stretches of time, and that I could use with the front wheel locked (for running) or unlocked (for maneuvering around corners, especially when doing errands in our neighborhood). It would be stored in our stairwell, so it was okay if it was a little heavy or unwieldy. I also wanted an umbrella stroller that I could keep in the car for trips to the mall, Nonni's house, and air travel. This stroller needed to be lightweight and easy to use, but didn't need many "comfort" features like a cup holder or snack tray. And since we live in Minnesota, and Annabel was born in December, for the first months of her life we bought a simple car seat frame so that I could leave her snuggled in her BundleMe  and push her around in her car seat.

Some good questions to ask yourself: do I plan to run or walk long distances? Do I travel quite a bit? Where will the stroller(s) be stored? Do I need to be able to get it on or off of public transportation easily? How wide are the store aisles that I may need to navigate in this stroller? Do I want something that will adapt to hold more children, or would I rather buy a double stroller if siblings come along? Try to answer these questions as realistically as you can; it's easy to get sucked into the flashy features of many strollers. I found myself suddenly imagining that if we bought a top-of-the-line running stroller, I would be doing marathons - when I've never run more than three miles at a time in my life.

2. Which features do I really need?

Your answer to the first question will help determine how you answer this one, but it's really important to think it through before heading to the store. Many strollers are packed with features that appear essential until you actually use them with a small child - and can cost extra money that could be spent on a better made, more simply designed model. For instance, neither of my strollers has a snack tray or a cupholder. This makes them easier to fold up and less bulky; Annabel is happy to hold her snacks in a baggie, or else get out and enjoy a snack with me on a park bench. On the other hand, I wish I had thought more about a sunshade. When we are walking towards the lake or home from the pool on a summer afternoon, we're walking due west - straight into the sun. Our Phil and Ted's stroller is wonderful in most respects, but the sunshade is woefully inadequate to shield Annabel's eyes.  

Granted, there will always be things that you don't realize until you've used the stroller for awhile - like my sunshade. But sit down and try to envision, as concretely as possible, the most common places and times you'll be using your stroller. This little imaginative exercise will help you answer questions like: Do I need a place to stash my water bottle? How big of a storage basket will I need? Will I be putting groceries or lots of outdoor toys in the storage basket, or can I just hang a saddlebag from the back? Will I be in places that will provide my little one with plenty of visual stimulation (parks, streets, busy shopping malls) or will I primarily be in places where she will need some playthings and a surface for them (dressing rooms, the DMV, waiting in line at the post office)? Does it rain frequently - will I need a storm cover? Is it very hot where I live - do I need a seat with good ventilation? The more specifically you can think about your stroller use, the more likely you are to choose one that meets your needs well.

3. How much do I want to spend?

To be perfectly honest, the most well-designed and easy to use strollers aren't cheap. They can run anywhere from $200 up, and not everyone wants or is able to spend that. Likewise, if you're planning on having children close together in age, it doesn't make sense to buy an expensive stroller that only holds one child and then have to trade it in for a double in two years. Back to the car analogy: Hondas, Toyotas, and Subarus aren't cheap, because they are well-made and hold their value over time. But if you want a well-made car, you don't have to go to the lot and pick out a brand new one. Lightly used may make more sense, as may buying one well-made, more expensive car for the member of the family who drives more, and a smaller, cheaper one for around town for the family member who only drives 10 miles back and forth to work each day. So don't let stroller prices set your budget: decide instead how much you are willing and able to spend, and then it's a process of deciding where and how to allocate those dollars. I'll use our decision making process as an example.

I wanted a three-wheeled, running/walking stroller for around our neighborhood that could hold cargo in the bottom and that we could eventually adapt into a double stroller. We knew that one would be expensive. I also wanted a lightweight, well-made umbrella stroller for travel and to keep in the car for outings around town. Neither of these would be appropriate for a newborn, so we also purchased a car seat frame. Buying three strollers could easily have gotten ridiculously expensive very quickly. So how did we keep the spending in check and get the right strollers for our family?  The car seat frame was easiest - it was only $40, and I used a gift card that I had received at a baby shower. I was set until Annabel was big enough to sit up, which gave us some time to research our options (and for me to make up my mind.)

The next decision was to make our major stroller purchase: a new Phil and Ted's Sport. It was expensive - around $450. Our rationale was that it easily adapted into a double with a kit that could be purchased later, so we were basically getting two strollers in one. However, that didn't leave much left over for the umbrella stroller. We decided against the brand-new Maclaren Triumph for our umbrella stroller, and instead opted for last year's model that we found on clearance. It was essentially the same, just in last year's color scheme - and we saved about $80. A friend found something similar on Craigslist - a year old stroller that had been lightly used, and was being sold for about 50% off of the original price. 

Moral of the story: if you're willing to think hard about what you need, how you'll use the stroller, and where you want to put your stroller dollars, you can get something well-made and that meets the needs of your family. If you're willing to dig around a bit - looking for online clearance sales, prowling through ads on Craigslist,  or hitting stores like Once Upon a Child - you can make your stroller dollars stretch farther (I'll write about the best tactics for finding deals online in a later post).

What do you really need?

November 1, 2008

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Kids come with lots of stuff. Well, actually, they arrive naked and hungry, and so most of us quickly conclude that they will require a lot of stuff – and parenthood as an ongoing acquisition process begins.  There’s a lot of money to be made off of us parents, and retailers have no qualms about appealing to our best and worst instincts, our hopes and fears for our kids, to persuade us that the key to successful parenting is making the right purchases. Frequently.

And, honestly, there is a tiny bit of truth to that. At least, the parents I’ve admired the most as I’ve seen them in action are the parents who know how to set the conditions for their children to succeed.  That is, they 1) get to know their child, and then 2) they make informed decisions – including purchases – that will help their child succeed at eating, sleeping, playing, growing, and learning. Some gear is really helpful in this regard, some is completely extraneous and pointless. Some is actually dangerous (think walkers).

I like to think of navigating the world of kid gear as one of our first acts of discipline, in a positive sense – what sorts of things are we going to bring into our children’s environment to help them learn how to eat and sleep well, to participate positively in family life, and to learn about the world around them? At best, I want the gear choices I make to reflect the values I’m trying to teach Annabel, rather than just modeling instant gratification, short-term usefulness, and mindless shopping.

That’s where I’m coming from as I review gear. I’m going to try to ask of each piece: is it necessary? Is it well-made? Will we use it once or twice then put it in the basement, or is it something that can grow with us as a family? What message does it give Annabel about her place in our family and our family’s place in the world? (For instance, her Phil&Ted’s stroller makes it possible for her and I to do our chores in our Minneapolis neighborhood – when it’s not -30º - rather than climbing into the car.) Does it enrich Annabel’s environment, or just clutter it up?

Of course, this makes it sound like I have the gear-thing all figured out: that I’ve only made well-thought-out purchases, and that my house is perfectly arranged for growth and learning. Not so much. I’ve totally given in to impulse purchases that didn’t pan out at all – the teething-blanket/cow, the 6 or 7 sippy cups before we found one that panned out, the ridiculously expensive ball-drop toy that wasn’t at all age-appropriate (and that we’ve lost all the balls for, now that it is). But parenting isn’t about perfection; it’s about getting it right more times than we get it wrong, and making sure our kids stay alive, relatively unharmed, and aware that they’re loved along the way. Hopefully some of this gear – and these reviews – will help.

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Sarah Dahl

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