Can I Get Away Without a Double Stroller in the Beginning?

My boys are 22 months apart. I used a sleepy wrap and my stroller for my older son. This worked well going to the grocery store as well so there was room in the cart for the food. I guess it just depends on how often you will be out. I work full time and didn't use my stroller too often with my first son, so I didn't think I would need a double stroller. It seems we don't get out much since someone always seems to be napping.

I was against the big double stroller as well, but my kids are 3 1/2 years apart. I used my single stroller until I realized there were some places I wasn't going because my older daughter would not be able to walk as far or as fast as we needed to go. Then I got a Joovy Ultralight Caboose and LOVE it! My biggest concern was getting a double stroller into the trunk of my car but this one fits just fine and is very easy to use and light.

Use the sling for the baby and the stroller for the older child. Don't waste money on another stroller that you'll only use for a very short time.

I would wait to buy one till you are sure you want it. I bought a $200 double stroller when baby #2 came (mine were 22 mths apart) and we almost never used it. I didn't like pushing it, it was a pain to get in my car & I really don't go that many places where I need it. At the store, if you don't do a sling or carrier (I loved my baby bjorn) you can put the baby carrier in one cart & pull it with toddler in the other cart sitting so you have room for grocies. Going to the park - if your toddler can currently walk it, I wouldn't worry. You can always carry the toddler if you need to while pushing the baby stroller one handed if you have to get home due to a meltdown or some other 2 year old drama :) If you do decide you want one, I'd go the craig's list or resale shop route to save money but I'd decide after you have the baby so you can see what you will really be doing. If you are near grapevine, you can test out slings at The Nesting Place to see what you like (something else to do after you have baby). Good luck & congratulations!

My boys were a little further apart - 2 1/2 years. After boy #2 was born I used the sit and stand stroller a TON. It didn't seem as crazy-big as some of the other strollers and the older child can pop in/out of the stroller. ALSO, there is a lot of space for bags/shopping stuff/etc.

When my third son was born I used the sit and stand until he could sit up and then switched to to a really nice umbrella stroller that had the bars at the bottom that allowed my older children to stand on the back if necessary.

I found it really weird that I used the double stroller when I had two, but when I had three it was just too big.

I have the McClaren umbrella stroller. It is sturdy and an older child can stand on the support in between the handles as you push...it worked really well for me.

You may just have to try different combinations to find out what works for you...can you borrow a friend's double stroller before you buy?

I have the jeep side-by-side stroller too. My girls are 14.5 months apart. I did the moby and a single stroller/let her walk until the little one was old enough to sit in the jeep. It was perfect. Save your money for now! :-)

I have three soon to be 4 kids and I think I would answer differently depending on the kid combos. With 1 and 2 no way. With 3 and soon to be 4 I don't plan on using mine because child 3 will walk by me and STAY close without roaming. The only thing to consider is if you will be nursing a baby. You might want to be able to contain your #2. I personally don't care for sit n stands. There's not much sitting room, although I know a lot of people love them. If you are going to get a double, my two top pics are the combi tandem (I just set my graco car seat in it. It steers well because it has 6 wheels instead of 4. Also, it is lightweight (like half of a duo glider) and stands up on its own. For an umbrella style double, I LOVE the eddie bauer tandem umbrella stroller. It is SO compact for a double (wheel base is much shorter and it steers much better), but folds small like an umbrella stroller. I feel like over the last 5 years I'm a stroller expert. I've even had a triple! :)

P.s. mine are 18 mo apart, 11 mo apart and soon to be 30 months apart...

I absolutely needed a double stroller in the beginning. After a few outings with the baby in the stroller and the 20 month old holding my hand, I realized for safety sake I needed a double stroller. You need a stroller for all kinds of day to day activities...going to the post office, any store besides the grocery store, going to the mall, or even just to the dollar store. An 18 month old, no matter how well behaved, cannot be trusted to stay by the stroller, and you won't want to have to put the 18 month old in the stroller and the baby in the sling every time you get out of the car...the baby will most likely be sleeping most of the time as you try to get around.

That being said, that is what worked for MY family. My MIL gave us a double stroller, but it was so big and bulky I couldn't fit it in my trunk. I ended up looking for one all over and found one at Burlington Coat Factory for $100 that held up. The car seat pretty much fit in the back seat, it folded small, and my older child rode in the front seat. I would hold on to the handle of the infant seat when we went over bumps to make sure it was secure. I used it for YEARS and even passed it on to my sis in law...it was the best $100 I spent!

If you think you won't mind putting the baby in the sling every time, then try it out and buy one later.

I'm faced with the same issue right now. Just had baby boy in November. He and his sister are 22 months apart. Right now the sling and umbrella stroller are working for us. He's much more content in the sling. When he was 2 weeks old, I took them for a quick walk to the park and having my hands free for my toddler was great. We had to take a flight last week and this combination worked but I had help. I haven't ventured to the grocery store, mall or other errands so not sure if it'll work for all outings. My plan is to wait until he's able to sit up before I buy a double stroller, if any at all.

The sling is completely working for us and #2 is nearly 8 months old. Little ones want to be held anyway. That's why I didn't bother with the double stroller. I wear #2 at the grocery store as well.

I'm planning on using the single with a sling for a while - My daughter will be 22 months old when our new one arrives. Even when going to the park, I'd rather have him with me while I chase her around or push her on the swings rather than worrying about keeping an eye on the stroller at the same time.

Have you considered using a sling until your youngest is old enough? They are inexpensive, and extremely handy. I wore my youngest until he was about 9 months old, although lots of moms continue beyond that age. That way, your youngest is pacified, and your hands are free to handle your older one, or do whatever you need to do.

I'm due with #2 in April, and have every intention of doing baby bjorn + single stroller for the first 6 mos or so. I just don't like driving the double strollers--they're enormous!

My two daughters are 22 months apart, and I was able to get away with a single stroller until the younger one was a little over 6 months old. I just kept the baby in a sling and my older daughter in the stroller when we went out. It was great, but the baby eventually got too wiggly to stay in the sling. So, at that point we bought a double stroller. We rarely use it, but it is nice for trips to the mall or when we go to the fair. Personally, I don't think they're worth the wasted space or money. Plus, kids tend to grow out of them quickly. My advice would be to wait and see how it works out. If you really need one, I would try finding a used one at a resale shop or online. Good luck and congratulations on your new addition!

Definitely need that double stroller. My kids are 1 and 3. Would you believe that I just upgraded my double stroller to the sit and stand stroller. I dont know what I would have done without my double stroller. The 1st double stroller I had looked like a limo of strollers because it was so long, but very convenient and you know how narrow the isles are when u shop, so it fits and is not as wide as the side by side. Good luck!

I never cared for the slings so I definitely went with the double stroller. I have seen attachments that link two single strollers together...although it may only work for umbrella strollers. That is probably what I would have done if I had to do it all over again. Otherwise, we used a sit and stand at first but, when they were big enough we moved them to the double umbrella. The sit and stand are really bulky and it took up almost our entire trunk (and we have a huge trunk space). If you are interested in a used sit & stand or double umbrella, please send me an email.

My girls are 2 years to the day (yep exactly 24 months apart... within hours actually) and I never had a double stroller. Infact I never owned 2 strollers. But my oldest wasn't a big fan of the stroller anyway and didn't use it often anyway by the time she was 2. I don't think they are worth the hassle, money,etc. If baby#1 likes walking, let him walk when you need the use of the stroller for #2. Or tote baby#2 in a sling while pushing #1. I have also carried both girls (once the youngest was old enough to support head, neck, etc) for those trips that I maybe would have needed a stroller and didn't have one... which wasn't often. While at the mall they have double strollers to use when kids are alittle older and you don't want to have to try to keep track of 2 curious little ones while shopping. But that is about the only time I ever had both kids in a stroller. My youngest was not using a stroller by the time she was 2 also... so not worth it at all to me. Hope this helps:)

I thought I needed one with a 3.5 year old and new baby and realize that now we really didn't because the new guy HATES the car seat and would prefer being carried around in the Baby K'Tan over being stuck in a seat; something I'd never have thought about before he was born. Plus at the grocery store etc it's much easier to use a sling since one seat will already be occupied in the cart and you find yourself thinking "now where are the groceries supposed to go?" I got lucky and found one on craigslist so I don't feel too bad about having it, but it will be going soon.

My kids are 3.5 yrs apart (boy/girl), and I got a Sit and Stand when #2 was born. It has an attachment to snap in the infant seat, while the older one can sit or stand up (obviously). It worked pretty well because my son was pretty hard to contain anyway, and he had the muscle control to not fall backwards (which always worried me). It is also much cheaper than most double strollers.

Also, I used a sling with my daughter and pushed the single stroller as a cart, since son wouldn't sit in it anyway. We also had a kid-carrying backpack that he really liked and surprisingly, I could carry him in it and the baby in the sling. Although it made me feel like a pack mule, I liked not having to lug a gigantic double stroller everywhere.

Congratulations, and good luck!
C.

I would completely recommend a double stroller. My oldest was 17 months old when my twins were born. We got a triple stroller and it was great for a while, thill my oldest got too big for it, then we sold that and started using the double stroller. My twins are 3 yr old now and we still use the double stroller, because if I need to go somehwere by myself with all of the kids its just not safe to have them all or even 2 of them in a shopping cart where they can easily jump out the back or someone could easily swipe them out of the cart, plus putting them in the cart does not leave much space for groceries. Plus if we are out at a mall or park or something and 2 of the boys want to walk, we still use the double stroller to hold one of the boys and all our gear, diaper bags, drinks, snacks, shopping bags, etc....I can't imagine life without the double stroller. You can find good used ones very affordable on craigslist or at JBF sales...good luck!

I have the sit n stand. I do not like it because I can't put both kids in it when they both want to sleep. Only 1 of the seats has a back, so only 1 can really lean back to sleep..........we've used it a little, but I'm ready to get rid of it. We use our single stroller most of the time and then carry our little guy at the same time or have her walk (if she's not sleepy) while he's in the stroller. She's 3 and he's 5 mo. we are also expecting later this year as well, so we want a different double stroller since our little guy won't be able to walk much when the next one comes. JMO -- and I'm willing to sell you the sit n stand cheap if you want it.

I think so, my two boys weren't quite as close in age as yours (25 months apart) and I just used the travel system I had for the first boy for the new baby. If my first son felt the need to sit in the stroller, we improvised...either put #1 in the stroller and carried #2 (you had mentioned a wrap, they are great!) or kept #2 in the infant seat/stroller and used umbrella stroller for #1 ($10-50). Since you already have a double jogger you will be able to use when your second son is about 6 months old, I would save your money for something else fun for the kids. Unless you can find one second hand for a decent price. Good Luck!!!

Well, I personally would not get another one just for the few times you might want it. My side by side has seats that lay flat, so if I needed to, I can put the newborn in,laying down, until they are old enough to sit up. Does your stroller do that? If so, then for the few times you will head to the park, you can either use the sling, or lay him (still use the buckles of course) in the seat. When I am running errands, I tend to put the older child in the seat of the shopping cart, and the baby in the basket part. (I dont usually do major shopping with 2 kidddos, but rather a few items so it works for me). So, think about how often you might even need it, and if its not several times a week, I would not do it for sure. Hope that helps some. BTW..I would wait a while on the sit and stand too. The back is just not comfortable, and my chidren have been over 3 before they were ready to stand more than sit. The side by side is the best thing i ever did, and I only regret not doing one sooner. (It was on my 5th child that I agreed:) Enjoy your little ones! ~A.~

I got one for my second and used it MAYBE 2 times. I hated it...too bulky. I used a sling with my youngest and pushed my other in a stroller or held his hand. I'd go with a sling for now. congratulations!

My sons are 15 months apart, and I used our double stroller way more during the first 6 months than I have since. By the time my youngest could sit up well on his own, his older brother was ready to walk more than he would tolerate sitting in a stroller, and I only took the double stroller out to use when I knew we'd be out for a while and he would tire of walking.

I fully agree with Meg...My boys are 19 1/2 months apart and I did the baby bjorn and single stroller for quite a while...as long as my back held up to it...I think number two was about six months when I started sticking him in the stroller...but another option you might consider that is a lot cheaper than a double stroller is a little leash type backpack for number one and putting number two in the single stroller with blankets propping him up until he is old enough to sit up on his own in you so choose...I went with the puppy backpack for my older son when he started refusing to sit in the stroller anymore...which was about when younger brother was around three months...but kept baby in baby bjorn for quite a while just because it felt safer to have him close. :) I think the baby backpack leash thing we have is Eddie Baur brand and we got it at target for around 20 bucks I think...It was a great option. :) Best wishes! :) And congrats on your two little men! :) They are fantastic! :)

I have the same dilemma, R.. Number two is due in February and number one will be 20 months. We also have a Chicco car seat (which we've loved for the first) that doesn't always coordinate with other stroller systems. We were looking into a double BOB stroller...but that costs an arm, a leg, and your first child! I think we'll probably end up waiting and just making the baby carrier work.

Depends on how active you are and how much you plan on using it. I think you can probably get away without getting one until you are able to use your side by side. As you know, baby boys grow so big so fast...and he can probably start sitting in that side by side way earlier than 6 months. I'd try using a sling. The only big purchase I made for baby #2 (other than furniture) was a double stroller. I was deciding on the same dilemna. I still don't like the big bulky stroller. I got the sit and stand you are considering from One Step Ahead. It is nice...i just like small and compact (which double strollers are NOT). It is a nice double stroller if you are going to get one. I would recommend it...but since you have the other one you can probably try to make due without.