Double Stroller?

I highly recommend a sit and stand model. My girls are exactly 2 years apart and it is great to have the younger one in the stroller and let the older one get on and off as she wishes. I have talked to a number of moms who got a double stroller and wished they had the sit and stand. You can find them used.

I have a side by side double jogger for my two kids, who are 16 1/2 months apart and I recommend getting one very highly. They're now 3 yrs and 20 months and we still use it often, and it is soooo easy to push and maneuver. I love it. I bought a Graco duoglider right when my daughter was born so that I could use the infant seat in it and frankly, I hated it. It was awkward, heavy and didn't maneuver well. And my son (older child) didn't like riding in it.I used it once, then sold it, I prefer to use my double jogger even if only one child is riding and the other is walking.

I highly recommend the specific stroller I have - many of my friends have the exact same one because they tried each others' and copied because they liked it so much. I even had a friend who sold her much more expensive double (at a loss) to get the same one I have, she liked it that much. The price, even brand new, is fantastic. It is the Schwinn Safari TT - it runs around 170 or 180 online, or if you can find one at a Stupid Prices (they get them in occasionally) just 125.

It has a swivel front wheel, which can be locked if you want to jog, the seats both recline independently so that your younger one can lie back to sleep while your older child sits up and looks around. It has a removable bar across the front so that when it's on your children can hold on to look around, but when it's off they can hop in and out on their own. And a sun/rain shade on top, storage pocket at the back and storage underneath as well. We use it at the mall, outdoors on and off sidewalks, at the zoo and aquarium, literally everywhere. The only place I sometimes have trouble is in our little downtown (we live in Edmonds) 2 or 3 of the stores have doorways that are too narrow to fit it through. But it does fit into most normal, even narrow doorways. It's a little plainer looking than some of the higher end (more expensive) double joggers out there, but it's an awesome stroller, I personally don't believe it's worth the extra hundreds of dollars you'd pay for a fancier stroller that wouldn't necessarily function any better. Even now, 5 months pregnant with my third, and with almost 60 lbs of kid to push (when they're both riding), it's still easy to push and maneuver and doesn't tire me out immediately. If you need a double, swivel wheel joggers are by far the easiest manueverability of any stroller I've ever pushed. Anyway, that's my enthusiastic recommendation!

Good luck with your decision!

Hi K., My bous are 20 months apart and sice the 2nd once was born, Ive been using a sit and stand and I love it. It is a little heavy but I think most double strollers are. The sit and stand lets the younger sit in the front (either in his carseat attached or later in a seat facing frontwards. The older of the 2 can either sit strapped in on a bench facing you or turn around and stand on the bench. When they get a little older (my oldest is 3) he can hop up for a ride and then also get down easy to go explore.... so great at the zoo and aquarium! Check it out online at Baby's r us...that's where I got mine over a year ago...but I think they are everywhere! J.

I had a double stroller, which I gave away after my youngest was riding a bicycle, (9 years ago!) but I thought it was the best! I thoroughly recommend getting one. We used it for years and it was my best therapy for getting out with the kids! Easy to push (baby jogger brand) and had a nice canopy for rain/sun. My husband bought it for me when my second baby was born. The best gift ever!

Have fun! And enjoy those babies! They grow up so quickly! God bless! C.

I have the Joovy Sit N Stand and I love it. It has a big area for the toddler to either stand in the back, or turn around and buckle in. The baby can ride in his car seat on the front, or be buckled into a seat when he or she gets bigger. The onle disadvantage is that it's heavy, so not really easy to hoist in and out of the car, but I manage and I'm not super strong or anything. ;)

I have a Phil & Teds Sport stroller and I really like it. My child is only 12 weeks old but the stroller is excellent and has an add-on option for a second child if I ever need it.I have not purchased that add-on piece yet.
I have a neighbor who has this type of stroller for her two children and when I saw it and heard her rave reviews I knew it was the one for me. I don't know of any for sale,sorry.

I also have a friend down the street who loves her BOB stroller, side-by-side, for her two little ones. It's a lot bigger than I wanted to go but her children seem to like it fine.
The Phil & Teds stroller may be good for you over on Capitol Hill as it maneuvers easily in tight,urban areas (I tool around Queen Anne), it collapses easily and it's pretty light (as in travel friendly).
Good luck with your search!

C. S.
Magnolia

We got a side by side double jogger and it's one of my favourite purchases ever. I "test drove" several first and many don't fit through doors - make sure you get one that's the width of a wheelchair or less so you can get everywhere. And be sure to get one that's tall enough for your build. Our stroller is the 10K InStep. If I were to buy one now, though, I'd choose one with a swivel front wheel that could lock. I would also have bought a stroller pedometer, just so I could know how many miles I've put on that thing over the last five years!

Definetely do your homework. We got a double stroller we hardly use. Does your older boy like the stroller? That helps. If he is more active, a sit-and-stand option might be better. Or, if you still wanted to wear the baby, there are many more comfortable options besides the one you use now. I love my Ergo baby carrier. When they are too big for the front, they can comfortably go on your back.

Go to the zoo or other stroller heavy venue and see what others are doing. Ask questions. Go on to Amazon and read the reviews to see what people are saying. Shop on craigslist to get a better price if you know what you want.

We went double umbrella stoller which was an investment but it is almost too big for our older son. I would propbably go for some sort of sit-and-stand version.

There are a ton of stroller options and unfortunately you can't really test drive before you buy.

I just did all of this research and it's important to know what YOU WANT and go out and look at the various options. Merry Go Round in Bellevue has a few double strollers and can tell you the pros and cons of each. You can also search in Google for sites with opinions.

I love to walk outdoors with my kids so I definitely needed something for that. For trips to the mall, I use our Bugaboo stroller with a toddler board--easy to get in and out of the car. For walking and the zoo, I went with a Baby Jogger double stroller b/c of the following:

1. It's large enough for my 2 year old to fit in now and a year from now. (the Mountain Buggy will not hold a 2 year old b/c it's not high enough or wide enough)

2. It has a walking and running option where the wheels will lock or swivel.

3. It's small enough to fit through doorways.

4. It load balances so it doesn't steer to the side of your heavier child.

5. It has the best sun canopies so my children will be protected from the sun.

6. Each seat reclines so one child can take a nap.

7. It has some sort of patented system to make it easy to close. Regardless of the marketing, it is extremely easy to close.

These types of strollers are heavy to put in the car. This one is 35 lbs so I definitely use it for specific trips. It's not that hard to place in the car now that I'm used to it. Also since my 2 year old likes to walk in stores and the mall so I never planned for her to use a stroller at this stage.

For me, I didn't like the front/back strollers b/c it's not a option that will last for a few years. I hear the youngest child is in back and once they are 1 then they can kick and push on their older sibling. However there are plenty of moms in New York who use this option b/c of the narrow sidewalks that I would search out their opinions of the pros and cons.

Good luck.

I have a double jogging stroller (with a swivel front wheel, DON'T get one without the swivel front wheel, it makes all the difference!) and I really love it. My kids are 20 months apart too, and since my second was born I've put them both in and taken them all over, it steers like a dream. Double joggers ARE wide, so they don't go through doors well (they DO go through them though, without tipping or angling) but for the outdoors they are the best things ever. My sister in law bought a sit and stand stroller and just loves it, but her kids are farther apart (to the point where you would allow the older child to get on and off at their leisure, whereas I still need to strap my just barely two year old in most places) Hope that helps!

I'd love to sell my double. It is a Graco Duoglider - less than 3 years old. We only used it for trips to the park near our house, so it has been used gently. My daughter is turning 6 next week, so I think it's time. Let me know if you are interested.

E.