Need Advice on Purchasing a Double Stroller

I have a double BOB which I love. I have a 2.5 year old and 7 month old. The stroller has served my needs perfectly as I put in the infant car seat adapter so my youngest could be in her car seat until she was able to sit up and my toddler could ride next to her. While I love this stroller, my one complaint is that it is a bit wide and tough to maneuver in stores, through doors etc. I chose the BOB because I run with the stroller all the time and needed the big wheels to get through snowy Colorado winters. If you dont think you will be running much and live in a city where you need a stroller that is a bit more maneuvrable in tight spaces, I think I might go with the Phil and Ted's. I too had the same dilemma but for my situation (being a runner and the snow), the BOB was better.

I don't personally have one, but one of my friends has a phil and ted. I asked her about it the other day and she LOVES it. She siad it was super versatile and lightweight. Its a good double without being superwide or super long, both of which can make strollers hard to manuver.

Hi T.
We were in the same situation several years ago and decided on the Chariot Cougar stroller system. It is side by side, but much lighter than the Bob (we have the single one). The nice thing about the Chariot is that you can buy attachments for a bike, ski's (for cross country skiing), jogging and walking. I hope this helps.
L. Helm
Independent Rep for Silpada Designs
www.mysilpada.com/L..helm
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We have the BOB dualie and really like it. My first son was about 18 months when my second was born. My youngest is now 10 months and we still use it. My main issue is that my kids are big guys so I wanted to make sure I had something sturdy enough for them for outdoors. We still use it now and they are 42 lbs and 27 lbs. With the stroller weight, I'm pushing around 100 lbs with no problems (except uphill!). I like the side by side outdoors, but it is bulky and hard to get in tight spaces. For shopping I would recommend a front/back or one with a toddler chair. I got one used for about $30.

If you do buy the BOB new, you might try signing up for REI membership as they give a 20% discount on your first purchase. They assemble it for free too.

I just purchased my second double stroller, however not the side by side, as i try to go through isles shopping i can not imagine trying to get a side by side in the isles, something to think about. good luck

We got the sit and stand Lx by babytrend it is great allows for two seats while your older kiddo isnt ready to do the sit and stand piece. but then the back seat comes off to create the sit and stand which our now three year old loves! it is actually really easy to squeeze three into it when my older son has a friend along too! our kiddos are 20 months apart and we found this invaluable!

I have the Bob and LOVE it. It is indestructible and fold breat into the back of my vehicle!
Beware...if you are a mall mom....the side by sides are tough in the mall.I have had a few front to backs...the didn't last and were horrible to stow!

I absolutely LOVE the Phil and Ted's!! It is light weight and easy to fold up and get in and out of the car. With two kids it is amazing! I only have one kiddo right now, but my girlfriend and I babysit each other's kids quite often and we would be no where without the Phil and Ted's! Her little guy is 2 and my little one is 8 months...it is PERFECT for two kids of any age! Also, it is easy to maneuver in and out of stores. I can't rave enough about this stroller....the only downside: the price. However, I have found it worth every penny!! Good luck in your search!

we purchased the a Sit and Stand model. we love it. the older children can climb in and out as they please and they love it. i love it becuase i do not have to stop and lift them in and out all the time. there are two brands the Joey fits two children and the Baby Trends is a bit bigger and fits two (three a little more squished). hope this helps.

I have a sit and stand stroller. The older child can either sit in the back and be buckled in, or stand. The baby can be put in front either in a car seat, or when they get older, in the seat themselves. I now have three boys, 3 weeks, 21 months, and 3 years old. I can actually fit all three on the stroller, but probably not for too much longer. (with the two older boys sitting in the back part.) It has been a very trusty, light stroller (for a double), It folds up super thin, and I have loved it. Only draw back is if you really want to go jogging with the stroller. You should check them out online to see if you might like it. We got ours from Target about 2 years ago.$120.

hi, Im sure you don't need another stroller to consider, but I LOVE my Mountain Buggy Urban Double. It is by far the most amazing stroller I have ever used. I also considered a Phil and Ted's and a BOB Dullie before I bought the MBUD. Good Luck, all three are great strollers, Im sure you will be happy with any one of them

We have the BOB Revolution duallie and have 2 boys who are almost exactly 3 years apart. I LOVE this stroller. We have had it at the mall and push it all over our neighborhood (which has no sidewalks). It pushes so easy even with the uneven weight of the two boys. I didn't have any problems with it at the mall, even in clothing stores. My mom, who is 60, is able to easily push this stroller up hills, around corners, etc. The boys like sitting beside each other, but if they start causing problems, I can just lower the sun shade on one side. Good luck!

I loved the ideal of my kids sitting side by side and was seconds away from purchasing a jogging stroller. I have to say I'm glad I didn't. I went with the one step dbl. stoller (onestepahead.com) and we love it. I've gotten a lot of compliments, especially from parents trying to get those joggin strollers in and out of the restrooms at the mall :) While my youngest was still in his infant seat, they could face each other and interact with each other. Most the time, specially on hikes and at the zoo, my two year old wants to walk anyway, and it's super easy for them to get off and on. The seat seemed a little high at first(for my 2 yr. old), but he soon got the hang of it. In hindsight I wish I had got the one that has two seats and then can break down to the style I have, but it looked longer, tho I don't think it is?? A lot of times now that my youngest wants to crawl and walk everywhere and my two year wants to be treated more like the baby *sigh* I can put the older one in the front seat and let the baby stand in the cargo section and he plays with the straps on the seat, he loves that! Plus I think at this stage if they were sitting side by side they would fight over toys and sippees alot. Who knows! Sorry don't any advice on the joggers, just thought I'd give you my thoughts on what we went with. Good luck!

My son was 23 months when his sister was born. We bought the Phil and Teds a few months before she was born (that was 3 years ago). I remember using the lying perfectly flat baby configuration for both kids depending on who was napping at the time :-)
We still use it constantly (we try to walk almost everywhere). I personally would always take the narrower/lighter option.

Hi T.-
I only have one child, but have several friends with the Phil & Teds that just love it! It is a great idea in that when your older one is done with riding, the bottom carrier is removable and then you have a single stroller again. I had wondered if the child on the bottom would feel claustrophobic, but from what I have witnessed, many times they fight over who rides in the bottom. That being said, if you end up with the double Bob, they are so re-sellable that you could always sell it and get a single when that time comes. Double Bobs are really popular...moms on Craigslist and Boulderrocknmoms (in Boulder) are always looking for them. Congrats on your new baby...you are doubly blessed. Also, the Joovy version of the sit and stand is really cool...good colors and it seems a little less cumbersome than the real Sit N Stand.

I don't know anything about the strollers you are looking into, but i can give advice between side by side and front and back. My sister in law has a side by side stroller and i have a front to back. When we go shopping, my sister in law is at a disadvantage not being able to go in the clothing sections, or anywhere else that there are lots of displays due to the fact that stores don't make aisles long enough for most side by side strollers.

My sister-in-law swears by her BOB!

I love my stroller. It does okay jogging, but I'm not a runner or jogger. I just have to sometimes when I'm late :)
I saw my friend struggle with her side-by-side stroller and swore I wanted an in-line (is that what they're called?) version instead. I'm not rich, so I found the Evenflo Take Me Too stroller. The back seat accepts car seats, and so does the front, but I never figured out how to do it. I heard not to get the deluxe version because it's just not built as well. I didn't like all the ruffles on it, anyway. The back seat also has a step so your older child can get in all by himself--a back saver if there ever was one!
I went and tried out all the strollers I could at Baby Depot (they have them set up and encourage test drives. It's amazing how difficult some are to turn! Mine passed the test drive with flying colors. It's also one of the lightest and least expensive. I liked the color option from WalMart better, and got it shipped to me for $116. Best for the money, I think!

Hi,
My kids are two years and 9 days apart. My experience is to by a stroller that has tandum seating or the sit and stand. The side by sides are impossible to get through door ways and aisles. Another down to them is the toddler and the baby fight. Trust me your toddler will pinch or poke the baby. As the baby gets older the baby does the same thing to your older child. I had the double stroller with tandum seating. If I had to do it all over again I would have purchased a light weight "sit and stand" style. My friends who have had one love them. I do have to caution that once my oldest was done with a stroller that I ended up using a Peg Perrgo light weight smaller stroller, not an umbrella stroller but the next size up for my daughter. With my daughter about to turn 5 we are now a stroller free family.

Little about me. I'm a SAHM with a 6 yr. son and 4 hr. old daughter. We've been married for 12 yrs.

I have a 2 year old son and a 10 day old daughter. I bought the BOB Revolution duallie in anticipation of our second child. We used it for the first time yesterday and it worked great! It was so smooth and easy to push, I highly recommend it. I know they are expensive, but I bought it on the recommendation of a neighbor who got a hand me down double stroller that was not high quality and she regretted not purchasing a nice stroller. I still have my single BOB revolution and will probably use that one for running this Summer since my daughter will not be big enough to run this Summer. Hope this helps.

K.

We just bought another double, we had the tandom style and HATED it. The sit and stand is also very heavy. We bought the inglesina side by side and LOVE it. I would highly recommend!! Its easy to push, lightweight and I can steer with one hand. I can also open it up and close it with my 6 month old in one hand. I ordered it online from albeebaby.com and paid no sales tax and free shipping.

I'm not familiar with the two you mentioned, but we have had two double strollers. We both hated how hard the front and back was to steer. It was impossible to hold a door and get through without a big production and I was constantly running into things. We switched to the Combi Twin Sport and love it. It's a side by side and when folded takes up about a wheel's worth more space than an umbrella stroller. I can take it anywhere, including any store or bathroom except for older buildings that are not up to code (doors skinnier than normal.) We've even used it with no problem in revolving doors. I would not trade it for the world! I have a friend who likes the Jeep side by side for all the same reasons, but she has a little more difficult time with getting through doors. The Combi definitely is skinnier, also can easily be pushed with one hand. Whatever you decide, I would ask to take it for a "test drive" in the store to see if you like it or not. Even if you end up buying used or somewhere else, it's helpful to know you like it first.

I havn't personally used either of these but from decription and look i'd go with the phil and ted. I used to nanny and used a side by side are they were too wide to fit many places. also the kids were able to bother each other by stealing food, poking, hitting, etc.

I highly recommend the Chariot Couger. My two oldest children are only 17 1/2 mo. apart and with all the attachment options for the Chariot, I couldn't have survived with out it. The best part it, for being a double stroller, it is about as wide as a wheelchair, so almost every door in a mall, store or airport are accessable with it. Besides the fact that it is built for outdoor use, from walking to jogging, skiing, etc. They also have components for your newborn (a sling and head support, etc). I have used it as my mile after mile outdoor walker, my mall walker, my downtown in and out of stores walker, to pull the kids in when bike riding, and even have carried it to Hawaii and used it in the airport as well as on the beach. Spendy, but worth every single penny! Start with the strolling wheels attachment and then go from there.

I have 2 kids that are 14 1/2 months apart and the BOB duallie stroller is a must! Best purchase we ever made. Even though it's side by side, it still fits through standard size doores without problem. In addition, you can buy an infant "bucket" seat adapter for one side while your toddler sits on the other side. It's about $500 but worth every penny. It's also not as heavy as it looks. I load it in and out my SUV with no problems by myself.

I have a Phil and Ted's "double" stroller. We only use it for around the neighborhood. But the girls love it! I have a 2 year old and a 3 month old.

I also have a MacClaren double stroller, side by side, that I keep in my trunk for the mall, zoo, etc. They love that one even more because they are sitting next to each other. It's not too wide and I haven't had too much trouble getting through doorways and whatnot. I recommend either one.

Just as a thought, and I am not sure of your situation, but it doesn't have to be a huge purchase. I have a one in front of the other double stroller and found it in wonderful condition at a garage sale for $10.