I used the rather expensive Graco SomethingorOther about three times before I switched to an umbrella stroller.
Good luck to you and fetalnym!
Congratulations!
In answer to your question, we have three strollers:
A Graco travel system
A running stroller (Some Safety First model)
A fold-up umbrella stroller (I think it’s a Combi Soho)
The travel system was helpful, especially when our son was tiny because, as noted above, it was really handy to be able to just snap it in and out of the car and the stroller, especially since he loved to be in motion while he slept. It’s also the best stroller for shopping since it has a huge basket in the bottom that you can stuff all your bags into.
The running stroller is actually the one I’ve used the most. I’ve been trying to lose weight, plus it carries more than the fold-up umbrella stroller, so you can stuff all the things in that you’d normally put in a diaper bag.
The umbrella stroller was helpful in large cities, though I found a sling or front carrier to be the best since my son has always loved to be carried close to me. Plus, I like having him closer to me in areas where there are a lot of people - he can see better and, especially since he’s older and more apt to get restless, I have a little more control and can pick him up and put him down easily so he can walk if he wants to. The only downside of carrying a lot is that he can have a snack easily in a stroller if he’s hungry, but I have to walk around with a handful of food and a cup if I’m carrying him and he gets hungry.
I wanted to echo a few things. The baby bathtub proved to be nice, and cute, but we ended up just washing her in the kitchen sink, and no, we didn’t sterilize and bleach the sink every time. Somehow…life went on. 
We got a collapsable/inflatable baby tub that fit in our closet because we have a tiny condo. By the time she was four months old, I took her in the grown up tub with me and daddy would come get her when she was washed up.
ALSO, we don’t have a fullsize highchair. The fisherprice highchair seat thingee that I can’t find a link for that straps onto a regular kitchen chair has been absolutely INDISPENSABLE.
What fatgail just said - we used the baby tub for all of two months when it became far easier to use the sink. We also never bleached it (people do that??) - we’d just give it a quick once-over with soap and water. Also, we started with a full-size high chair and moved to a Space Saver high chair (I can’t remember why) and I wondered why the heck I ever bought that big clunky high chair in the first place. Now it’s a handy place to store a bag of groceries if I’m too tired to put the dried goods away, but it’ll finally be going to storage (or ebay) in a few days.
Plus, we almost never used our pack and play. I think we used it once when our son was eight weeks old and we had to travel to Chicago (the bassinet feature was excellent; even better was the diaper-changing platform), but we probably should have just used the bouncinette since that’s what he slept in for the first four months anyway. And we used it again at my mom’s house when he was seven months old, then once more when I was sick and he was 12 months old. He often sleeps in our bed, but at the time I was worried I’d barf on him. He slept in it all of a few hours and was back in bed with me.
Consequently, he used his crib for only about eight months, too. He’s a squirmy guy - awake or asleep - and kept banging into the sides after about 10 months, so at 13 months, we finally caved and put a double-bed mattress on the floor and he’s alternated between that and our bed (when we have guests over) ever since. But your mileage will inevitably vary.
I live in a McMansion in Stepford and drive an SUV, so yes. I don’t go to the mall unless I have to though. Mostly I’m just a suburban mom…minus the soccer.
My biggest thing is that I travel a lot (in the last year I’ve been on four different continents and all over the US) so need something that travels relatively easily. What I really need is something you can attach an infant seat to, like a travel system, only not of Godzilla proportions.
Does anyone have any experience with the Max Pro Traveler or the Britax Vigour?
Let me tell you something. My mother in law said “of course you wash your breast with soap and water before each feeding right?”
And then my husband offered to do it.
I mean…I think people go overboard on the ‘cleanliness around the baby’. Yes, I read a message board where they talked about the proper way to sterilize everything surrounding the kitchen sink before using it as a tub. Hell, I think Charlotte found a noodle in there once.
Oh, no worries, I completely agree with you. With my first kid, the bouncy seat was the sole reason I managed to shower every day. I’ll be getting one, if not both.
Barbarian That Valco Runabout looks really neat. I wish it had the option to attach an infant carrier/carseat thingy.
That is right up there with some of the stupidest things I have ever heard. And I was once asked if rice pudding was pudding with rice.
Thank you. I’m well, I guess…sick of being pregnant and he’s only half-cooked. Being pregnant the second time is not nearly as fun as the first time. I seem to have conveniently forgotten about all the suckier aspects of it too. Evolutionary advantage?
Thanks for the book recommendation, I’ll definitely check it out.
We did that exact same thing. When she stopped falling off, we shoved the box springs under it. By the time we were sure she wasn’t falling off of that, the bed set we’d ordered was delivered. The crib was a complete waste of money. I don’t know what to do with this kid.
Thanks! “Holy crap!” was my reaction too. 
It does . It’s sold seperatly though. Actually, any stroller that is that expensive has accessories like that, but they are all sold seperatly.
I work at a baby store and I would recommend the Bob Revolution . It is truly the most versitile stroller out there. You can buy a carseat adapter bar that will later turn into a tray for snacks and whatnot. The best part is that if you are feeling ambitious you can lock the front wheel and actually jog with it. Most of the Jogger type strollers with a swiveling front wheel are not supposed to be used for jogging, even if the front wheel locks. When you don’t feel like jogging, it turns on a dime and rolls very smoothly. It also folds down surprisingly small for a AT stroller. The only thing it doesn’t have going for it is that it is a little heavy, but if you were looking at the Bugaboo and Britax Vigour, I don’t think the weight of the Bob is an issue.
On the Bugaboo. It is a nice stroller, dont get me wrong, but I am not convinced that it is worth 900.00 dollars. The most inconvenient part is that you have to take it apart when you fold it, which I could see sucking if it is raining. However, it does have the ability to fold into a rickshaw type thing that can be pulled across sand or snow. If you really want a stroller that style I recommend the Uppa Baby Vista . It is very similar to the Bugaboo, but you can keep the seat on when you fold it. It will still take a carseat and it is also a lot cheaper.
As for the Stokke Xplory. That stroller is horribly complicated and diffucult to use. Definatly not worth $1100 dollars, even if it can do stairs.
We have a Graco Snugride Travel System and although it weighs a ton and takes a great deal of a small car’s trunk space, it has so many features it is great to have around. It is like a cruise ship or a rolling nursery. It comes with the highly rated carseat that snaps into the top, it can be used as a bassinet or changing space without the carseat, it has cupholders and a place for your wallet and keys, it has enough storage underneath to carry stuff for the baby and three other people, when you close the stroller and the carseat bonnets at the same time it makes a cozy little shelter. It really is a home away from home for your baby. We live in a small town and we mainly use the stroller for trips to the mall during off hours, to church, and the bookstore. All places that are easy to unload and have plenty of space.
We have a multi-level house and we have our Graco pack and play set up downstairs permanently. We got the model with the changing table and side storage bins and since we are downstairs most of the day, we use it constantly.
The Baby Einstein Musical Motion Baby Jumper Gym thing is awesome. It’s frame is made of heavy steel and it has rings all over the place so that you can attach and rotate different toys. My 5 month old loves this thing, allowing me to eat, wash bottles, etc.
Yup, you can get a carseat attachment. And a toddler seat too, if you want to push a second child…
But I think you’d be better off with a universal frame/carseat stroller based on your lifestyle.
The Baby Bargains book was not very helpful to me, and I was all convinced it was going to save my life because, like you, it had been years since my last baby and here I was doing it all over again.
My story is that I went pretty damn minimalist – and this is someone whose husband is the King of All Gadget Freaks. I did have to endure some mindless purchases (hey, it was his first) but most of the stuff we bought worked out well:
No crib. Got a Co-Sleeper, which was great for the first several weeks, then baby came into bed with us, where he stayed. It converts to a Pack 'n Play, which is where he slept for naps. No additional equipment necessary.
We got the Chicco umbrella for a gift and it was annoying, but hey it was free. We bought a Right Start jogging stroller, and I’m still using it (he’s 3). But, my stroller needs are recreational; I only use it for walks. I never haul a kid to the maul and hang out for hours, like I see those mothers with the ginormous stroller things where the kid is perched in there like the king of the world. For wee little infants, I used the sling.
Exersaucer. I had one for my older children, loved it, and got one for the new sprout. They’re excellent for stowing him while you’re making dinner. They can spin around and look in all directions, have a tray area for food and toys, and have some toys built-in (though they mostly just got chewed).
After four children, I’ve come to the conclusion that most baby stuff is unnecessary. Yes our lives are different and more complex than those of our forebears, but heck somehow they made it in more difficult circumstances without 4 million containers and other products to stow babies in.
Congratuations! Being a mom of advanced maternal age is a blessing in disguise!
– Ellen, who was pregnant, 40 (and semi-fabulous)
Something to consider for later traveling: most kids outgrow the carseat portion of the travel systems by a year, and you’ll face the same issues once the baby is in a forward facing carseat. Behold the Traveling Toddler Carseat Strap It’s $15, and it straps any forward-facing carseat onto a rolling suitcase or carryon. It was fantastic for taking our little one through O’Hare at Thanksgiving. It made her own carseat into a stroller, but without the frame that I’d have to check (meaning no stroller from check-in to gate) and because it used the bag I carried on anyway, I had one thing to push (child in carseat and bag), not three (stroller and carry on bag and carseat.) I had four flight attendants in the airport stop where they were going and walk with me for 50 feet to get the name of the thing, 'cause they thought it was so cool!
It was a little annoying at security, 'cause I had to undo everything for the scanners, but it was only a problem the first time - after that I had the hang of it and I moved faster than the line.
Another thing to check: contact the airlines you travel most often for their regulations on carseats. I think the Britax is too large for most airplane seats. You don’t want to get a carseat you can’t use when you travel.
Which Britax, WhyNot? We’re flying at Easter, and Miss Cricket will need her car seat with her…she’s got the Marathon.
The only Britax carseat that isn’t airline certified is the Regent. The Marathon is fine.
Again, call the airline. There is no such thing (or wasn’t at Thanksgiving) as a carseat that is allowed on ALL airplanes. “Certified” means that it’s safe, more or less, but it doesn’t tell you if it will FIT, or if it’s allowed by the airline. I just flew United, but I don’t remember which plane, and our 16 inch (?) carseat just squeaked into the seat.
We even ran into some trouble with individual airline personnel - a carseat okay’ed at the gate was refused by the onflight crew, until I put up a polite stink (on the plane - very fine line to tread there!) and they spoke with the gate people and came to an agreement. There’s a lot of individual discretion allowed, but checking with the *airline *is more useful than checking the tag on the carseat - especially since the certification regulations changed very recently - lots of seats with bear tags saying they’re approved for airline use no longer meet the requirements for approval.
Good to know - thank you.
I will call them. She needs to have one, as she’s just 16 months, and she has to have her own seat. Our seat is certified, but it’s a Canadian certification…which should be okay according to the airlines website…but you never know…(US Airways)