Stroller Envy

I have a confession to make, I am guilty of stroller envy. Its an insidious disease that started quite innocently during my first pregnancy. A total novice to the baby world, I went straight to the big box stores to do some comparison shopping. Since I was having a girl I was looking for something feminine. That was a big disappointment because at that time the majority of the strollers came in shades of navy, black, or gray. There were a few cute strollers but they looked pretty flimsy. I eventually settled on two travel systems (one for us, one for the grandparents)that met my requirements for ease of use and affordability. I was being practical because the baby needed so many things, but I couldn't help feeling wistful when I saw those chic, pricey models in my pregnancy magazines. I never saw those brands at the big box stores, so I didn't have a chance to try them out.

Now I know that even if I had tested them I couldn't have truly appreciated their upgrades until after having the baby. Once the baby was born I found myself wishing for different features on my stroller. Like wouldn't it be nice if the stroller could fully recline to allow my princess to stretch out more comfortably? Voila! A trip to a mall and there's someone with a stroller that fully reclines. I loved those old fashioned prams which were way out of my price range, and thought someone should invent a stroller that lets the baby face you. Bam! See all the mommies chatting face-to-face with their babies at the park. Everywhere I looked there were fascinating options; strollers that turned on a dime, folded more easily, weighed less, came with height adjustments, or useful attachments. I started taking mental notes of the brands, the colors, their features. I was brazen in asking the mommies with the BETTER strollers about how much they paid, where did they get their wheels, could I take a test spin? A whole new world opened up to me. I learned that there were different categories of strollers including pramettes, laybacks, joggers, tandems etc.. Visions of Bugaboos, Peg Peregos, Inglesinas, Quinnys and others danced in my head. The research was exhausting and ultimately futile. Seriously, I had two perfectly okay strollers. Plus, no one in my family could understand the desire for a stroller with such an exorbitant price tag. If I knew then what I know now, I would have realized that the luxury stroller was actually a great investment when you take into account that each of your children will use it for at least two years. And, they do great at resale.

I share this story to encourage other first time moms to take the plunge and go for the stroller you really want. The expensive nursery furniture you are buying will rarely be seen by anyone other than family and your child will be out of the crib by two. But the stroller, oh the stroller....it goes everywhere with you. It is how you present your baby to the public. You really want to be happy with your stroller. Alas, my story has a happy ending. Recently I acquired a second-hand Bumbleride Flyer in a gorgeous salmon-like color. It lays back, has reversible handles, and garners so many compliments! Of course I still check out other strollers. Like just this summer we went to a theme park and I couldn't help noticing several brands that I'd never seen before. It was a wonderful turnaround from my early mommy days, because this time I walked away thinking, "My stroller is better, my stroller is BETTER!"