Question: 40lb. weight limit vs. 70lb.+

Obviously, you can get way more use out of a 70lbs+ weight limit vs. 40lbs, but on average how old is your typical 40lb. child?

Most standard strollers I see go to 40lbs and most joggers I see go from 70 - 100 lbs, why?

What is the avg. age you stopped using a stroller for your little ones?

Who would of thought finding a stroller would have been as stressful as finding a car seat
Michelle

40 pounds is about age 4-5 (2 for a huge kid, 6 for a really petite kid)...usually long enough for stroller use . It's not the same situation as carseat limits, it's more like the stroller just gets harder to handle and steer above the listed weight (it won't collapse as soon as a heavier kid sits in it or anything)...Joggers are way more substantially built and meant to push a kid a little longer than the average stroller (so you can push a kindergartener on a jog without going at their slow pace if they are walking or can't ride a bike yet...).
My 50 pound 7 yo still steals a ride in her baby sisters strollers from time to time...she's a breeze to push in the mountain buggy or Volo, but it's tough to push her in the Combi (despite the 45 pound weight limit!)

I tend to use strollers long after other people stop - I'm NOT eager to have my child walk in stores and parking lots and I honestly don't understand why other people are. lol So having the higher weight limit makes my life much easier.

Yeah, I agree...I almost said something about getting full featured stroller now and don't worry about the weight limit, but go with a nice sturdy 55lb weight limit maclaren later that makes a nice portable straitjacket/beachchair for a wandering toddler at the mall or disneyland

Thanks Julie & Rebekah,
One more question, is the Maclaren the only "standard" type stroller that goes up to 55lbs?

Peg Peregos also have a really high limit, like the P3 essentially has no weight limit (since it's designed to carry a baby and a toddler on the footboard). Chiccos seem to have like a 33 or 37 pound limit... Combis are like 45 (but get hard to push at that weight, I think).

I agree with Julie's assessment of why joggers have a higher weight limit.

My kids continue to occasionally hitch a ride until they are too long to do so. My 9 year old would ride if his legs weren't so long or if my strollers were bigger.

When I was pregnant with Nadia, Roman broke his leg, and I really had to work to find a double stroller for him to ride in. He was 5 years and ~40 lb, and Eva was 3 years and would definitely want to ride whenever Roman was riding. Hardly any "regular" doubles had weight limits above 40 lb. I ended up special ordering a Kidco SBS double, which I eventually traded in for an Inglesina Twin Swift, which I liked better.

Now, I have a 4 year old who is a "runner". Otherwise, she would rarely need the stroller. I like having the option for my older kid to ride standing on the back. My Pliko has the built-in foot bar to stand on, and I have a Kiddy Board for my Maclaren single.

Hey Julie, Rebekah & Ulrike,
Okay so here is what I am going to do. Get my jogger soon & then save save save for my "mall stroller". And Julie I am going to check out that groups link you gave me.

Thanks for all your input .

By the way, have you guys seen the Maclaren 4 Seasons.
http://www.maclarenbaby.com/us/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=339&Itemid=88889391
I am in LOVE

Michelle

the weight limit is more about how easy(or hard) it will be to push a child that large. I was able to use our 35lbs cheapo umbrella until DS was 38lbs and then it started getting too hard to push, plus he was too tall for it- I still use it in emergency stroller situations if I happen to leave his mac somewhere else. I got a maclaren vogue(now the techno classic) and at 40lbs I can push him in it with only 1 hand, around sharp corners, and it is so smooth! Its definitely built to hold more and he will be in it until he is no longer comfortable or I am no longer able to manuever it(Im thinking the comfort will come first, hes a tall kid), I love the option of a stroller and dont think they are ever really to old to hitch a ride .

What a cute line! I think you would be very pleased with one.

skaterbabscpst said:

I tend to use strollers long after other people stop - I'm NOT eager to have my child walk in stores and parking lots and I honestly don't understand why other people are. lol

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why? the way we see it, the earlier the kids walk, the better for them. i think it promotes exercise and a healthy way of life. i see too many older kids who are pasty and unfit being carted around way too long in strollers. what's unsafe about being able to walk in a store? and a parking lot, i can kind of see where you're coming from (at least i think i know where you're coming from), but there comes a point where we have to draw a line between safety and healthy physical development. we walk everywhere. DD1 is quite the little hiker. we spend hours walking between stores, parks and playgrounds. we leave the car at home whenever we can. we have to cross urban streets all day long. we only use the double stroller for when DD1 gets tired of walking or wants a nap. we've taught our DD1 that she is to *never* walk in a parking lot or a street without holding an adult's hand. and she knows. i don't see that a stroller is a safety device in the same sense as a carseat, and i don't see that my child is any less safe holding my hand in a parking lot or crossing the street than she is being pushed in a stroller. in some cases i might even think that a stroller is a safety hazard, in fact.

it would depend greatly on where you live and what kind of parent you are to start, also what kind of activity you are doing. I will continue to allow DS to use a stroller as long as he can fit... that being said we use the jogging stroller weekly, but use the maclaren maybe ONCE A MONTH- we use the buggy at the grocery store every time.
The thing about walking in a store is that freak incidents do happen, for even the most watchful parent or well behaived child. So we use a harness when he is not in a stroller/cart for peace of mind and extra security. I still make him hold my hand, even though he has the harness on. It is good practice now, so when he outgrows the harness... I just dont trust him or other people enough to rely on hand holding alone at this age... you can easily lose grip when a child unexpectedly jerks their hand from yours and makes a mad dash...
I use the jogging stroller for our walks because it is ME time, and a rest time for him. He doesnt nap, so I try to walk when he is tired and that way he can have a break and I can get MY exercise.
I know lots of mothers who use their strollers in this manner.

As for our maclaren, when looking for a higher weight limit stroller I detailed why it MUST be lightweight and a small umbrella fold that could be used like a cane. We use the Mac when we go to the mall, museum, or imagination station. Obviously he wouldnt want to sit down the whole time in those places, so strolling is obviously NOT the reason we use the stroller. We only have the stroller on hand for when he tires or we want to make a quick dash to the bathroom or eatery, otherwise the stroller is folded up and being pushed like a cane. Now I know I am unique in this situation, others would say "why bother", but I bother because when we go to those places it is an all day event and I want DS to always have an available- and comfortable- seat when he needs to rest. I could care less about if it is a hassle for me(which it isnt, no more than occupying one hand with a drink or bag), it means that he can have a more eventful day because we dont have to leave when he gets tired. He can sit and rest while we stroll or just sit together(me on the hard bench :/, him in his comfy stroller lol!)

True the typical parent is not doing this, just like the typical parent isnt using a carseat properly... but I dont think it is the strollers fault that the child isnt getting enough exercise or is eating incorrectly(usually the cause of the pastiness )

We also live in the middle of nowhere, the only place in walking range(30 minutes walking time) is a gas station, how fun would that be?

skaterbabscpst said:

I tend to use strollers long after other people stop - I'm NOT eager to have my child walk in stores and parking lots and I honestly don't understand why other people are.

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OK, sorry, but I have to ask why? Is it out of convenience?
I couldn't keep Connor in a stroller if I wanted to. But you know what, that is OK. He is very good and will hold my hand, no problems. You can't keep them strapped down forever. And personally I thinks the child's safety is more about the parent than the child. You gatta keep up with and watch out for your kiddo no matter what age they are whether they are 2 or 12 or 22.

LuvBug03 said:

We also live in the middle of nowhere, the only place in walking range(30 minutes walking time) is a gas station, how fun would that be?

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all the more reason for walking in the stores as opposed to strollering. he's already been in the carseat when you go out shopping, so once you arrive at the mall or shopping center, your child transfers straight from a carseat to a stroller?

sure, freak accidents can occur in the store, but they can also happen anywhere (home, playground, school). IMHO those pose such a slight risk to my DD's safety that it doesn't outweigh the benefit of seeing her grow up walking rather than sitting all the time. even the inconvenience to me of having to slow down (even backtrack, as toddlers do) and take probably twice as long to get a task done by having her walk rather than just sit and be pushed also does not outweigh the benefit of what i see as a perfectly excellent form of physical activity that also makes a toddler feel empowered. just my :twocents:

i'm not saying that all parents should feel this way; if extended strollering (lol, ESing... a new abbreviation! ) works for you and your child, then that's fine. i'm mainly responding to skaterbab's comment about not understanding why other parents are eager to have their children walk in stores/parking lots.

southpawboston said:

what's unsafe about being able to walk in a store?

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Connor's Mom said:

OK, sorry, but I have to ask why? Is it out of convenience?
I couldn't keep Connor in a stroller if I wanted to. But you know what, that is OK. He is very good and will hold my hand, no problems. You can't keep them strapped down forever. And personally I thinks the child's safety is more about the parent than the child. You gatta keep up with and watch out for your kiddo no matter what age they are whether they are 2 or 12 or 22.

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Apparently neither of you have had a runner - or three. I have two hands and three kids. All three are "wanderers". At a year old, in the time i took me to walk around the counter at the IL's shop, DS #1 could be 70 feet away in a crowded flea market. In (literally!) the time it took me to walk around the climbing tree at the mall play area, DD was halfway down the mall to the candy store at two. Some kids are better than others at obeying, and it has nothing to do with how you parent. It's the child's innate temperment.

The kids who most need to remain in a stroller for their parent's sanity are not the ones you need to worry about getting enough exercise either. Ask Julie - she's seen my DD in action.

skaterbabscpst said:

Apparently neither of you have had a runner - or three. I have two hands and three kids.

The kids who most need to remain in a stroller for their parent's sanity are not the ones you need to worry about getting enough exercise either. Ask Julie - she's seen my DD in action.

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skater, i can totally understand you're reason for extended strollering, but you mentioned not understanding why more parents didn't feel the same way as you... obviously not all parents have children who are wanderers/runners as yours are, so we don't have to deal with walking/strollering the same way that you do.

There are appropriate places for children to get exercise - the mall or the grocery store or the library is not an appropriate place.

The fact is, a stroller keeps a child restrained near the parent, and gives the child a place to rest when tired, gives the parent a place to stash things the child may need without straining the parent's back carrying them - or carrying a tired child. A stroller is not a bad thing, nor is it a bad thing to have an older child in one. Again, a normal child will get enough exercise regardless of stroller use. :twocents:

southpawboston said:

all the more reason for walking in the stores as opposed to strolling. he's already been in the carseat when you go out shopping, so once you arrive at the mall or shopping center, your child transfers straight from a carseat to a stroller?

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as I said above, when we go to the mall we bring the stroller for rest, and that he walks... the only reason we go to the mall is to 'hang out'- go to the play station there and enjoy just walking around and window shopping(there isnt a single store at the mall that I actually buy anything from, so we arent shopping. We use to get our hair cut there but now shes moved so all the mall has to offer is the play station and the ability to walk around in a nice atmosphere- being a small town and that we go when everyone is at work/school it is always very pleasant).
Im not a shopper, I only buy out of necessity- not a typical woman in your area, I would bet. So we go to the grocery store 1-2 times a month and that is the only place he has to sit in the cart the whole time(unless we get something to eat at the cafe and then he gets out, orders his food, fixes his drink, takes it to the table, eats, cleans up after himself- all the while walking around).
If we are going shopping for him then we always walk to and around the store, since when we go shopping for him it is an adventure that he gets to pick out his item(s), pay for them himself, and carry them to the car.
I try to do the boring shopping when he is at school or in the bed(yup youll see me down at the store at 11pm sometimes lol!) Im a single mom and I try to spend as much quality time as I can with my son. When we do go shopping and he does have to sit, I am always interacting with him, and letting him get things off the shelf and put them in the buggy. Hes too hyperactive to ignore, hes not a quiet child
We do so much that is active on a daily basis that I dont feel bad about needing him to sit this short amount of time a month.

And Im way overproctective. I know freak accidents can happen anywhere, anytime... but Id like to do what I can to possibly prevent some.

I know you must be ranting about what you see in your area, but not everyone who uses a stroller for a walking able child is letting them 'sit around all the time'. As I have obviously proved I have a walking able child, and a stroller, and he 'sits on his butt and gets pushed' way less than he is active.

ITA about the runner thing! obviously Im a little overprotective(ok a lot) and overcautious(duh) and yet my DS still managed to jerk his hand from mine and take off in the grocery store(hince why it is a rule that he sits while in the grocery store). In the milisecond it took me to push past an old lady and turn the corver after him, DS was no where to be found... I went insane! In the seconds it took to find him halfway across the store in the dairy aisle, it felt like the world had ended. I thought I had trained him well enough, ever since he started walking it was always hold hands whenever we are walking, but I dont know why he got this wild hair and just dashed off. Ever since I have been even more careful(paranoid) at stores, and even the way I hold his hand is different. I use to hold his hand like I did an adults, just hand in hand... now I hold his hand like you would clasp an adults- hand in hand- but I throw my pinky around his wrist so I end up handcuffing him ... hard to describe, but it works better. He didnt like it at first, but now he is use to it.

Sometimes I see these parents at stores with toddlers/young kids and they are just ignoring them all together but the kids stay close on their heals... and I wonder to myself how on earth they got them to do that? If I ignored DS he would just disappear, hes always been very independant... but he follows the rules well(for a 3yo that is). Guess it really is the personality of the child sometimes.(I was a runner, but my sis followed mom like a dog... same exact parenting- close in age, but I was the wild child)

chloespurple said:

By the way, have you guys seen the Maclaren 4 Seasons.
http://www.maclarenbaby.com/us/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=339&Itemid=88889391
I am in LOVE

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The Maclaren 4 Seasons is $500. at strollers.com (available in Aug.), wow I knew it would be expensive, but I was hoping not that much. I am a SAHM now, so money is not like it used to be I am still going to look at the Peg Peregos and the Maclaren (just not the 4 seasons ).

But first things first--jogger

well yeah I guess that is to be expected for such a cute stroller lol!

what kind of jogger are you interested in?