my-speck

i'm pregnant and it's going to be a rollercoaster

Follow-up: out and about with the new mountain buggy freerider scooter / pram combo August 5, 2011

Filed under: activities for kids,exercise,Parenting,Raising a Child,walking — rakster @ 11:56 am
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Hello,

Yes, playing with the scooter (mountain buggy freerider) and mountain buggy (mountain buggy urban jungle) combo has been fun so far. A few people have written asking how I found it overall, so a quick review:

freerider

the freerider – currently in use at our house to the tune of a lot of ‘bloody hell’ from the toddler learning to use it: oops

  • I love that the older one can attach and see out as we walk along – works really well with the baby cot/cocoon attached, though my little one is a bit short so when the normal stroller seat is attached he can only see out the sides at the moment, though that will change as he gets taller.
  • I found the scooter hard to attach/detach from the pram in the beginning. Now I’ve worked out a method that works, but it requires a little bit of getting down on the ground and pulling/pushing the clips.
  • Yes, the scooter does get in the way of walking a little. But only a little: you can attach it anywhere along the base of the pram, so I’ve got it to one side.  Which means I just push on one side of the pram and it works ok – not as comfortable to push as without it, but not bad.
  • Steering/pushing the pram with the scooter and child attached is a bit harder / different than normal, you need two hands rather than the one I often use when there is no-one riding an attached scooter.  It feels a bit like driving a car with a trailer and trying to turn corners.  Just a bit heavier and more cumbersome.
  • The scooter works well when it isn’t attached to the pram, however the handle doesn’t turn to steer: you have to lean into it the same as a skateboard.  So it’s a bit harder for Oscar to steer than other scooters he has tried.
  • Oscar loves being on the scooter and being able to see the baby in the pram.

Overall:

It’s a fun toy / scooter, I think it will get better and more convenient the older O gets (he is only just two, so it is still a bit hard for him to use)…
It feels really securely attached to the pram i.e. safe. I like that!
It is super convenient to be able to detach it for ‘freeriding’, attach it when a toddler is standing on it, and flip it up out of the way when it’s not in-use. Which is why we bought it: ie. it works as it says it does!

We’ve decided to buy a double pram anyway as we do go on a lot of long walks etc and when little legs get tired and my back gets sore after baby-wearing for a few hours it will be nice to have a break and be able to use a pram for both of them together.

yay.

-r

 

Buying Baby Stuff… Prams, Strollers and slings. March 9, 2011

Filed under: activities for kids,baby stuff,family,Parenting,pregnancy — rakster @ 10:00 pm
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Buying baby stuff: particularly prams, strollers, slings and other baby-carrying devices.  Provokes a reaction/comment/opinion in most parents of young children.  Weird but true: those devices that become really important.   They let you move.  And settle.  And all other sorts of important things.

I like to research things before I buy them.  Usually over-research.  Take ages to make a decision.   Which is infuriating even to me sometimes.  We still use the stereo I bought when I was 18.   The CD player/stacker on it broke about 6 years ago.  And we didn’t get it fixed because we meant to buy a new one.  But never got around to it.  Because each time we tried to do research on what we thought we wanted, it all got too complicated too quickly.  And the stereo could take an input still – so we could play our mini-disc players.   Then we just reverted to radio for a long while.  Or listening through a computer.  Now I plug my iBaby in.  And it still works fine.  But we would like a new stereo one day.

That is all an aside though.  We use a beautiful, much-loved Mountain Buggy pram for you (more…)

 

More kicking… Its going to be relentless for the next four months, isn't it? March 4, 2009

Filed under: exercise,pregnancy — rakster @ 4:28 pm
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Dear Speck, Nothing new to report. I think I am going to be thoroughly ready for you to come out when the time comes – now it’s just you getting bigger and me being perpetually hungry day after day. Some days you kick a bit more than others, but that is the main difference. Yesterday was a big all-out kicking day. I took that as a sign that perhaps I wasn’t tiring you out enough so on the way home I walked down to Milson’s Point, caught the ferry to Balmain East and then trekked my way home through Balmain for some exercise.

View from Milson's Point across the Harbour

Luna Park at Milson's Point

Great walk, it’s nice to be out and about on the harbour. Pictures to show you. I think it worked – you were a little calmer last night than you had been all day. Your efforts yesterday were more disconcerting than normal because of your position: you seem to have spun around so you were kicking up towards my lungs in an upward direction rather than the down towards the bladder which I’m more used to. Haven’t written for a few days but all is pretty quiet on your front, and I’m back down in Sydney for the week after the weekend in Brisbane. Your Dad, I, your Aunt & T put your pram together on the weekend. It was a communal effort (see pictures). Wanted to check that the carrycot we bought actually fit the pram. It did, good. Your dad has since ordered the spare part we needed to make it tip-top, so after a quick wash I need to do, it will be set for you. Its a little strange to think about pushing you around in it. You now have a pram, a carrycot, a few little toys, a muslin wrap to drape over the pram (thanks T & El)… Your dad and I had a practice getting the pram from the front of the house to the street too. It was something a friend suggested we try to make sure it would all work. And good thing we tried, ’cause it was impossible. The width of the middle step is just too short to use to leverage the pram up to the next step, and too long to allow you to skip it and just leverage straight up. Which in any case would make it a steep angle for you lying in it… I tried for a few minutes to get it up by myself, until your dad exclaimed, “You’re faking it. You’re being silly!” to me, and snatching the pram away to try for himself. After manoeuvring the pram in an 18 point turn through one of the Australian grass bushes by the front gate, and numerous bumps, he managed to get it up to the street. “See, it can be done!”… He took a quick look back and then laughed, admitting with me that if you had been in the pram at the time you would have lost an eye in the bush and then most likely fallen out one side as the pram tipped wickedly from side to side as he lumped it up the last step. So. That’s a no-go for our stairs the way they are now. We’ll have to think of an alternative – current best option – build a boardwalk-style ramp from the street to the front deck. Its been added to your Dad’s list of projects.

Pram Assembly - Mark 1

Pram Assembly - Mark 2

Apart from poking your eye out, your dad would have lost you again while in the pram. He came back into the yard through the gate, again, “It can come in ok… mmmm. Maybe a bit bumpy” (yeah, pity about the big bumps and the screaming baby had you been in it). And then deposited the pram on the front deck and stepped back to check the mailbox or something. At which point the pram started rolling backwards until I exclaimed and he managed to catch it just in time before it toppled right off. We both peed ourselves laughing as he put the brake on the pram. “Baby down. Bah baaaaah” (think game-show ‘you’re wrong’ buzzer noise). We decided perhaps we needed to put a doll in the pram and push it around for a few days to make sure we didn’t kill the doll, and practised for you. Maybe we will be the worst parents. I guess you’ll just have to wait and see. There is no going back at this point. Anyway, hope you’re all well in there. Back to Brisbane tonight. Look forward to the plane. love mum

 

exercising … and thinking about buying baby stuff (though just a little bit – I’m not obsessed yet – really, truly) January 7, 2009

Filed under: baby stuff,exercise,pregnancy — rakster @ 12:33 pm
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Good morning Speck,

How are you today? Hopefully not too shaken up from the frisbee work-out last night?? I’m a little bit tender in some slightly unusual places, but otherwise feeling pretty good.  Did I mention that I bought a heart-rate monitor so that I can monitor how I’m going with the exercise and not exceed the doctor’s recommendations??  Well, I did.  And I’ve used it a bit on my bike (which is now as you know set-up with the stationary bike trainer in the lounge room – it rocks), where at first I found it impossible to stay in the target range of around 140 bpm but have since worked out you can only just peddle a little with low resistance (so I’m aiming for longer at less intensity).   But was hard to use at frisbee because really I€™m reacting to what is happening on the field, and its not necessarily easy to focus on what my heart rate is doing.

Last night:  total workout time 1 hour 45 minutes with an average heart rate of 162.  I think that is a little high, I saw the monitor peak at about 184 a few times, but I really don’t know how you can exercise without getting your heart rate up.  And my resting heart rate hovers around 92 upwards to 100 anyway.  I figure that as long as I feel ok myself, and don’t push it too hard, you should be all ok.  If you’re not getting enough blood or whatever, then I’m sure I’ll be feeling pretty crappy too.  And I felt fine.   So.  Hope you enjoyed it.  My back is surprisingly fine this morning.  Last time I went it was a bit achey the next day.  I am famished today though.  I have just eaten a huge serve of spanakopita for breakfast but still need something else.  Forgot to chuck more fruit in my bag for work this morning.  I brought a bunch with me yesterday but seem to have eaten it all already.

What else is happening?  Well, since I went last to visit B & M at Bellingen/Repton, I’ve been doing some more investigation on the type and make of pram I think we’ll be after.  Not that I’m obsessed with buying baby stuff – in fact I would almost say the opposite – no big urges to go out and get stuff for you yet, but I am starting to think about it with some encouragement.  In the pram department, Mountain Buggy is looking like a winner at this stage – your dad was convinced from the get-go, especially seeing how well it handled with a fully grown adult in it at B & M’s house!  I’ve used one over rough ground with M at the markets, and it was easy to steer with one hand over gravel, and we both are pretty active, so it sounds like a go.  Went and looked at them at DJs the other day, and compared to a few others, and we both liked the Mountain Buggy the best.  I went shopping last friday in town and stared intently at all the prams going by, and watched how easy they were to use, what the people using them had draped over them to keep stuff on, whether they had storage, whether they fit on the escalators, and all that stuff.  I chatted to a few people while trying on shoes and the like to get their opinions.  All good stuff.

urbanelite_blue

At frisbee last night out of the 5 girls on my team who were there, three of the other 4 apart from me have little babies, and all of them have mountain buggies and couldn€™t speak more highly of them.  I think that such volume of positive accolades is a winner.  Now your dad and I just need to decide whether we need some of the accessories like the bassinet etc.  Again, everyone I€™ve spoken to about it who has had it says that while its kinda expensive especially as you€™ll only use it for a little while, it was really fantastic when they had it.  So we€™ll see.  And I think as we€™re going to New Zealand for a wedding soon, we might be able to pick it up a little cheaper, and I think they sell some attachments there that you can€™t get in Australia, like the car seat clip thingy that allows you to attach some brands of baby seats straight from the car into the pram bit.  Might be kinda handy.

singlecarrycot_blue

So.  As you can see whilst I don€™t obsess about baby goods and the like, get me started on a path and I can become quite excited and interested and no-doubt bore those around me to tears on the subject.  I€™ll have to keep that to a minimum if you€™re to have a sane mother with rational, normal friends and family (read €“ non-baby obsessed and living in the real world) to help her through the first bit of when you come along.  Otherwise they all might run screaming very quickly.

Anyway, hope you€™re well.  It€™s a little cooler today (hopefully) so maybe it will be a bit more comfortable for you down there.

Love mum