Bugaboo seduction

I am weak, and possibly a little crazy. When we were expecting and shopping for a pram/stroller I researched to within an inch of my life to make sure I got the perfect one for us. After a couple of months of research, of to-ing and fro-ing about which one was the one and driving my husband crazy, I decided on the iCandy Cherry. It's light, folds easily and looks nice and was well priced in the middle range.

Well, this week I caved and bought a new stroller. I discovered they had released a new Bugaboo Bee this month and I wanted it!! Ridiculous. The Bee had been on my original shortlist but I decided against it in the end because I felt it was small and wouldn't last as long as the Cherry, but the new model addresses this issue and has an extendable seat. I don't know what came over me but I lusted after it for a few days but kept telling myself it was silly, and then the husband (tired of feeling the deja vu of the first stroller buying saga) just told me to get it if it's what I wanted and suits our needs better.

So I went from this:


to this:

and despite myself, have joined the ranks of the North West London Bugaboo brigade. I feel rather like I have joined a cult!

So here's where I justify myself. The Cherry is a fantastic stroller and I loved it but at this stage the Bee seems to be more suitable for me now and here's why:

• The Cherry is light and folds easily but doesn't fold in one piece whereas the Bee does, and this is its main advantage. The Cherry is perfect when I walk or take the bus as I normally do but when I drive it's a bit more of a pain to mess around with the two pieces. So far it hasn't been a problem because when driving I just take the frame and use the Maxi Cosi car seat on it, but this won't be the case for much longer as I had just noticed my son will be ready for his next stage car seat soon.
  
• For the moment, I can still use the Maxi Cosi on the Bee but don't have to take the seat unit off as I do with the Cherry. This is a big plus for me as it means I have the choice of clicking the car seat on if Baby is fast asleep when we arrive at our destination and I don't want to risk waking him by getting him out, or using the stroller if he is awake and wants to come out of it.
  
• The Bee is also a small and ergonomic shape which makes carrying it folded or unfolded easier. The Cherry is light but larger and more cumbersome and I wouldn't be able to carry it up or down any stairs with my baby in it, whereas I could just about manage it with the Bee.
• If I need to fold the stroller for some reason, ie. to save space in a restaurant or at a friend's, it's easy to do so whereas with the Cherry it was tough to do with the two pieces unless I was using the car seat.
  
• I loved the Cherry as a pram when my son was still in the carrycot, I thought it looked nice and was a good, nippy little pram to go out and about in and I think I had originally really loved the idea of a more traditional pram that lay completely flat than an all around pushchair like the Bee. However now that he's outgrown the pram and moved into the stroller (much earlier than the six months that's recommended) I was no longer as smitten with our wheels and being the fickle person I am my head was turned by the Bee.
• The Bee has great suspension which I didn't think I would need in the city but the pavements around here are not as flat and easy to maneuvre as I had thought. I have run aground in the Cherry a couple of times on some hazardous sticky-out bits of paving stone on my street.
• The raincover for the Bee is much better It's softer and therefore easier to fold up to put in the basket - and living in England we have to pretty much always have it with us, just in case. It's also a lot easier to attach, with a hook and elastic rather than just velcro, and most importantly has a peephole flap which is useful for reaching in to adjust a blanket or hand a toy or whatever to baby without having to undo the side or reach in from underneath.
  
• It's shallow of me but while I loved the pram/carrycot I don't think the Cherry stroller looks as nice. I do also like the colour coordination and customisation possibilities of the Bee (and indeed all the Bugaboos).
• Again shallow, but I love the wealth of accessories available for the Bugaboos. This is not a good thing however, as they do not come cheap and it's a very slippery slope.
  
• I found it very difficult to get hold of iCandy accessories, the company seemed to be very unreliable with ordering times of up to eight weeks and poor communication on delivery etc. Bugaboo accessories are much more common and easily available.
• Now this is the shallowest thing of all but the straw that broke the camel's back when it came to finally caving and buying it was, they have an iPhone holder!! Yes, I'm that shallow!!

And so it was that I bit the bullet and ordered my shiny new Bugaboo Bee+ with a blue canopy, a grey seat liner and the iPhone holder. And then during a bought of insomnia I got up in the middle of the night and ordered a footmuff and sun canopy by torchlight!! See? I told you it was a slippery slope. And I am clearly unhinged!

So if anyone is in the London area and is looking for a barely used iCandy Cherry stroller (without the carrycot which I have given to a friend who just had her baby and bought the Cherry too) in red (Licorice), drop me a line. It and its accessories will be found on ebay shortly.

Post pregnancy clothing

Because I have a tendency to obsessively over-prepare, I went shopping today for all the last bits and pieces I need for the new arrival and for me for post-arrival. Mainly nursing bras, but I thought I'd throw in a couple of nursing tops too as I can't imagine I would feel like shopping for them by the time I'd need them. The selection available in both Mothercare and H&M were disappointingly uninspiring (as are the selections I've seen available from the online stores). And even more bizarre, I noticed most of them seemed to be in horizontal stripes. Now why is that? Does it seem ironic to anyone else that the majority of nursing tops are in the most unflattering pattern possible, for a target market most likely to be feeling the least confident about their body shapes they have ever felt?! Strange indeed.

Well, here is what I ended up with. 2 stripes and 2 plain.
I guess I'll have to play around with my existing wardrobe and try to figure out ways to be creative with what I already have.

The layette

I know. It looks like a lot. But I figured it couldn't hurt to cut down on laundry if our boy is kind of pukey or leaky and needs changing a lot. I am so practical!

Baby consumerism

Is it wrong that one of the reasons I am excited about having a baby is the shopping opportunities? It is by no means the only or even one of the top reasons, but it is definitely present on the list if I had to make a list. As soon as I found out we were having a boy I hit the sales and bought up a load of gorgeous baby blue outfits. Hubby thought it was cute at first but has looked increasingly worried ever since!

For our main baby purchases and certainly all the necessary and functional items (as opposed to the pure fun items like clothes, books and toys!) we are using John Lewis' nursery list consultation service, on recommendation from friends. It really is a great service. I was as excited as a kid in a toy store. Hubby looked slightly overwhelmed at one point, mumbling, "babies need so much stuff..." but in general he was on board and gave good input. He didn't even pass out when we added up the startup costs for a first baby! I love that man!!