Three babies, five strollers and $1,100 (excluding tax!) what I have learned about the art of stroller purchasing. In 2000 expecting our first child my husband and I were on the hunt for the "perfect" stroller. I, of course, wanted something classic and stylish and Duane (husband) wanted something that would suit both of our heights 5'2" and 6'0". Endless hours on the Internet, trips to Babies R Us and several boutique baby shops later we found the stroller. It was a navy Kidco Stroller with height adjustable handles, removeable boot and removeable moses basket/bassinet for use as a pram. It was gorgeous and the price tag matched all of the extras that I wanted and thought I needed ($300+). The stroller worked perfectly, the height adjustable handles were amazing, I never used the boot because it was too warm (I live in Florida) and my son quickly grew out of the moses basket stage and I was forced to take up closet space storing the thing!

Unfortunately for the Kidco Stroller our daughter was born 16 months after our son. Now we needed a double stroller. I began to think I had over analyzed the stroller buying process and decided I would go mainstream and much cheaper on the double stroller. We purchased a Graco Duo Glider for $199 + tax. I also bought the matching Graco Infant Seat. Major unforseen problems: the infant did not fit as securely in the front seat as it did in the back seat so this lead to this chain of events. Daughter in infant seat sat in the back, 16 month old son (average size) in the front seat; the back of the front seat is considerably shorter than the back of the back seat, my son was not comfortable because he could not lean back or his head would fall backwards, sleeping was impossible because the front seat does not lay flat, barely reclines and there is very little leg room. We tried putting the infant seat in the front but it would not secure properly and we tried putting our daughter in the front without the infant seat but because of the reclining issue she was forever falling over; we had to use blankets and a head support. Also the canopies were useless especially the front one, I do not think they blocked one ray of sunlight! After four months and no resolution we began to research double strollers.

We settled on the Peg Perego Duette, at $499 + tax it was a huge investment but well worth every penny! Now unless you are always on the go like we seem to be and need a way to transport your children for hours at a time I would not advise spending this much money on a stroller. If I needed a stroller for an occasional outing the Graco would have been fine. The seats on the Duette were exactly the same: high backs, thick padding and they laid completely flat. Plus the seats could be used both facing out, both facing the parent, facing each other or one facing out and one facing the parent (which is wonderful when they are bigger and fight or kick the back of the other's seat! The canopies were huge and the stroller had lots of extras (which I never used :) This stroller was a work horse and we used it non-stop for 2 1/2 years. Here is the con: the Duette is huge, takes up a lot of room and you need serious trunk space to transport the mammoth! Duane had a mid-size sedan and it would not fit in the trunk. You have to have a car with a massive trunk or a truck/suv.

Because of the Duette's size we had to buy two Chicco Caddy strollers. 1. So Duane's car would have available strollers. 2. Much easier to use when you just have 1 child with you. 3.  If you plan on going to theme parks or if you have to take public transportation - getting the SUV of strollers onto trams takes alot of time, alot of luck and you become the most hated people on the tram because you caused the hold-up.

We bought the Chicco Caddy because it is a very light umbrella stroller (less than 11 lbs), it has a small canopy and it reclines (the reason we chose this one) and they were $49.95 + tax each. They have a carrying strap and you can literally throw the thing over your shoulder (hence the name!). These are very handy little strollers and have held up very well. We decided not to purchase another stroller when our 3rd child arrived in January 2005.

Our 4 year old and 3 year old do not like sitting in strollers anymore so I put the baby in a Baby Bjorn and do a lot of hand holding and I use child body harnesses when I am in very crowded places on the older kids. I know some people do not like these but I prefer to be safe than sorry. Small children can be very tempted to stray and/or get distracted plus my kids like having the freedom to walk in front of me. You do not have to purchase the plain solid colored tether ones (if you do you may have to endure rude comments about your child looking like a pet!). I have ones that look like teddy bears and they hug my son & daughter and have zippers so my kids can put small toys inside. I still keep the Chicco's in the car just in case one of the older kids falls asleep or decides he or she doesn't feel like walking and the baby is old enough to use it now too!