Posts Tagged "pushchair"

It’s a Good Thing- September 7

Posted by cafebebemama on Sep 6, 2010 in Motherhood | 1 comment

White Stuff, Stamford, Lincs

Last week was a very good week, I’m sure you’re ecstatic to learn! Little Old Me is coming out of a bit of a dark hole and is getting much happier and it’s a good thing.

• After acquiring 8 or 9 pushchairs, (I review pushchairs for MadeForMums website as well as this blog) and allowing them to take up a massive amount of space in our garage much to my husband’s dismay, I have managed to whittle down our collection to an all-time low TWO pushchairs. One in the boot of my car (Stokke Xplory) and one in the boot of hubby’s car (Baby Jogger City Mini). Where have they all gone? Well, mostly, to new families who will love them and use them in the way they were intended. They’ve fulfilled their destiny! Sob! My babies have grown up and left me! Oh goodness, I do go on. One pushchair found a new home through eBay, 3 pushchairs have been sold through a local 2nd hand shop and 2 more are on offer there as well. We sold 1 in a 2nd hand sale in June and one lovely pushchair was donated to a very lovely and deserving mum. That about covers it! I feel a bit lost now! Whatever shall I do with only 2 pushchairs??
• Little Miss and I got out of the house a fair few times this past week. So what you might ask? Well, for us it’s a big step. I’ve decided to NOT worry about the neighbours if our dog is barking (yes, I know he barks…he’s a neurotic mess!) and do what’s best for us and get out of the house.
• I had a fantabulosa day on Wednesday with a trip into Stamford for a White Stuff makeover, a bacon sandwich and some ME time! You can read all about it in White Stuff Mummy.
• There were some amazing posts, videos and photos taken not by me but by three selfless bloggers who were on an important mission in Bangladesh. “Blogladesh” was sponsored by Save the Children and Josie from Sleep is for the Weak, Eva from Nixd Minx and Sian from Mummy Tips have inspired us all and made us appreciate the lives we have no matter how challenging they may seem to us.
• I’ve taken a big step in my “career” and have begun to offer my Professional Blogging Services on this blog. We’ll see who wants to snap me up before I’m too busy to take on more work.

That’s pretty much the week in review at Cafe Bebe. Despite being struck down by Little Miss’ cold over the weekend, on Sunday the sun shone and the wind blew and it was time to enjoy a bit of Mummy & Little Miss time at the local park. I do love my daughter so…

Little Miss…the park down the road from our house…the sunshine and warm breeze…now that’s a good thing.

Commit to Get Fit this Autumn

Posted by cafebebemama on Sep 1, 2010 in Mummy Tummy Begone | 4 comments

You’ve heard it before from me. You’ve heard it a fair few times from me. But this time, I mean it! I’m 3 months away from turning 40, I have a funky new hair cut which has given me back some of my chutzpah and a clearer view to the future. It’s time to do something about the PHYSICAL ME!

I’ve been working with Maclaren and Pushy Mothers to promote their Stroll Back to Shape programme and have been reviewing the Maclaren GTLX along the way. I have a LOT of experience with pushchairs. I have reviewed over 20 since I began blogging a year an a bit ago. I have reviewed some for this blog but most have been for MadeForMums website. Amazingly I have never reviewed a Maclaren! Maclarens are everywhere. They are very popular in the lightweight, “umbrella-type” stroller category in particular. The Maclaren GTLX is their “luxury” edition pushchair and it was most definitely an interesting pushchair to trial.

The Maclaren GTLX is an impressive pushchair. Gadgets abound on this model which allow you to know what time it is, what the temperature is and just how fast you’re walking while lighting the way at the same time! There is a Strollometer built in on the Maclaren GTLX as well as a “dashboard” housing a clock and temperature gauge in analog style. There are running board lights to make others aware of you and potentially light the path in front of you on a dim day or late night walk (not sure that you need to be walking late at night WITH your child but teething pain may make it a necessity).

The seat seems very comfortable, according to Little Miss who readily climbed up and had a seat within seconds of spotting the new pushchair! And I dare any toddler to try to get out of the carefully crafted 5 point harness! You have to be Houdini, I think! It’s exceptionally well secured. The seat can be forward or rear facing which is very comforting to parents of newborns and young babies. You can easily and smoothly recline the seat without disturbing a sleeping tot and can carry on calorie burning while they snooze away, safe under the large canopy/hood. You are also protected from rain and bugs with a rain cover and mosquito cover which are stowed in handy pockets on the back of the seat…genius touch!  I was also infinitely impressed with the amount of accessories that came with the Maclaren GTLX. There was a pushchair cover, wheel bag, changing bag with stroller straps, cup holder, carry cot and newborn insert, footmuff and shopping basket. It’s all you could ever need and then some.

One of the drawbacks to the Maclaren GTLX is its size. It’s a rather hefty beast at 14.2 kg and requires a pretty strong TWO hands for steering, especially on uneven ground. I was a bit disappointed when my right front wheel popped off while traversing a bit of rough terrain. It easily snapped back on but I don’t really expect my wheels to fall off! Storing the Maclaren GTLX is a bit of a challenge as well. Ideally you need to take off the seat and potentially, even the wheels to allow it to fit smoothly into your boot. I think you would be hard pressed to fit it into a small boot. The price is a bit steep as well (between £530-590 on various internet sites) but considering the amount of kit that comes with the system, you are getting pretty good value for money.

Maclaren GTLX à la Cafe Bebe

One of the bonuses of the Maclaren GTLX is the Strollometer. The Stroll Back to Shape programme really encourages new mums to get out and get fit with their babies. With the Strollometer you can easily track your progress and see how far you’re going and how fast which is a great incentive and motivator for a lot of mums. I found myself trying to keep my pace at a particular speed which made a great difference to the intensity of my walk. Doing this several times a week will take you far…just remember to come back home at the end of each journey!

This is my challenge to you then, mummies: Get out and Commit to Get Fit this Autumn! Keep yourself moving, burning calories, getting fresh air and getting out of the house. It will do you and your child a world of good. Next week I’ll be attending my first “buggy fitness” class in Stamford. I’m a bit frightened as I imagine most of the other mums will be more post-delivery than I am and will definitely not look 5 months pregnant like I do. I feel like I might need to wear a hi-vis vest that says “Not Pregnant, Just Fat” so I don’t get any “so…when’s the next one due” comments. Or I just need to say, “Yeah, due in February!” and smile. I will report back on my class and whether I’m able to move the next day or not. I’m looking forward to taking a CLASS again which forces me to commit and follow through which is something I’ve been lacking a ridiculous amount bit lately.

I challenge you to do something new this month. Take a class, take a walk, do some Wii Fit, do SOMETHING! And blog about it. Or maybe you have been blogging about it? Share your success here! I’m adding a MckLinky to the bottom of this post for you to add links to your fitness/mummy tummy/empowerment/pushchair posts. It’s always helpful to know that others out there are struggling and, hopefully, succeeding. Let’s do what we can to push each other forward this month! I’ll expect some results and you can expect them from me in return. Have a great September…commit to get fit!

Little Miss Loves her Xplory

Posted by cafebebemama on Apr 4, 2010 in Blogger Love, Little Miss Adventures, Motherhood, Product Reviews, Pushchair Queen | 4 comments

Little Miss says "YAY" about her Stokke Xplory

The Cafe Bebe household is a happy place right now…we are the proud recipients of a glorious new Stokke Xplory pushchair.  Little Miss loves her Xplory pushchair.  Those of you who know me, know that I have quite the collection of pushchairs at the moment.  Currently, we are in possession of 7 (I think) pushchairs!  It’s not that I’m going out and BUYING these pushchairs mind you.  I review pushchairs for MadeForMums website and that generally means that we end up keeping the pushchair in the end.  It’s been amazing being able to test all sorts of pushchairs and see what works and what doesn’t.

I’ve often thought that pushchair designers need to employ groups of mums to participate in the research and development phase of pushchair design.  There are so many things about various pushchairs that are brilliant but they rarely come together to make one outstanding pushchair.  I am continually amazed at the “shopping baskets” that are installed under the seats of pushchairs that you could maybe fit a folded newspaper in and not much more.  Why do they bother I say?  And as far as canopies go, what’s the point of having a canopy that only blocks out the sun and weather if it’s directly overhead or behind you?  Part of why we chose our Baby Jogger was because of the brilliant canopy.  It comes down far enough to block the sun from your child’s eyes while still allowing them to see out.

I believe that I have found the pushchair that ticks all of the boxes.  The Stokke Xplory is AMAZING!  I’ve admired it from afar, looked at it in stores, ooh-ed and ahh-ed over it at The Baby Show and marvelled at its versatility.  There’s a funny little video of it as well…

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rIHh-qykak[/youtube]

The video was created by As Clear As PR who represent Stokke.  Sian To is the genius behind As Clear As and is a massive promoter of all things Stokke.  Stokke Lovers ran a competition a few weeks ago where we could submit any review we had done of a Stokke product and be in the running to win a Stokke Xplory.  I sent in the link for my review of Little Miss’ Stokke Tripp Trapp which is a firm favourite in our house.  Then, on Thursday Stokke Lovers announced the 5 winners of the Stokke Xplorys.  Guess who was one?  Squee!!!  As we live quite near to the lovely Sian, we took a little Saturday jaunt to her neck of the woods to collect what is now our new favourite pushchair.  Sian was a lovely host and her gorgeous daughters (and fluffy doggy & TALL kitten) entertained Little Miss thoroughly.  I think maybe Little Miss wants to be either Model Girl or Funny Girl when she grows up!  We came home with a gorgeous new pushchair so I was quite thrilled as well!

The Stokke Xplory is a brilliant pushchair.  There’s not much I can say that would be negative about it other than the price tag which is pretty high.  However, the Stokke Xplory should be considered an investment piece.  You will never need another pushchair again.  Period.  It’s lightweight, stylish, unique, colourful, versatile, easily adjustable, comfortable, highly functional, smooth and FUN!  Little Miss sits up nice and tall and is sitting well supported as well.  The canopy on the Stokke Xplory is perfect!  It comes down just right so Little Miss can still see out yet be protected.  We can put her in either forward facing or parent facing mode (she might really get cross with Parent facing at this stage of her life though) and could even push her right up to a table of any height and use the Xplory as a highchair if need be.  There’s no “shopping basket” so to speak but there is a brilliant and massive bag attached to the front plate of the chassis.  It can be expanded enough to store up to 4 shoe boxes (so I’m told!) so a trip to the shops should be a doddle.  All of the fabric wipes clean and can be removed and thrown in the wash which is always handy with a toddler.

After arriving back home yesterday I popped Little Miss in the Xplory and went for a tool around our village.  It was one of the most pleasant test drives I have ever been on.  Little Miss was thoroughly happy and I was really enjoying our walk while the birds were tweeting and the sun was shining.  It was our own Disney movie!  Am I ridiculous to be so excited about a pushchair??  Maybe to some!  I can’t wait to take the Xplory out on a big walk around Stamford and put it through its paces there.  I know it will perform admirably.  Check out Little Miss in front of our village church…doesn’t she look lovely?

Little Miss in front of St Andrew's church

Thank you so much to Sian, Stokke, Stokke Lovers and whatever good vibes allowed us to win the Stokke Xplory!  We’re extremely grateful and Little Miss absolutely loves her Xplory.

You Spin Me Right Round- Cosatto i-Spin

Posted by cafebebemama on Mar 30, 2010 in Great Finds, Little Miss Adventures, Product Reviews, Pushchair Queen | 0 comments

Cosatto i-Spin

How many times have you been out and about with your monstrous precious child and they choose the most inopportune moment to kick off?  Have you ever wanted to encourage your child to stay IN the pushchair so you can get a bit more shopping/chatting/eating done?  I’ve got the PERFECT pushchair for you then!  The Cosatto i-Spin is the pushchair of your dreams.  You see, it’s got built-in speakers in the hood/canopy!  You can plug your mp3 player straight into the lead that’s provided and stash it in the handy pouch on the back of the pushchair.  Now you can play any music you like which will make any journey that much more enjoyable!  Why not load up your mp3 player with “Milkshake Rocks” or some downloaded Cbeebies tunes?  Better yet, how about “Rockabye Baby” to lull your child into a peaceful sleep?  There are some other brilliant features to the Cosatto i-Spin as well.

• Strengths:  The Cosatto i-Spin is a very stylish, lightweight pushchair which collapses easily and fairly compactly but it still sturdy and strong so you won’t feel like you’re pushing some rickety, plastic stroller.  The dual handles are very adequately padded which comes in handy for long walks.  The storage basket under the pushchair is surprisingly spacious and has the added security of being enclosed by the puschair fabric.  There are zips which give you access on the sides.  We particularly enjoyed the adjustable leg rest and the multi-recline feature which allows you to smoothly and quietly recline your child into a virtually horizontal position.  The included raincover is easy to put on as well.  It’s always helpful to NOT have to wrestle with a raincover!  Now, most pushchairs come with front swivel wheels which the Cosatto i-Spin has as well but do you know what?  The Cosatto i-Spin has REAR swivel wheels as well!  This allows you to turn on a 5 pence coin and give 4 pence change!  A simple squeeze of the levers on the handles will allow you to make the rear wheels swivel and with a release, once the rear wheels are aligned front to back, they lock into their normal place.  This is extremely handy when you’re in the shops or wanting to turn a tight corner.
• Weaknesses:  The speakers are not Bose quality.  Gee darn!  But they are still a good quality for your child to be entertained and not irritated!  You will have to stick your head into the canopy to check volume to ensure that it’s not too loud for your child, however.  The accessory pack (including changing bag and footmuff) is a separate purchase.  The Cosatto footmuffs are lovely though and well worth the separate purchase.
• Opinion:  Little Miss loved sitting in the Cosatto i-Spin.  We took it on a trip to London in January and while we didn’t brave the Tube on that occasion, we did a LOT of walking on the streets of London and it was a dream to drive.  Little Miss fell asleep on our dash back to Kings Cross and I simply reclined her without disturbing her and put her, lock-stock-and-i-Spin onto the train home.  She slept the ENTIRE way which I think was a great endorsement for the comfort factor of the Cosatto i-Spin.  We would have loved to have had the Accessory Pack as the Cosatto footmuffs are brilliant but we used a universal footmuff which worked fine as well.
• Technical Stuff:  The Cosatto i-Spin retails for £200 and the accessory pack is £60 but do check the internet for better deals.

If you’re looking for a chic, funky, modern pushchair with all of the conveniences you need, the Cosatto i-Spin is a great investment for you.  Cosatto produces “baby stuff with personality” which is most welcome in the Baby and Toddler product world!  Check out their website for more information…they make a lot of brilliant products which will brighten up any home.  www.cosatto.com

Petite Star Zia

Posted by cafebebemama on Nov 1, 2009 in Out and About, Pushchair Queen | 0 comments

The Petite Star Zia is promoted as a best-selling, lighter-than-light, from birth stroller.  I am somewhat wary of lightweight strollers and had a rather negative experience with one that I tested a while ago but I was more than pleasantly surprised with the Petite Star Zia.  I received the Petite Star Zia for test and review, specifically, and decided to give it the best test possible- an airplane trip and journey around Wisconsin, USA.  What better testing ground?

• STRENGTHS:  The Petite Star Zia lives up to its lightweight billing (6.3kg) and is ridiculously easy to fold and unfold.  When folded, the Petite Star is not much bulkier that the standard “umbrella stroller” and is very easy to carry thanks to a latch which keeps the pushchair shut in transport.  The 5-point harness is very sturdy and feels quite secure and is nicely padded for the comfort of your child.  Unlike the Quinny Zapp, its near twin, the Petite Star Zia’s seat does recline virtually flat which allows it to be suitable from birth to approximately 3 years.  The recline feature is smooth and seamless allowing you to choose any number of recline positions.  We were fortunate to have the matching footmuff to test in addition to the pushchair, raincover and shopping basket.  The footmuff (£35.22) is one of the plushest available with a glorious fleece liner and matching fabric outer which allows it to be weather proof.  The Petite Star Zia, although lightweight, does not feel flimsy or rickety and the ride is quite smooth and seems very comfortable for Little Miss.  The Petite Star Zia has new autumnal colours (Pink Fizz, Cardinal Red and Purple Berry) which makes the pushchair look slightly classier and different from the rest of the Petite Star Zia’s out there.  This pushchair is a popular one, for sure.  If you’re looking for unique and to make a statement, the Autumnal Colours will help with that.
• WEAKNESSES:  The shopping basket is small but it really could not be much bigger considering the size of the stroller itself.  The brake feels a bit plasticky and whilst I had no problems with it holding properly, it doesn’t seem as sturdy as other pushchair brakes.  The canopy is somewhat ineffective unless the sun is directly above and behind you.  It doesn’t come down very far to protect your child from the elements.
• OPINION:  I was very impressed with the Petite Star Zia and pleasantly surprised.  It travelled to America and back surprisingly well and was a big hit with American observers.  The footmuff is one of the nicest ones I have seen and makes the Petite Star Zia quite a plush and comfortable choice.  Little Miss seemed very comfortable and happy in the Petite Star Zia which was the final seal of approval on this model.
• TECHNICAL STUFF:  Weight- 6.3kg; Dimensions- 72 x 60 x 107cm unfolded, 72 x 36 x 34cm folded; Handle height- 101cm; Colours- Pink Fizz, Cardinal Red, Purple Berry (Autumnal range); Accessories included- shopping basket, raincover; Optional Accessories- Cosy Toes (£35.22), Transit Bag (£14.99); RRP = £125
• RATING: 4.5 out of 5

Petite Star website- www.petitestar.com

Babies R Us website