Zade's New Wheels

I'm sure most parents are dependent on prams and strollers, especially those who travel a lot or take the public transport regularly. For new parents, to decide on the right one can be pretty daunting given the selection available in the market. And the price starts from as low as RM50 and it goes up to thousands of ringgit - the average price of a Buggaboo pram is about RM6000. And I'm sure that there are more expensive ones on the market.

Anyway, Zade's first pram that he still uses till today is the Graco Winnie the
Pooh Travel System with Snug Ride. I actually bought it in US just before I graduated in 2004. I wasn't even pregnant back then. I knew how expensive prams are in Malaysia and so I decided to get one there as it is much cheaper. It cost me about USD150 which was a really good deal. It comes with an infant carrier which doubles as car seat. Zade used the infant carrier till he was about 6 months after which I had to get a bigger car seat. So do I like it? Absolutely. It has excellent handling qualities, the seat is easy to recline, it has a huge basket and it's very easy to fold. However it has one major drawback. It is very bulky and quite heavy which makes it unsuitable for travelling. I leave it in the carboot and only use it for shopping around here.


Zade in the Graco pram when he was three months old with the infant seat.


Zade at 10 months old sleeping in reclined position.

Before going back to Malaysia last year, I decided to get an umbrella stroller so that it would be easy for me to carry it around. I decided to buy a Baby Love umbrella stroller (Australian Brand) as it was one of the lightest that I found. It was on sale for AUD 60 at Target. I soon found out that the only good thing about this stroller is that it's lightweight. It had terrible handling, buckling was very tricky, it has a very small basket and the seat doesn't recline. After travelling with it for two months, it became harder to navigate.


Zade in the Baby Love stroller


Since I'm going travelling again soon, and this time it would be just me and Zade, I thought it would be a good idea to invest on a better stroller to make my life easier. I went online and did a little research on strollers that are available here. I found out that a Maclaren stroller would be my best bet. I'm quite familiar with the brand and I've heard some good reviews. So yesterday, Zade and I went to Baby Bunting in Thomastown to get the Maclaren Triumph. The price is AUD 269but I got it on sale for AUD 199. I've tried to unfold and fold it several times, and found it to be quite difficult. It's lightweight and has a bigger basket compared to the stroller. I'm still not sure if I really like it, but I'll know for sure after my trip next week.