Why wait? Le Grand Monsieur will be 10 months old at the end of March. He’ll also be celebrating his first Easter by looking for chocolate eggs hidden about the City of Light.
Yup, we’re going to France with the child. Here’s the itinerary:
Paris for 2 nights, then a train to Caen where we pick up a rental car and drive to Honfleur. We have 2 nights at the mouth of the Seine before driving to Mont St Michel for a night. Then to the mouth of the Loire and the salt beds of Le Croisic. After a night there, we drive the length of the Loire Valley to St Georges Sur Cher for 4 nights before we drop our car in Tours and train back to Paris.
When Jen and I go to the pool for swimming lessons there’s 3 bags of toys, diapers and clothes between us. Can you imagine 2 weeks overseas? It’s going to be a challenge - but we’re up for it.
The first thing we needed to do was settle on a stroller. Currently we have a Mountain Buggy Urban as our main chariot of choice. It’s FAB for the trails and paths around our neighborhood, but, as we discovered on our trip to Portland in November, it’s HUGE.
It took up the entire trunk of our Pontiac Vibe for that weekend getaway severely limiting the amount of tax free goodness that could be brought home.
Our requirements for the new stroller were: lightweight, collapsing, has a tray, fully reclining, has storage room.
Jen went crazy looking for strollers. Up and down the web, all over Amazon, BabyCenter, everywhere. She hit up Target, Babies R Us and Craigslist. She read reviews, comments, feedback. EVERYTHING.
The contenders included styles from Quinny, MacLaren, Peg Perego and Kolcraft … but the winner is:
The Combi Helio DX - Wasabi (Waaasaaaaahbeeee)
 |
It’s got a cup holder, a snack section, it reclines, and it has a longer bar than the previous edition (meaning you dont kick the wheels and you’re not hunched over when pushing)
They’re hard to find in Canada. We had to buy it online from Amazon.com and have it sent to a friend’s postal box in the US.
So that’s the big thing out of the way. But from reading reviews on Fodors, it sounds like the cobblestones of Europe do nothing for soothing a baby while sightseeing.
I guess that means we’re packing the Baby Bjorn too.
The Blog According to Buzz. Spread the word, ya heard?
Entries (RSS)
Great looking stroller. We got an upscale ‘umbrella stroller’ for Csilla on our first trip to Hungary. It’s small, lightweight and has been perfect for travelling. Looks like your Wasabi is even more deluxe than ours. Awesome. Have fun!
It looks sexy, but it is a super tiny, fits over your shoulder umbrella stroller too - best of both worlds.
Have you tried the Ergo carrier? I liked our Bjorn when our babies were tiny, but the Ergo is so much more comfy for bigger babies and can switch from a front to back carrier very easily. Our 16 month old is still very happy in it as a back carrier and it’s almost as compact as the Bjorn for travelling.
We got an Ergo for our second baby, and I wish we’d had one for the first since it is miles easier on our backs. Plus, in a pinch we’ve used it as a back carrier with our 32 pound 3 year old on short hikes when she gets tired.
It’s pricey - but well worth it, in my opinion.
we borrowed an ergo from my brother and find it tough for zacharie to see where were going, he’s always squirming from side to side.
we will be trying it on the back this weekend, but so far, the bjorn is winning out.