Since I'm starting this blog so late into my mom shopping experience, I have to throw out a few things that have been life saving pieces of my world over the past two years.
I will just state now that I am a stroller whore, and I have purchased..... 8 different ones over the past 2 years for my one child (thank you world of resale). My first was the practical and most popular Graco Quattro with the SnugRide car seat. I HATED it. Everything about it. It was huge, cumbersome, and had no bells and whistles that in my opinion called for it to be either of those things. I never once used the actual stroller, as when I was about 7 months pregnant, Bob let me buy the almighty Bugaboo Frog.
Aaaahhhhhhh. Now THAT was what I was looking for. Stylish, easy to use, a bit on the large side, but hey - It was a stroller and bassinet all in one, and it allowed for easy use of my Graco SnugRide car seat with an attachment. It was just fabulous. It went everywhere with me. Shopping, the zoo, on airplanes, served as my main floor bassinet in the living room.... It had a $749 pricetag, but again we love resale. I got mine used for $550 and it was used DAILY.
When my daughter was a bit bigger, I wanted to invest in a lightweight stroller. Something that was NOT two pieces that my husband could handle opening/closing/using, etc... So away I went to consumerreports.com in search of the best and most recommended umbrella stroller. I came up with the Silver Cross Micro stroller
as it had bigger wheels and bigger storage than the more popular Maclaren Volo plus it came PINK. Sold. And while I liked the stroller, I just loved my Frog so much that I tended to leave the $130 umbrella stroller in my husband's car for rare use. I had intended for it to be used when traveling, etc but realized that even though my growing girl was becoming a toddler, she still needed to be able to sleep in her stroller sometimes, and this didn't lay down.
as it had bigger wheels and bigger storage than the more popular Maclaren Volo plus it came PINK. Sold. And while I liked the stroller, I just loved my Frog so much that I tended to leave the $130 umbrella stroller in my husband's car for rare use. I had intended for it to be used when traveling, etc but realized that even though my growing girl was becoming a toddler, she still needed to be able to sleep in her stroller sometimes, and this didn't lay down.Skip ahead a few months, and the new Bugaboo BEE was released on the market. 
It was everything the Frog was not - ONE PIECE, easy for my newly 1 year old to get in and out of, narrow enough to get through small spaces. So I begged for, and was granted permission to bring the new stroller into our lives. And it was great. I was very enthusiastic about it, but certain aspects of it kept me going back to my Frog. The hood was huge (and while great for protection) AWFUL for lillian who has to see EVERYTHING that is going on around her. My non-bugaboo but vital to my life attachments for the stroller bar and handle didn't fit. No snacks for her, no snacks or bevvies for me -BAD. And while this was almost half the weight and bulk of the frog, it still folded to fit exactly in the same travel bag as the Frog, so it was still obnoxious for me to fly with size-wise.
It was everything the Frog was not - ONE PIECE, easy for my newly 1 year old to get in and out of, narrow enough to get through small spaces. So I begged for, and was granted permission to bring the new stroller into our lives. And it was great. I was very enthusiastic about it, but certain aspects of it kept me going back to my Frog. The hood was huge (and while great for protection) AWFUL for lillian who has to see EVERYTHING that is going on around her. My non-bugaboo but vital to my life attachments for the stroller bar and handle didn't fit. No snacks for her, no snacks or bevvies for me -BAD. And while this was almost half the weight and bulk of the frog, it still folded to fit exactly in the same travel bag as the Frog, so it was still obnoxious for me to fly with size-wise. So it was a resale destiny for the Bee - it was a GOOD stroller and had some awesome features. It just wasn't for me. So having tried everything on the market I was interested in, I decided that I had proved myself worthy of an UPGRADE... ;) And sold the Frog to buy the Cameleon. Still with me here?
But I must also fast forward another year, to this past summer where we went on a vacation to see Bob's grandmother in Massachusets, and Bob vowed he'd never help me take the baby AND get the Bugaboo travel bag through airport security again. Plus with all the new luggage fees, etc, it was ridiculous to check it.
So I am on another mission.... my kid will FOR SURE need to nap in the stroller because that's the only place I have a prayer for a week, and I need to get it there and back easily. So we hit Babies R Us again to test drive the latest stuff (and I must say that in 2 years there was some fun and cute stuff out there for someone besides myself) and decided that our next purchase would be the Maclaren Quest Mod.
Had I thought about a reclining umbrella stroller back when I got the Micro, I would have gotten this one to begin with and as a result would never have ended up getting the Bee at all. Retailing at $229-299 (depending on design, etc) it is super lightweight, folds as an umbrella stroller, has 85% recline suitable from 3 months, and holds up to 65 pounds of kid. It also has an extendable leg rest (seat bottom) so it grows with your child. Our experience with this stroller has been awesome. It is super cute, got me in/out of the airport in a breeze, folded up with one hand at the gate, and the greatest part was that the extendable leg rest pulled out so that my very tall almost two year old hardly had to bend her legs to lay completely in the stroller for a nap. We got a good nap out of her in this almost every day and THAT is saying something.
As a whole I loved all of the strollers I have used, and had a great time picking them out and trying them out. I am now down to two (my husband rejoices) and that is where I'll stay. I have my everyday stroller, and my quickie travel stroller. I think we're good. Now if I could just get my kid to sit down......
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