Thoughts for Thursday: Stroller Review!

Hi! Almost to Friday!!....how has your week been?? 

In my last Friday Favorites post, I mentioned that we got a new umbrella stroller....aaannnddd that I LOVE stroller shopping :)  A couple of you commented that you would like to hear about the strollers we have owned....which made me so happy- because talking about strollers is such a fun topic for me! HA!  

So...here we go! 

We started our parenting journey with the Chicco Cortina Keyfit 30 Travel System.  We tested out several stroller systems in the store and loved the way the Chicco stroller felt and that for being a bigger stroller, it folded up and opened very easily.  We really liked that the Keyfit 30 allowed for the baby to be up to 30 pounds while using the carseat and it had EXCELLENT reviews!  Aaron's family was kind enough to get us the stroller, carseat, and another base for our baby shower gift- which we were so excited about! I remember Aaron putting together the stroller and wheeling it around our living room...it totally made us feel like "legit" parents-to-be to have such a fancy stroller system! HA!  We have used the exact same carseat and stroller for every baby we have had.  It is kind of a pain, but you can wash ALL the material on the carseat!  Our's still looks brand new!  I have really liked the Cortina stroller.  It is a bulkier stroller, but it is so easy to maneuver, the baby can sit in it as early as you feel comfortable because it reclines all the way down.  Also- I love how big the underneath basket is!  I know there are some MUCH higher end stroller system options and some carseat/stroller combos that are cheaper than this one too. I feel like this system is just right in the middle as far as price goes, the quality is EXCELLENT and for us- it was a GREAT purchase!

The other stroller I got when I was pregnant with our first daughter, Charlotte was this Baby Trend Jogging Stroller.  My extremely generous co-workers at the time got it for us and I was SO excited to have an "exercise" stroller for my new baby! HA!  We loved this stroller!  It was very lightweight (for a jogging stroller), pushed extremely smooth and was very comfortable for the baby!  Also- the price tag is great at right around $100.  I would recommend this jogging stroller to people who aren't super intense about using it for exercise OR if you think you are going to have more babies- you might want to wait and invest in a higher end double stroller.  For us- we knew we wanted to have more kids- so we didn't want to invest in a BOB single jogging stroller when we would probably need a double in just a couple of years.   I would definitely recommend this stroller if you are looking for a great, sturdy jogging stroller but don't want to spend a ton of money!

When we found out we were pregnant with our second daughter Cora, we started researching double strollers.  We are an extremely active family and wanted to get a stroller that would allow us to go running, walking in areas that weren't paved and to go on bike rides!  We decided to invest in the Chariot Double Jogging Stroller and also got the bike "add-on" too.  And when I say invest- I mean it- this stroller is EXPENSIVE.  I will tell you- in my opinion- it is definitely worth it- IF you are going to use it!  We LOVED taking the girls for bike rides and I used it almost every day as a jogging stroller.  It isn't called the Chariot for nothing- HA! It is super comfortable for the kids to sit in, there is screen cover to keep the bugs out but the kids cool, there is a plastic cover in case it starts raining, and a HUGE storage basket.  We got the jogging stroller option- which is one big, stationary front wheel.  You can also get two, swivel front wheels if you are looking for more of just a walking stroller.  The stroller collapses down pretty flat- but it does take a couple minutes to do that and same for when you put it back together.  It really isn't a big deal- but my husband has always done part for me- so I can't say if I personally found that process easy or not.  He tells me "IT IS SIMPLE!"  HA! He says that about a lot of things :)  So- I would say if you are super active, you plan on having two kids and you want a stroller you can really put to some good use- the Chariot might be worth the investment for you!! 
This is the "swivel" wheel option I was talking about and the picture below, is what the jogging "wheel" attachment looks like.

So when we had our 3rd daughter Celine, we would put 2 girls in the Chariot and Celine would go in our single Baby Trend jogging stroller and that is how we would got for family walks or runs.  When we added James to our family, we invested in the BOB Revolution SE Duallie Stroller and also got the infant car seat adapter.  By getting the BOB, that meant we had two, heavy duty double strollers for all of our outdoor family activities.  We sold our Baby Trend jogging stroller, very quickly, on Craigslist since we wouldn't be using that anymore.  The BOB jogging strollers are TOP RATED- and for good reason!  This stroller is a BEAST- but "drives" SO nice!! It is another investment stroller- FOR SURE- but again, we knew that we would get a lot of use out of it.  For a large stroller, I think it folds up pretty nicely! It easily fits in the back of my van, but there is definitely not a lot of extra room when it is back there.  It is fairly heavy when you are lifting in and out of the car- but it folds up and pops open very easily.  Something to note- BOB makes a "Sport Utility" version of this stroller- but the difference is that with the Utility version- the front wheel is stationary and cannot swivel.  We wanted to have the option of having the wheel locked or it be able to swivel- so that is why we went with the Revolution SE Duallie.  Just make sure you check that out when you are looking at versions of this stroller! :) We REALLY like the infant car seat adapter.  We had James in early July- so we were back at the pool the day we got home from the hospital with him! It was so easy for Celine to ride on one side, clip James in his carseat on the other side and load up our pool bag in the bottom basket.  Also- the little space that is right behind the front plastic part of the stroller is great for putting an extra bag- or heck- a kid for that matter! HA! This stroller is a work horse- and especially when I am out with all 4 kids by myself- I really appreciate the space it gives me!  If this stroller is in your budget- I highly recommend it!! If the price is a little too high for you- check out this one- it has great reviews and you can't beat the price!!

Now onto lightweight stroller options!  When we just had our two oldest daughters, we had the Combi Twin Sport Stroller.  I found the exact version we had, although our stroller was green, here.  It appears though, that they aren't making that version anymore and it has been replaced by this stroller.  This stroller was just "ok."  It was really cute- but I did not feel like it was very sturdy, it wasn't super smooth when we would be pushing the girls in it and the underneath baskets were really small and hard to get to.  This was probably my least favorite stroller we have owned.  When we got our double BOB stroller, we sold this one on Craigslist. Hopefully the person who bought it from us likes it! :)

Here is the exact stroller we had...

The Combi Twin Sport Stroller

And here is the one that seems to have taken it's place...

The Combi Cosmo Twin Stroller

Another option for a double umbrella stroller would be this one.  It is the Kolcraft Side-By-Side Umbrella Stroller.  I found it for just under $100 on Overstock.Com with FREE shipping!  The next cheapest price I found was on Amazon for $121 with free shipping.

We have personally owned the single version of the Kolcraft Cloud Umbrella Stroller and really liked it!! We got our's from Walmart- you can find it here.  The things we loved about this stroller was that it folded up super easily and was very compact, it felt very sturdy and pushed very smoothly and a great value at only $28!!  We weren't looking for anything fancy- just a good, sturdy umbrella stroller and this one totally fit the bill!! We did end up returning this stroller, only because the sunshade got damaged the first time we folded it up (totally a fluke) and because Aaron and I both felt we needed the handles to be longer as we are both taller people.  I would highly recommend this stroller though- especially if you travel a lot and need something easy, but not super expensive that you are going to worry about it it gets tossed around a bit!

The umbrella stroller we ended up getting after we returned the Kolcraft Cloud was the Summer Infant 3D Lite Umbrella Stroller.  We got our's on Walmart.com in the color yellow, because it was $10 cheaper than every other color + free shipping or free shipping to the store! This stroller is a bit more than the Kolcraft- we got our's for $69.99.  I would say it is a couple notches above the Kolcraft with a bigger sunshade, bigger underneath basket and just a tad bit more studier feel.  A big "plus" for Aaron and I is that it has longer handles and we don't feel like we are hunched over when pushing the stroller (just for a reference- Aaron is 6' 4" and I am 5' 8").  

It does not fold as compactly as the Kolcraft Cloud- which folds up like a traditional umbrella stroller. Here are some great pictures of how little space the Kolcraft takes up in the back of a minivan.

source

The Summer Infant 3D Lite folds up flat and because of that- it takes up just a tad bit more space in the back of the van- but nothing that I found to be that big of a deal.  It folds up EXTREMELY easily and it is just as easy to open the stroller up- which I think is super important! I can NOT be exerting extra energy and concentration on trying to figure out how to pop open my stroller all while trying to keep my kids from wandering around the parking lot! HA!

So- a BIG YES! to the Summer Infant 3D Lite umbrella stroller.  To me- after doing lots of research- it seems like the best option for a "higher end" umbrella stroller without having to pay the price of a high end brand.  Plus- I love all the fun colors you can choose- they have yellow, turquoise, pink, green and orange!

WHEW!  So- after writing this- it seems like I might have a problem with buying strollers- HA!

Just to review- the strollers we currently have and STILL use are: the Chicco Cortina- I was using this stroller for James up until last week when we got our new 3D Lite umbrella stroller.  Aaron took apart the Cortina, washed all the fabric parts and it looks brand new! We put it down in our storage area for the time being.  The Chariot- we use this for walks, jogs and bike rides!  The double BOB- this is our go-to stroller for James and Celine when we walk to the park (Charlotte and Cora ride their bikes) and I keep the Summer Infant 3D Lite in the back of my van.  I put James in the umbrella stroller where ever we go and the girls walk with me.  Celine is required to ALWAYS have one hand on the stroller.  Since Celine is a THREENAGER- big time- right now- she sometimes will throw a fit about not being able to ride in the stroller with James...but that usually gets quickly resolved if I pick her up.  One of my older girls will push James in the umbrella stroller and all is fine again. Which is another great point about the Summer Infant stroller- I love that my older girls can push it- with no problems!  They LOVE pushing their little brother and it really helps me out in moments when I need to take care of my drama queen Celine! HA!  

Okay- so are you still reading?? I hope this was helpful...obviously- I didn't talk about SO MANY other great strollers out there!! There are just so many to pick from!

My biggest advice would be to not always assume you have to spend a load of money to get a great stroller.  Some of the "cheaper" strollers end up being GREAT.  Also- if you are looking to get a stroller like the Chariot or the BOB- and can't swing the price tag of a brand new one- check your local Craigslist for one or some towns do a big children's resale- and you might be able to find one there!  

Now your turn!! Tell me your favorite strollers!! I would love to hear about what strollers have worked best for your family!!

Have the BEST day!

Linking up with Annie and Natalie today!