[blparent] Stroller Fail!

Thu Mar 17 20:42:26 UTC 2016

We didn't even start with our girls in the stroller until they were probably closer to a year old, plus we used our packs most of the time.  Their preference, wanting to be close.

Judy

-----Original Message-----
From: BlParent [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Star Gazer via BlParent
Sent: Thursday, March 17, 2016 2:24 PM
To: 'Blind Parents Mailing List'
Cc: Star Gazer
Subject: Re: [blparent] Stroller Fail!

				Hi Steve. That's why the carseats that snap on top of the stroller are so popular, if it is safe for a car, it's safe for a baby at walking speed. All this being said, I was anxious about having my girls in the stroller when they were tiny. I have no idea why. 

-----Original Message-----
From: BlParent [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Steve Jacobson via BlParent
Sent: Thursday, March 17, 2016 3:53 PM
To: 'Blind Parents Mailing List' <blparent at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Steve Jacobson <steve.jacobson at visi.com>
Subject: Re: [blparent] Stroller Fail!

Allison,

Check the wheels on your stroller.  On some of these strollers, each wheel has a lock that keeps the wheel from swiveling left to right.  If all four wheels are allowed to swivel, this will cause the exact behavior that you are observing.  You would not want to lock all four wheels because turning would then become very difficult.  I found that when pulling the stroller, it worked best to lock the wheels that are on the end of the stroller away from the handle.  When pushing the stroller, locking the wheels nearest the handle works best.  However, you might want to experiment to see which works best for you.

On the strollers I have seen, the lock is sort of a slide just above the wheel that cam be moved up and down.  The slide will only lock the wheel when the wheel is turned so that the wheel is parallel to the stroller, in other words, oriented as they need to be when you are traveling in a straight line.  

I am almost certain this is the problem you are having, so if you do not find any kind of lock, check the instructions in case it is done in a way that is not obvious.

In some ways, though, I might be a little hesitant to wheel a baby that young around in a stroller.  My kids arrived when they were older, though, so I am not a good judge of this.  I only know that when kids are very young, you don't always know what they are doing in a stroller.  If they can be restrained in a way that you feel is safe, this might be an issue.
However, to have their head at at a bad angle when you hit a bump in the sidewalk might not be so great for a baby whose neck strength is not completely developed.  However, I'm an old dad whose kids are grown, and some of the more current parents here might have better advice.

Best regards,

Steve

-----Original Message-----
From: BlParent [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Allison via BlParent
Sent: Wednesday, March 16, 2016 10:27 PM
To: 'Blind Parents Mailing List' <blparent at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Allison <allison82 at cox.net>
Subject: [blparent] Stroller Fail!

Hi Everybody,

My daughter, Allyssa, is 9 weeks old now. I love my baby. It turns out that I also love getting out of my house sometimes. I had a lot of great plans for this when I was pregnant, plans about how I could successfully get out in the world with my child, and I can now safely say that almost none of them have worked out. LOL.

I tried a bunch of strollers at a local store before my daughter, Allyssa, was born. I bought a Graco Click Connect in the end because it seemed like the best balance of usability and affordability that I could find at the time. It has a stroller with a car seat that clicks right into and out of it. I tested it at the store with my cane and verified that I could in fact pull it behind me. I also tried it on the sidewalk in front of my house when I brought it home. Great, right? Yeah, only great because it did not yet have a baby in it. I tried it with said baby in it last weekend and it was less than successful. The stroller now wobbles and wavers when I try to pull it behind me. It is only slightly less awful when I pull it next to me, but when it's next to me, I worry that my cane arc isn't wide enough to safely cover me and baby both because the stroller takes up a lot of space.
Moreover, the stroller was nearly impossible to manage when encountering anything other than a 100% flat surface, and turning or changing directions was something like trying to heard cats. As a result, I've mostly been wearing Allyssa in a front carrier when I'm out. I like this option a lot because she's safe, my hands are free, and Allyssa likes it, but I'm worried that my body won't allow me to wear her as she grows heavier. Pretty much every carrier I've tried pulls on my neck or shoulders at least a little.
Sooner or later, I will probably want to travel with her in a stroller. And so far, the stroller has been a bit of a fail as it zigs and zags all over the place. I could buy a new one, but buying multiple strollers will get expensive quickly. Does anyone have any solutions for this stroller craziness? Does it get better somehow? Will I become that blind mom who never leaves the house alone with her kids? Please please tell me that is not my future. If I start to think that it is, I may be tempted to drown myself in my breast milk. So please share some words of wisdom! 

Thanks,
Allison

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