To take a stroller

With my youngest approaching the big 3 and my oldest now 4, both my boys have pretty much outgrown a stroller. So, why am I planning to take a stroller on our East Coast trip?

The long lines and long walk through SFO will present many challenges. There is lot’s of stimulation. People are busily ushering from gate to gate and not looking down to see my wee ones under toe. It’s an easy place to get lost if we don’t hold hands. And mechanical walkways and other fun looking safety hazards lurk at every turn.

In fact a couple of years ago we witnessed a child get a flip-flop caught in the mechanical people mover. They had to shut it down to get her flip-flop unstuck. She was okay and probably a little bruised, but how incredibly terrifying. As fun as playing on a walkway or an escalator may seem to a little one -- they can also be very dangerous.

Strollers also immediately signal to security that you are there with little ones. I’ve had the privilege of being sent to the front of the line many times because I was traveling with a small child. And since you can gate check the stroller, there really is no downside in taking a small lightweight stroller.

And on long day trips it is better to have the option, then to try to lug 39 lbs of tired preschooler across the zoo.

Last night when talking to our neighbor about this post, he introduced me to another stroller/car seat consideration. It is a San Jose company called gogo BABYZ, which has developed two very cool apparatuses, the gogo Kidz travelmate, and the gogo Babyz Infant Cruiser AT. These products convert any standard car seat into a stroller. My neighbors use both for their 3 year old, and 14 month old on frequent trips to Austin.

Our car seats are really heavy, and so are our boys… So I still don’t think I want to lug our car seats cross-country.

We are only taking one stroller. Based on two adults, two kids, and luggage it will just be easier to deal with one stroller, instead of two. Our lovely double stroller also doesn’t fit in most cars so it is not an option. One child will have to walk, or be carried, and the other will get to ride in the stroller. When both kids want to walk, then the luggage will get to ride in the stroller…

I’ll talk about luggage and packing later, but it is always good to do a trial run, and have a mental picture of how two people will be able to manage two busy bodies and lug everything from point A to point B. In the end having a plan will save a lot of frustration and stress.