The SUV of Strollers

I already wrote about baby gear once this week, and here I am about to do it again. I might as well finish out my thoughts on strollers. So here...

Earlier I claimed that we don't like a lot of excess baby gear, and then went on to confess to you that we have two strollers for one child. I extolled the virtues of the Chicco for travelling. Now, please let me rave just this once about the Baby Trend. Then I will be quiet - about strollers, at least.

I like to run. I was looking forward to running after my daughter was born (after having gone nearly the entire pregnancy without running per doctor's orders - that's another story for another day). So I was very interested in a jogging stroller. Yet, I also wanted a stroller that the infant carseat fit into and was steerable to use in stores. Oh, and we also have a modest house with limited garage space and a small car that I drive, so one that folded well was on the criteria list, too.

After a test-drive at Babies'R'Us, I decided on the Baby Trend Expedition Travel System. It was a gift from my parents. Here are all the uses we got for $199:

Infant carseat/carrier with base

Jogging stroller that can be used with the infant seat in it

Steerable stroller that can be used with the infant seat in it (for shopping, etc.)

Regular jogging stroller

Regular steerable stroller

Plus, it folds easily and fits in the trunk of my sub-compact car! As long as you turn the front tire when you fold it :)

Now for those of you who are exclusive thrift store shoppers, spending $199 more than likely sounds indulgent. But I really like it. What more could you want out of a stroller? Oh, one that doesn't take up much space in the trunk... yeah, that's why we got the Chicco for trips.

Why am I even considering this purchase to be qualifying as frugal? Well, consider the amount spent if we had purchased each item separately... a low-end new jogging stroller or a decent used one costs at least $80, a car seat and base costs at least $80, and then a regular stroller that the infant seat can fit in costs who knows how much... and it would all be mismatched... and we would have two strollers but still wouldn't have a compact one (like the Chicco) for travelling. That doesn't seem very frugal or efficient to me.

So if you are looking for something that meets criteria similar to mine, why not streamline and get something that has good safety ratings, is easy to use, serves multiple purposes, and looks classy, all while saving you money over the alternatives? The Baby Trend Expedition Travel System. I just wanted to share about it because I think it was a GREAT invention. It is not the top of the line in each category (carseat, jogging stroller, shopping stroller) but it does all the jobs well, and we are very happy with it.

Ours is the older model with brown instead of gray... I may post pictures later if I get to it.

PS -Be sure to lock the front wheel for running!