Re: Too old to be pushed?

I was wondering the same thing at Beale Park this weekend. Connor is only 19 months old at the moment and to be honest I like being able to constrain him but I do end up pushing an empty buggy around a lot as he likes to run around and explore. He has the over the shoulder 'I'm not going the way you want me to go, I'm going this way' look down to a fine art already. There were a lot older children in pushchairs though. No offense meant to anyone, but perhaps this all adds to the fatter child problem. I suppose it must be the easy option for a lot of parents if the transition is hard. It's interesting that Isabella was two and a quarter though and gives me something to think about. I look forward to hearing other people opinions on this.

Re: Too old to be pushed?

we still have lori's pushchair in the garage, but rarely use it. we stopped using it for days out/shopping etc when she was 3. i still use it occassionally now - we took it to spain with us last month for use in the airport and i am glad i had it. we also took it london a few weeks ago and again i really needed it. lori would happily go in it all the time, but when she tured 3 i decided enough was enough and now we only use it on the odd occasion. fortunately lori is small so she does not look odd in it.

Re: Too old to be pushed?

Isabella is really tall for her age and appears older than she is. I actually don't really care that much about what other people think, but I think whilst it is can be easier as a parent to keep then constrained in the buggy, it is only by practice that they will build up the muscles to to be able to walk everywhere.

Rebekah, I agree with your comments about obesity in kids.

But parenting is hard work, and I am as guilty as the next parent of sometimes taking the easy option. So I am not so much looking down on parents that still put their kids in buggys, it is just another example of how everyone has different parenting styles. It is interesting how some parents focus on certain aspects - like our conscious effort to get rid of the buggy asap and other parents don't!

Re: Too old to be pushed?

What an interesting commentary ladies. We, like Nicola, stopped using it around about the time my son turned 3. The hardest time was walking home from pre-school when he'd worn himself out, but he soon got used to it as he got used to pre-school and all the stimulation.

You're right, there are so many parenting styles. We can only do what we think is right for our own child though I suppose!