The green machine!

Yes, I was slightly impatient waiting for it's arrival today. It doesn't help one bit tracking your package, and KNOWING it's been out for delivery since 5:00am that morning. But 12 hours later, and it had arrived at my front door. Good thing I had a few other things occupying my time today.

The instructions were a little confusing at first...but my brother helped me out, and all of a sudden, it was a breeze to put together! I went over all the basics inside after setting it up. Attached the second seat, figured out how the car seat adapter fit on, figured out the handle, brakes and wheel locks, then adjusted the harness straps. Cameron's shoulders are currently right in the middle of holes 2 and 3. I put them in 3 to test it out, but think I might move them back down for a little while longer. They are super easy to adjust, with no re-threading!

We tried out the back seat first. I want him to get used to sitting back there, since that will be his seat for likely another year. (At least when the car seat adapter is used.) Then he gets to move up front to be the big dog.

So far so good though! He seemed entertained enough just walking around the front of the house.

I spent plenty of time putting it up, and folding it back down too. It's a little trickier than my old Graco, and a little heavier...but I expected that. The second seat does not fold with the stroller when it is in the behind position, but will when it's located up front. The second seat is very easy to take off, and put on though. It's a breeze so far to push, and navigate. It turns on a dime, and isn't wider than you're average single, which is exactly what I was looking for. For now, it has just been taken down the street, but so far, it's everything I hoped it would be!

Bite the bullet

You should know me by now. I LOVE to research. I get so involved in it too....it practically consumes me! I have researched every pricey item I have bought for Cameron, and because of that, I have become loyal fans of certain companies, and love their products.

I have been looking at double strollers for a while now...and by a while I mean since Cameron was born. Clark and I knew, all things permitting, that we wanted our kids to be fairly close in age, so a double stroller would likely be necessary for us at some point.

Back when I started looking, I fell in love with Phil&Ted's. I was actually tempted to get the Sport model before we had Cameron, but the one thing I didn't like about it was that when using the doubles kit, you couldn't also use a car seat...and that for me, was priority number one.

So we ended up going with the graco travel system initially, though I continued my search for a great doubles upgrade for when the time came.

I found 3 strollers that I was definitely interested in.

Baby Jogger - City Select

UppaBaby - Vista

Phil&Ted's Explorer

Since I planned on saving a little money by ordering while I was in the States, and my trip here has been cut a little short due to health insurance; I had to make a quick decision.

I had already written a post about the City Select, and really, it's the most multi-functional out of them all...but I was unimpressed by the colors, and a little unsure of the size. It ends up being a really long, hefty stroller, and for every day use, it's maybe more than I needed. With the add-ons I needed to make the stroller work for me, it would end up costing around $740 usd.

The Vista color options are much better, but the doubles seat being on the front of the stroller does make it a little longer, and potentially harder to steer. With everything I needed...the total price was around $850 usd. Though that does include a bassinet, which while adorable, is a little too much work for me, and I don't believe can be used when the doubles seat is attached.

The Explorer is the newer Phil&Ted's model that replaced the old Sport I originally looked at 2 years ago. It is basically the same stroller, with added features, and the kinks ironed out. The color options are again limited, apart from a bright green, which I happen to really like, so it works for me! The doubles seat fits underneath on the back, whch makes it a little more compact, and it can now be used along with the car seat adapter. The price ends up being the lowest at just over $600.

So my mind was made up. Though I loved the color options of the Vista, I would get little use out of the bassinet I was technically paying for. The options the City Select has are second to none, but it's still fairly pricey, and larger than I really need. The Explorer was the one for me. It was the most reasonably priced given that it has basically everything I wanted, and in a bright, fun color. I bought it online and got the doubles kit free, so it ended up costing me $525 total. No tax, and no shipping charges.

It should arrive on Tuesday or Wedneday of next week, and I'm pretty excited to actually give it a go!

Newest on the wish-list

I do love a good camera lens, and I have several of them...all for a specific purpose. Since Cameron is my main subject though, having a Prime lens is pretty much a must for great, sharp, fast shots, without breaking the bank with a zoom.

For this reason, my favorite right now is my 50mm. Seriously good, and seriously cheap if you get the 1.8. My only beef with the 50mm, is that sometimes it's just too tight. You have to physically position yourself far enough away from your subject to fit as much as you want into the frame. Outside, this is often not a big deal, but inside, space can be limited.

Enter the wider angle 28mm 1.8. I have been eyeing this baby for a little while now. It normally runs around $800, and Amazon is currently teasing me listing it at $500.