Please help me find a stroller!

[MrsKreamer]

Hi everyone!

I am planning for our September trip. My 5 y/o Aiden has mild Autism(PDD-NOS, anxiety, ocd, etc). Our last trip in 2009, he was 3 and we used his stroller as a wheelchair. That worked really well for him, as he sees a stroller as a safe place.

My problem is that now that he is 5 (6 by Sept, and over 45lbs) he doesn't have his own stroller. We have a single stroller for our 14 month old Erik, that Aiden "borrows" when he needs to, which is (thankfully) less and less. When Aiden borrows the stroller, DH will hold Erik or use the umbrella stroller. So for our trip in September I would like to get a double stroller that can hold both Erik(25lbs) and Aiden(45-50lbs) comfortably. I don't want to rent the park ones.


TIA
Stephanie

 

[deegack]

Look at the city elite. Similar to citi mini but a bit larger and has larger wheels (so easier push). A few stroller rental companies rent them.

 

[jmartinez1895]

We have the city mini and LOVE it . It is so light weight and easy to fold. They make a double version that you should look at,

 

[wendylovesdisney]

I actually am in this same situation but with a 7 and 9 year old. They are both small girls. 9 year old has anxiety attacks, and meltdowns. She was diagnosed autism spectrum, but sometimes I think she has post traumatic stress, sometimes maybe just mental health issues. Sometimes, i dont know what. Regardless, I need a double for Disney. I don't use them at home anymore, but I know at Disney we will need it again.
In the past, we rented the city mini from Orlando Stroller Rentals and they are awesome! It also worked fantastic. It has a shade you can work individually for each child and it pulls down all the way to basically her lap. She could totally "hide" in there.
They were 7 and 5 the last time we rented one for Disney.
I'm looking into the elite version to see if it would work for my children this September. They weigh about 45 and 55 pounds now. The elite is supposed to be a smidgen bigger then the city mini.

 

[MrsKreamer]

Thank you all so much! Those look so nice. I don't have any experience with side-by-side strollers.
Are they just as easy to use?

Is the width a problem in the parks, or is it comparable to using the park double stroller?

What about using that stroller as a wheelchair? Does it fit through queues ok? I know we won't have to use for every ride, just during Aiden's fits, or when he needs a safe place. I know he will have to transfer, so I am really more curious if it fits through the line/waiting areas ok.

How does it fold down? Is it that difficult to store in the hotel room at night(we are in a moderate)?

When renting a stroller, what happens if the stroller gets spilled on, or damaged in any other way?



Thanks again
Stephanie

 

[lanejudy]

Maybe someone else has experience pushing a double-stroller through the lines, but we were there a couple of weeks ago and in my opinion it would be a very tight squeeze.

We push a single stroller through, and I honestly can't imagine trying to fit a double. You might research dimensions of a side-by-side double stroller and compare to larger wheelchair widths - that's what the lines are sized to manage. A front/back double would also be hard to manage in lines, I suspect it would be very hard to turn the tight corners. I would recommend separate umbrella strollers if you have 2 adults to push them. You could rent a Maclaren Major for your older child and bring your own umbrella stroller for the younger one.

Good luck!

 

[wendylovesdisney]

I took the double (i have 2 children, but only one with issues) city mini through all of the lines, on several trips with the "stroller as wheelchair" tag. I never had one problem with width. My daughter has no physical disability whatsoever, she can transfer fine. However, she cannot tolerate the people, the lines, the waiting. She needs her haven. If I leave her stroller and park it, it does me absolutely no good. You will be asked all of the time if you can leave the stroller. I had to get over feeling weird, or self conscious and say "no", I'm taking it with me. It's your right, and with my daughter she NEEDS it.
Like I've mentioned in other threads, it's hard when your child may appear "normal", but no one knows the heartache of having a child with psychological or mental disabilities unless they've been there. Be strong. Do what's best for your child.

 

[MrsKreamer]

I took the double (i have 2 children, but only one with issues) city mini through all of the lines, on several trips with the "stroller as wheelchair" tag. I never had one problem with width. My daughter has no physical disability whatsoever, she can transfer fine. However, she cannot tolerate the people, the lines, the waiting. She needs her haven. If I leave her stroller and park it, it does me absolutely no good. You will be asked all of the time if you can leave the stroller. I had to get over feeling weird, or self conscious and say "no", I'm taking it with me. It's your right, and with my daughter she NEEDS it.
Like I've mentioned in other threads, it's hard when your child may appear "normal", but no one knows the heartache of having a child with psychological or mental disabilities unless they've been there. Be strong. Do what's best for your child.

I could have written this! So true! Aiden doesn't do well in unfamiliar places, let alone with all the people in tight areas, for any length of time.

We just had Mardi Gras season around here. During parades there are lots of people, lots of color and noise. Aiden loves parades(especially catching throws) but can only handle them for 20-30 minutes, then he gets in his brother's stroller, outs the shade down and sucks his thumb. 10-15 minutes later he is fine again.

I would rather a double stroller, rather than a single and an umbrella stroller for a few reasons. First, I hate the umbrella strollers, they are too short for me to push comfortably, and they are very uncomfortable for the child if they need to be used for any length of time. Second, we would then be carrying 2 strollers on the bus, which means my DH would be trying to hold 2 strollers and our diaper bag (plus any souvenirs, etc) while I would be trying to hold my 1 1/2 y/o and my 6 y/o with Autism, and keep track of my 8 y/o!

I am going to go this weekend to look at the Double Sit and Stand, since I am more used to that style of double, and it has a platform for DS8 to stand on. If that looks like it won't work I will probably rent from OSR.

Thanks again!

 

[wendylovesdisney]

 

[ireland_nicole]

Have pushed both the citi mini and city elite (from OSR) through all the lines and it was fine - occasionally a bit tight, but always doable. Now ds is ok without one for the most part and dd has a pedi wheelchair because she finally grew out of our single baby jogger