Pushchair-tastic

A cautionary tale. In the last two years, I have become the proud owner of 4 pushchairs and experienced the use of several others. But thankfully my latest (and hopefully last) is really impressing me.

We started off with a Bugaboo Frog: ideal for the wide streets of New York, and providing Hummer-like security for our newborn. Then we moved - and discovered that it was a pain to get into a car boot. Then we moved again to Paris and found it awkward for manoeuvering around narrow streets.

Next up was a Maclaren Volo. Cheap (-er than the Bugaboo), easy to fold, great for negotiating narrow streets - and it broke after about 4 months of use. It was the most basic model so didn't recline and I felt slightly anxious watching my precious baby's head loll sideways every time she fell asleep. But oh, the joy of being able to travel around relatively easily.

So I kept the faith and bought another Maclaren, the Quest this time so that we could recline it for naps. Again, very happy with this and when I got pregnant for the second time, I decided that I would just buy a buggy board for my daughter to go on the back, and would put the new baby in the Bugaboo pram to start with, then swop over to the Maclaren.

What I hadn't taken into account was the wilfullness of a small under 2. After a couple of months struggling to persuade my daughter to either walk or ride behind her brother (and at one point having to throw her bodily across the pram) I realised that if I didn't get a 2-seater I would be spending all my weekends stuck in our flat, at least until my daughter was old enough to be relied on to walk. The double-wide Maclarens seemed like too much for Paris streets and a complete no-no for public transport. A lot of the assistantes maternelles (childminders) have double-long pushchairs, but these looked even bulkier.

After lots of trawling around the internet I settled on the Phil & Teds Sport. One month in, I can confidently say that I have found my pushchair nirvana. Nobody tells you when you have your first child that if you plan on having a 2nd pretty quickly, you will need a double. So I sound the warning cry now: get a Phil & Teds to start with, and then just buy the double kit when your 2nd bout'chou arrives. NB: I'm not the only Mum who signally failed to forward plan: my friend Emma had her kids at the same times as me, and has also succumbed to the lure of the Phil & Teds.

It's not all plain sailing. The instruction leaflet is RUBBISH - in a world of complicated instruction manuals, this one is miles ahead (behind?). I am still wondering what the 2 little black nubs were for. My other complaint: the front wheel has a tendency to stick, making steering difficult (whereas normally it's a dream). The only solution I've found to this is disconnecting the wheel and reinserting it; fine when I'm at home but not so easy on the go.

The pluses: it doesn't take up much more space than a single pushchair, because of the seat arrangement. So public transport is still a possibility. The handlebar moves, meaning The Husband can also push without subjecting me to moans about backache. And you can squeeze into smaller spaces. Big Sister is thrilled with her seat up on high, watching her brother's wriggling feet beneath. There are loads of different combinations thanks to the zips/buckles etc. I've worked out a way of stowing the double kit underneath in the capacious shopping basket so when Big Sister isn't onboard, Little Brother can see daylight.

All in all, very happy. Kiwi Jane tells me that all the Mums in Wellington have Phil & Teds (it's a New Zealand brand). Sensible girls.

My daughter's first words were all in English. For 18 mths, she was with me day (and night) and hearing English, so it never occurred to me that there would come a time when she might prefer speaking French....

And that day has come around rather quickly. I had pushed to the back of my mind the fact that she calls me 'mama', and answers 'oui' when I pose a question. But this weekend I finally had to admit that my little girl is a Parisienne, and she wants to speak French. She's been testing me by saying 'mummy' and then 'maman' and watching to see my reaction. For some reason, this was the final thing that needed to fall into place for me to realise that there is every chance that she will grow up more comfortable speaking French than English.

Admittedly, it's not very reasonable of me. Her Papa is French, she lives in France - what could be more logical than that she prefers French? But I have taken it very personally, as though for the last year she and I have been allies in Englishness and now she's abandoned me by making this simple step over into another language. A language that I am still struggling to learn and find unremittingly difficult.

So, my question is: should I keep fighting? If I make English an obligation, won't she resist even harder? I spent last night scouring the internet for English language schools in Paris, and discovered (as if I didn't know already) that we live in the wrong area and can't afford to live in one of the arrondissements that is overflowing with English-language schools.

I do have one weapon in my armoury though: her deep, deep love for Makka Pakka. Until my daughter was a year old, I was careful to avoid exposing her to the evils of television...mindful of the dangers of ruining her powers of concentration at an early age and causing an addiction to TV shows designed to market own-brand products to small, vulnerable minds. Then I got pregnant again and oh, soooo sick. At this point, DVDs saved my life. And now my Mum has sent over a DVD of In The Night Garden, and this appears to be the key to keeping my little one interested in speaking English. Even if her vocabulary is all about the Ninky Nonk. Ah well.

I'm going to kick off with a moan. Sunday was a beautiful spring day here in Paris, and not unreasonably we fancied a stroll. The plan was to visit Pere Lachaise cemetary, a short bus ride on the 60 from our house. We had a wander, had lunch, and tried to make our way back, again by bus.

I appreciate that pushchairs take up a lot of space, but hey, people with children need to move too. Apart from the fact that we normally have to wait for several buses to pass before there's space for us to get on, it doesn't add to the general atmosphere when some of the other occupants of the bus start moaning about your poussette.

It's not just the weekends, either. Same thing happened Friday at 11am, and pretty much every other time I've taken the bus in Paris with my kids. Given that during the day time the people who need to travel are non-workers, that means there's a lot of disgruntled parents and elderly people. So can we try to co-exist peacefully? Ta.

p.s. Pere Lachaise was a good idea for a spring day - plenty of roads that you can push the poussette on, and little ones can wander around collecting twigs without fear of crowds, cars or joggers.