Product review - Quinny Zapp Xtra

Today we give our opinion on the pushchair we have used with our boy since he was a few months old - the Quinny Zapp Xtra.

We, like most families, spent a long time deciding on our pushchair of choice. We took many things into consideration such as size, mobility, comfort and positions. Cost was also a consideration but a little lower on our list. 

As we live in Brazil we decided that we would be using our pushchair for walks around the village and when we would go to the shopping centres. It is not normal for people to use pushchairs in restaurants or town centres so we would fit in with the culture and do as others do (also the streets and shops are not prepared for pushchairs).

We knew we wouldn't be using our pushchair on public transport as there are no adequate ways to do that in our city.

With all these considerations in mind we settled on the Quinny Zapp Xtra. One thing we really love about this pushchair is that it is suitable from a very young age and with the inlay can be used from birth. The pushchair has 5 positions both front and rear facing which is great for when your baby is tiny and also to recline an older child if they have a doze. It is easy to recline and doesn't disturb a sleeping child. 

One drawback to this pushchair is that it is in two parts. The base folds down very neatly but the seat is quite bulky. For us it is not a big problem as we use the pushchair in select places but I can imagine having to fold it down to get on a bus would be quite a challenge if you are alone. I do know that Quinny have now released the folding seat so I assume this would solve the problem but as we have managed for our first son we will just manage for our second son too!

All in all we are really pleased with our pushchair and have had no desire to trade it in. It has done 18 months for our first guy and is still in really good condition. It is simple to clean and hasn't scuffed around the frame at all. To find out more visit the Quinny website.

Product review - Eating equipment

As our son grows we find we must purchase new products to accompany his growing skills. As we have found it hard to choose the right ones we thought it would be fun to share our review of products we have tried and tested. This post looks at the products we have used concerning mealtimes - from bottle to bowl.

MAM teets

When our son was born we made the decision to breastfeed him. We had also discussed me going back to week one morning a week starting when he was around 10 weeks. This meant we had to decide on a feeding method for those hours I wouldn't be around to feed him. I had always liked Avent feeding systems so we went ahead and got a breast pump and bottles. Firstly, expressing the milk was quite uncomfortable as I had to lean forward and at an angle and after a while it got very tiring. secondly, our guy was having non of it when it came to taking milk from the Avent bottle. Avent have now made a new system which allows mum to sit back while she is expressing and bottles that help to blend breast and bottle feeding. However, I had my pump and was not about to go and buy another so I made do. For our baby boy we searched the shelves to find something that resembled his normal milk packaging and came across MAM. The teets are softer and shaped in a more maternal way. They were a huge hit and we had no further problems. 

When it came time to start solids I investigated spoons and bowls. All the spoons seemed so big for such a little mouth and it is very uncomfortable opening your mouth really wide for each bite. We decided to opt for a small coffee/tea spoon. It was metal and had a short handle - the perfect size for our sons little hands. He was able to grip it comfortably and we made sure we chose one that was well rounded so there was no chance of hurting his mouth when we fed him.

MAM bowl

The bowl was a little more tricky. To start with we just used a lid of his bottle which we could sterilise but as he got bigger we needed to get him an appropriate bowl. We tried some plastic dishes but they were so deep he had trouble getting near the food. In the end we chose a MAM bowl which had a sucker to keep it on the tray of the highchair or table. Although the sucker is quite rubbish and so far our boy has managed to unsuck it every meal, the bowl is shallow and has one edge slightly deeper which helps him to get food onto his spoon. 

Doidy Cup

To accompany the bowl and spoon we needed a cup. We had tried a small shot glass when he was small and he had been confident using it but the fear of him breaking the glass and cutting himself was too much so we decided to look for something else. A friend of mine actually provided us with our cup as a lovely gift for our boy and it is perfect. It is called a Doidy cup and has a slanted shape making it easy for the child to drink alone with fewer spills. It is a winner in our house.

Travel high chair

As for the highchair, we decided that mealtime is family time and we wanted our boy to join us for meals at the table. This led us to purchase a travel high chair which fits securely onto one of our dining room chairs allowing our son to sit at the table with us. It has been great and also perfect for visiting people or eating out. 

If you have any best products you'd like to share we are always on the lookout for recommendations and would love to hear from you. Just leave a comment at the bottom of this post.