David Sheridan 'Living With' the Britax B-AGILE Double

The Britax B-Agile Double arrived today. Lots of photos taken to show the pushchair in the box, in it's parts & fixed together. I would like to say that my wife took the parcel in & left the second parcel to one side thinking it was something else! It wasn't until later that we discovered it was in fact a cosy toes for one of the seats ... so no picture of that yet!

The pushchair was packaged well in the box & it arrived box intact! (always a bonus). It came with a manual in a variety of different languages but the main part was in picture format. Easy enough to follow, but if you're like me, you have a go at fixing things together before looking at the instructions! I did have to check how to unfold it though.

In the box: the pushchair (double seat unit, wheels, raincover, adapters to fit a carseat to one side of the pushchair, we don't have the make of carseat required so I will not be fitting them, 2 hoods, raincover)

Putting it together: Small swivel wheels at the front, big wheels at the back, hood slot into the fixings on the chassis. It appears that they do have a specific way around as the first one I tried to put on didn't seem to fit, but then it did fit on the other seat! Done! The hoods each have a zipped pocket. Great for when I go out for walks on my own as it means I have somewhere to store my drink & ipod!

 

Both seats fully recline individually by pulling on a mechanism behind each unit. To sit it back up, you simply pull on the straps and slot them into a strap holder attached to the rear of the seat. The shopping basket looks a good size, which is what I would expect from a double pushchair. The handle bar is height adjustable, which is great as it means I will be able to use it comfortably as well as my wife as there is 11" difference in our heights! To adjust, just push the buttons in on the inside of each side of the handle bar & move to desired height. To fold, there is a push button on the right side of the chassis. It needs to be pushed in & up. Then, simply pull up on the 2 straps going across each seat unit which releases the pushchair from its stable position & it enables it to fold. There is a clip on the side that will hold it together once it has clicked into position. It will stand unaided, providing the handlebar is in the correct position. Its side profile is quite tidy for a double.

 

Fitting it in the cupboard is going to be interesting. I'll save that for another day. As it arrived so late in the day, it was almost school run time when it was fixed together. With this being the case, it's first use was just a short walk.We still had not realised the other parcel was a cosy toes so at this point it had still not been fitted, but with the little ones seated it was time for them to test it out. Easy to steer. Brake mechanism easy to use. Wide enough that on the way back from school, there was room for my daughter to 'help' push.

 

On opening the second parcel, we discovered the cosy toes! It is now fitted to one of the seats, ready & waiting to be used. It looks very good quality & I am sure it will keep Samuel warm as we already have a pink universal one for Angelina. I am looking forward to using this pushchair & putting it through it's paces!

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January the 27th 2013

 

Samuel had a scan booked so the pushchair was packed into the boot & off we set.
Getting the pushchair unfolded was a little awkward & a woman in the car park laughed at us struggling to do it. With the pushchair finally up & ready, putting the kids in was the next task. With the cosy toes in place, it is sightly tricky. It has a tendency to slip so in effect, it shortens the straps making it difficult to get the child in. More so with Angelina as she's that much bigger. Once in the pushchair, they are kept warm & look very cosy. Angelina has a habit of pushing her feet against the cosy toes & forcing it open along the zip. Britax have got a clever little loop & toggle that when attached, it is impossible for her to do this! The pushchair handled well & was fairly lightweight to push.

February the 2nd 2013

I hadn't updated that we did in fact receive a second cosy toes so both seats are matching now! I have found that they actually impede getting the children into the seats easily. The weight of them makes them drop down which in turn, shortens the length of the straps making it difficult to get Angelina into the seat. Lucy put a friend's daughter in on seat to try it out too. She's a few months older than Angelina & therefore bigger. It was a struggle, but this was when we discovered that it was actually the cosy toes getting in the way. She suggested it could do with some kind of fixing to hold it up higher & keep it in position. They do keep the children warm and dry though.

Pictures below from a walk in town. followed by a quick trip to the supermarket.

February the 11th 2013

The more the pushchair gets used, the easier it gets to unfold! It still seems a bit of an ordeal with the cosy toes fitted but would probably be more fiddly having to remove & re-fit them each time. As you can see, the cosy toes on the side where Angelina is seated is folded over at the top. It is kept in place by a toggle on either sie & this is what prevents her from being able to use her feet to open it up.

February the 16th 2013

Returned from a shopping trip to find Samuel asleep in the seat. Unfortunately the pushchair is too wide to fit through our front door so Lucy carried him out of the seat whilst I took Angelina indoors. As you can see from the picture below, Samuel looks very well protected from the elements.

February the 19th 2013

The sun was shining, though deceptively chilly! Angelina and Samuel enjoyed a nice brisk walk down to the local shops with both myself and Lucy. The sun did catch them and, although you are able to unzip the hoods on top to extend them further, the section that gets longer is mesh, so it doesn't really act as an extended sunshade. We will have to use third party sun shades to fully protect them from the glare. This will be more important in the warmer months to, to protect them from the harmful rays.


February the 26th 2013

Lucy had a go of using the Pushchair yesterday during a trip to the shops. She hadn't adjusted the push bar to suit her height, although that didn't pose a great problem for her. We utilised the pockets in the hoods to store wallet, vouchers, emergency wipes & tissues as Lucy didn't want to take the baby bag around the shops unnecessarily. The basket space under the pushchair is somewhat awkward to put things in & the changing bag doesn't easily fit in it. It's ok for a few small bags & the rain cover, but nothing more substantial. 

March the 6th 2013

The hard part of the handlebar is getting quite scuffed due to the folding & storing position of the pushchair as it touches the floor.
Sun in their eyes... Although there is the zipper on the hood that effectively extends the hood, as the extension is mesh, it doesn't really help guard against the Sun's rays.

 

March the 9th 2013 

Shopping trip to Matalan... The height adjustable handle bar makes it a comfortable pushchair for me to push.

March the 20th 2013

What with Samuel being ill & then Lucy being ill I didn't get to take the two kiddies out in the double last week. Didn't seem fair to take Samuel out in the cold being unwell & to be fair, Lucy needed me indoors to look after her anyway.
This week the weather hasn't been particularly great, but with Samuel being otherwise fit & well, we took a stroll out and around the local area.
There ia one part of the pavement where the Pushchair only just scrapes through as it narrows so much. If it were any wider then I would have to go out into the road. 

 

March the 27th 2013

Birthday boy Samuel & his cousin Angelina last minute party shopping!

As you can see, Angelina has managed to use her feet to push the cover of the cosy toes off of herself! 

March the 28th 2013

A quick visit to the Grandparents house to share some of yesterday's birthday cake with them! The great thing is, that the pushchair actually fits through their front door! An added bonus as usually visiting people means having to take them out & carry them indoors one at a time, go back outside, fold the pushchair & carry it in!

 

April the 5th 2013

The steps nearby the inlaws are a short cut to the shops when walking that way. However, at the bottom of the steps, there is a partial railing blocking part of the pavement to get to the street. The pushchair does actually get stuck at this point & needs forcing through the gap. Any wider, & the pushchair would not get through at all!

 

April the 22nd 2013

What a week! Lucy is back to work full time (despite requesting part time) & last week was my first week with both babies on my own! After a difficult start for Samuel (missing Mummy, who hasn't been apart from him for any length of time), things have started to fall into place nicely. They're loving their walks & it's helping with keeping Samuel in a good routine. 

May the 5th 2013

May the 7th 2013

The pushchair is pretty good at getting through many gaps, but only if people park properly...
It's a particularly dangerous street as people don't park correctly on the other side either so drivers can't see properly as they are coming up or down the road. This means, when a pushchair cannot get through & has to go in the road, there's an added risk element...

May the 10th 2013

Approaching the gate you might think there's not enough room, but as you can see, there is ample space either side of the pushchair.

May the 21st 2013

With chicken pox rife in this house recently, it has meant being confined to the home to reduce risk of infection. This means the britax hasn't been used. There was a discussion about doubles amongst a group Lucy belongs to, with a debate about the types available. Of course Lucy was able to give her opinions of the two varieties we have used leaning in favour of the britax. It gives a comfortable ride & is stylish. And to be perfectly honest, it's the kind of pushchair a man is happy pushing! 

May the 28th 2013

Getting out with the Britax recently has been a nightmare! This house seems to be full of illness after illness. I feel like I need to paint a red X on the front door!

June the 10th 2013

I took Samuel & Angelina to watch Shannon in her sponsored fun run. They both fell asleep in the pushchair but it was a lovely day to be out. I have photos, but have not put them on the mac yet. As soon as they're transferred I'll share here.

June the 15th 2013

Having the pockets on the back of the hood is really useful & probably the one feature I would say has made my life much easier when getting out. They are deceptively large & hold many items. Being in the position they are, I feel that anything stored in them is quite safe and secure.

July the 9th 2013

Needing just a little extra shade here! With the sun beating down hard, it is difficult to keep them in the shade 100%. Perhaps if there was an extendable hood to give extra shade then it wouldn't be an issue. This is probably my one gripe with the pushchair, as they face away from the parent, it is difficult for the person pushing to see or even notice just how much sun is catching their little ones.

August the 3rd 2013

The Britax has had a fair bit of use these last few weeks but getting online to send updates has been a bit difficult as when Angelina goes home, I go to work!
There is one concern that myself and Lucy share, and that is that as the seats are not parent facing, it's easy to miss the sun hitting them. Unless you stop to check every time you turn a corner or change direction, you don't actually realise the sun beaming down on them. This could be a worry. Lucy can't find our shade that attaches to the hood, otherwise we would probably use it to extend the protection offered by the pushchair's own hoods.
The brakes hold fast. Last week I stopped the pushchair on the high street hill, which is quite steep & took a photo of the pushchair with the brake on.

August the 5th 2013

The britax has been used out and about at various activities. Mainly by Lucy and her sister as it is now the school holidays and they have gone out together. Her sister is impressed with how well the pushchairs handles, even with one hand!

August the 8th 2013

Again, used by Lucy as she and her sister both went to a kiddies party together. The pushchair was great to use as it saves them each having to take one. Amy (Lucy's sister) particularly liked the inclusion of the big pockets in the hoods. Plenty of room for the essentials without the need to find somewhere to hang the changing bags!

August the 12th 2013

Park use today. Easily got through Park gate which looked on the small side. Only issue was keeping the sun off their legs. 

August the 14th 2013

Back from a walk around town. Just to show the pushchair fits through the gate... This is useful as we cannot get it through our front doors and if either or both kids are asleep, it means disturbing them to go in the front. In this weather we've been getting it's easier to walk them around the back & leave them sleeping...

August the 27th 2013

The awkwardness of trying to access the emergency doctors and a shopping trip...

Great having the central part of the handle being so strong too as with the buggy lock, I can fit a shopping basket on the back!

Final Summary