Babyzen yo-yo. My two cents.

Pre-birth I wrote a post about making the most of small spaces. As I mentioned before I have a Fiat 500 that I love dearly and couldn't bare the thought of getting rid of it to fit the mountains of gear tiny creatures called babies need. It seemed as though unless I was willing to remove wheels whenever the pushchair needed to go in the boot, and then taking my toolbox to put them back on again when the pushchair was needed, this kid wouldn't be having a push chair.

Then I discovered the Babyzen Yo-Yo and I couldn't believe my luck. Easy to fold and unfold, easy to steer with one hand, and most importantly, an incredibly compact size when folded. So small it can be taken aboard a plane as hand luggage.
So far we e only used the chair on the 0-6m nest setting. I seriously, seriously LOVE this pushchair! As with all things it isn't perfect, but it definitely fits into our lives easily.

What I love about the Babyzen Yo-Yo.

It's size: it's tiny! I'm always getting comment about how great it looks compared to so many bulky and heavy pushchairs out there. Sometimes it feels as though I'm pushing a toy pushchair. Never do I have to cross the street when cars are parked half way on the pavement, or when the pavement narrows to barely over a foot. It takes up such little space in my car boot that I have been able to go and several trips to visit family, even taking Alfred's bed (and everything else he owns) in my tiny car. In fact, we even store it in the boot and hardly ever bring it in the house.

It's weight: it's fantastically light weight. I can lift it with one hand while carrying Alfred in the other.

It's easy: a push of a button and a flick of the wrist. Ta-da! Pushchair complete! It never fails to amaze, friends, passers by, and even me. When I looked into buying this pushchair, a criteria was that I'd be able to attach the car seat to the body. However, once I'd learnt how easy the pushchair is to use, getting the attachment and taking the nest off seemed like a complete waste of money and time. Not to mention the fact that car seats are not good for baby's posture at all! In his Yo-Yo nest, Alfred can kick his feet about, likely his arms turn his head comfortably on his back.

The very minimal downsides to the Babyzen Yo-Yo.

A smooth ride: on lovely fresh tarmac. Other times it's plastic wheels and little suspension makes for a bumpy ride, particularly on cobbled streets. Luckily though Alfred loves the bumpiness as it helps him to sleep. We cannot use the Babyzen for any kind of off-roading, but our intention was always to use a sling wrap for those occasions, which is exactly what we do. I made a wrap and we also bought a Tula.

The next stage: the nest is fantastic! I love that I can talk to Alfred about what we am see (and absolute nonsense), but soon we will have to swap the nest for the seat and Alfred will no longer be facing me. This is often the case with most pushchairs, sadly the Yo-Yo is one of them. I'm sure he'll love the new view as he is very observant (nosey) but I will miss our cooing sessions.

Sunshine: There is little shade from sunlight in the Yo-Yo but this has been addressed with the Babyzen Yo-Yo+. However we've got around this by buying a universal parasol for £10.

I would definitely recommend the Babyzen Yo-Yo for anyone who is struggling with space, but would also recommend some sort of baby wearing device. A perfect combination.

Alfred just one week old in my home sewn sling wrap.

When space is an issue; Part 2 "So are you getting a new car?"

I drive a Fiat 500. My beautiful blue Fiat. I've had it for about 4 years and we've been through a lot! Within only a couple of months of getting the car, we had the most horrendous storm which brought with it hail the size of golf balls. My poor beautiful car was covered in what can only be described as car cellulite.

It was a long process going through insurance, but thankfully, they agreed to pay for the repair to the body. It was eventually taken in and repaired 6 months later (there was such a bottle neck if cars that needed repairing it took that long).

But anyway, back to the point at hand. As you may know the fiat 500 is smaller that the Mini. It's boot space is pretty shocking really, but it's always been fine for me. I spent days and days looking into how I can fit my new life into my fiat 500. Reading parent blog after forum after pram review, it seemed as though no pram would fit into my boot (or trunk) without removing and reattaching a wheel or two each time I use it. I was watching bugaboos and icandys on eBay, (personally they were too expensive for me to buy new, but the ones that seemed to promise to fit best were a particular, or new model and I was finding it hard to find the ones I needed.

I can't remember exactly how I found it, but I came across the Babyzen yoyo. I took the measurements and could not believe the space it would need (or rather wouldn't need). This pushchair folds small enough to be taken on as hand luggage onto a plane and be stored in the overhead compartment. It can even fit behind my car seat and the back seat. It really is a space saving dream. As mentioned before I need to save space at home too, this fits amazingly into the under-stair cupboard and can even been hung up.

The Babyzen comes with a seat from newborn to 6 months, then 6 months plus. It can be folded and opened up with one hand (while you hold baby in the other). It pushes like a dream with one hand. I understand it's wheels aren't designed for a range of terrains, but I plan on wearing baby should we go walking up hills on beaches etc.

Now it's very early days yet. I have no baby to test the Babyzen but I have faith that I've made the right choice, and, given its size and sleekness (and the fact that I don't need to change my car) I found the cost to be quite reasonable, especially as I was able to buy it while there was a promotion on at John Lewis.

Do you have a Babyzen? How have you found it? Or have you discovered another brilliant push chair? Especially if it fits your tiny car.