My bike, and how to make it mine and carry toddler/groceries?

FWIW, we have two trailers for 3 kids, and there are a lot of times I wish I had a Wee-ride carrier for our toddler. Trailers are great in certain instances, but not the best choice for every situation.

My advice would be to first get some riding skills under your belt before you consider riding with your toddler. Read traffic biking safety websites. Ride in traffic, get the skills to do hand signaling and to stop suddenly, veer, learn about when to 'take the lane', and defensive riding.
Between your somewhat heavy bike, groceries and panniers, and a small child, you are talking about a lot of weight...which can be tricky for even an experienced rider to keep balanced, especially in traffic or unexpected situations.
Do some riding first, learn safety skills. Then start adding groceries to the mix and see how it changes the whole feel. Take one step at a time...great that you are riding! :)

Today I purchased an iBert (the green front-mounted seat) for my toddler and a Weehoo iGo pedal trailer for my 6 year old. That way I can take them both to school/the store/whatever. The iBert has lots of reviews--nearly all positive. The Weehoo was expensive, but I figure I'm going to get at least 5 years of use out of it AND I can take it out on singletrack. When my kids outgrow it, I'll sell it.

http://www.weehooinc.com

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Originally Posted by BleeckerSt_Girl

My advice would be to first get some riding skills under your belt before you consider riding with your toddler. Read traffic biking safety websites. Ride in traffic, get the skills to do hand signaling and to stop suddenly, veer, learn about when to 'take the lane', and defensive riding.
Between your somewhat heavy bike, groceries and panniers, and a small child, you are talking about a lot of weight...which can be tricky for even an experienced rider to keep balanced, especially in traffic or unexpected situations.
Do some riding first, learn safety skills. Then start adding groceries to the mix and see how it changes the whole feel. Take one step at a time...great that you are riding! :)

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Thank you for such a detailed response. I'm taking instruction from a very experienced instructor and I'm confident that she will get me safe with all the areas that you mention. I am starting to manage my expectations with regard to exactly what I can safely carry. I'm hoping to actually take a lesson or two with my daughter in whatever carrier I end up with, though that might be a little way off yet.

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Originally Posted by buffybike

Today I purchased an iBert (the green front-mounted seat) for my toddler and a Weehoo iGo pedal trailer for my 6 year old. That way I can take them both to school/the store/whatever. The iBert has lots of reviews--nearly all positive. The Weehoo was expensive, but I figure I'm going to get at least 5 years of use out of it AND I can take it out on singletrack. When my kids outgrow it, I'll sell it.

http://www.weehooinc.com

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I'd love to hear how you get on with both of these, as I remain very interested in the ibert carrier.

Thank you again for all the replies, they are much appreciated.

Well, I had a go at riding with dd in a Burley trailer on holiday this week, and she loved it. I liked it too, and we're looking into getting one now. It felt very stable and secure.

You & your daughter will be just like Thistle & Fizz:
http://www.yehudamoon.com/images/strips/2008-07-19.gif

I'm sure you will be riding more often with your child in tow, hebe. Precious, fun times with her.

Thank you! I love that cartoon. I used to carry small girl in a fabric carrier and would put in miles walking along the tow path with her asleep on my front or back. Her nursery is at the top of a hill, and I know that I'm going to end up riding it for at least one of the drop-off/pick up trips every day. It's about a 3mile round trip so really should be do-able.