Shopping for buggies in Harrods

The Baby Photographer

Sympathy Pains

Published on Wednesday, 19 February 2014 12:00

Last Updated on 17 February 2014

Michael Shilling

1 Comment

This phrase terrifies me as it should any expectant father regardless of income. It’s a sign of things to come. If one were to regard Marijuana as a gateway drug then Harrods isn’t exactly a gateway shop.

You might consider a gateway buggy shop something like Mothercare, Kiddiecare or ToysRUs.

After a while you dabble in the John Lewis sales and perhaps even spend a forgotten afternoon down the Northcote Road.

Only then is it really acceptable to move on to the hard stuff like Harrods.

 

But to go to Harrods to get an idea of what’s on the market, to see all of the available options that are out there?

That’s like smoking crack before you even try a Chocolate flavoured e-cigarette.

 

To explain why I am writing about this drug filled analogy I must go back in time to approximately 12 weeks pregnant when we told my wife’s mother (who lives in Edinburgh) our good news.

I had visions of us sharing the news only to hear the swinging of a receiver on a cord as my mother in law boarded the next flight to Heathrow.

That didn’t quite happen but she did turn up about a week later……which is lovely don’t get me wrong……but what happened after that worries me.

 

The weekend my mother in law came to visit was a busy one for me in the studio so Emma and her mum spent most of the Saturday out ‘Window shopping’ for baby.

When they returned home I asked if they had a nice day and where they went and they replied “We went shopping for buggies in Harrods”.

My reply of “Harrods!……can’t we just pick up a second hand one” wasn’t well received. Neither was “don’t Tesco sell buggies?” for that matter.

 

Luckily my wife isn’t a Versace fan or swayed by a two grand Aston Martin Edition Silver Cross and for that matter she’s surprisingly not overwhelmed by what Bugaboo has to offer.

 

Silver Cross does have the lead in the search as apparently the £15 Hug Me Kitty Stroller on sale at Tesco for £15 is for dolls not babies.

 

 

Michael Shilling is a baby and family portrait photographer at Memory Gate Photography he is due to become a father for the first time on 11th July 2014