I recently found myself in quite a predicament trying to get out and about with my son using a wheelchair and my daughter getting a bit to squirmy for the baby carrier I had been using.
I scoured the internet looking for a solution and was pretty bummed there weren’t many readily found options out there.
It took quite a bit of digging until I eventually came across The Random Tandem Connection and all of a sudden life got a whole lot better.
This bar/clamp solution has been a game changer for me by allowing me to attach my daughter’s stroller to the side of my son’s wheelchair, making a stroller/wheelchair “double stroller.”
(Since this picture was taken we have gotten his seat and seat back replaced, it was falling apart!)
This is what I use when we go on walks around the neighborhood and I have been loving it. (This makes it too wide to go thru doors so its best for outdoors. I share my solution for when we go to appointments and other places indoors here.)
When I first got it and tried it out I was using an Uppa Baby Cruz and the shape of the frame of the stroller made it really challenging to attach, which made it really frustrating and time consuming so not as useful.
We decided to purchase this stroller instead and it has been pretty much seamless ever since. The smaller the frame of the stroller the less cumbersome and quicker it will be to attach.
This little contraption has seriously made such a difference for me. Before we had it and a stroller it worked well with, I wasn’t able to get out and exercise my favorite way, long walks around the neighborhood.
Being able to take both kids on a walk together has been such a treat for me and the kids love sitting next to each other and enjoying the ride.
Plus getting outside and going for a stroll keeps them busy when I need a break but can’t really get one. Also it calms them (and me!) and sort of “resets” us all when everyone’s getting a little out of sorts.
My son takes his big brother role of looking out for his little sister very seriously. When we first started using it I told him we needed to make sure she didn’t roll away and this was his solution :)!
How does the Random Tandem work:
The Random Tandem Connection consists of three bars, six clamps, and a safety strap.
To connect the stroller and wheelchair simply attach three clamps to the frame of the wheelchair and three clamps to the frame of the stroller, in spots parallel to each other.
Here’s a clamp on the stroller.
Here’s a clamp on the wheelchair.
Attach one clamp towards the bottom, one in the middle, and one towards the top of both the stroller and wheelchair.
Next line up the bars one by one and insert into each clamp and tighten.
Loop the safety strap between the stroller and wheelchair and there you go!
You’re all set, attached and ready to roll!
It does take a bit of practice at first.
The beauty of the Random Tandem is in its ability to attach at all types of angles. Once you get the angles down that work with the particular stroller and wheelchair you are attaching it gets easier the more times you attach and go.
I really hope this system helps you get out and about more if you’ve found yourself in this same situation.
It was such a breath of fresh air for me to be able to get out and, well get a breath of fresh air on my own with both my kids!
Let’s Talk: Have you found yourself in the same predicament? What tips or solutions do you have? What’s your favorite activity to “reset” yourself and/or your kids when everyone’s feeling out of sorts?
(This post contains affiliate links. Read disclosure policy here. I only link to what I personally use, love and/or see as useful. All opinions are 100% my own. Thank you so much for your support along this journey, whether that is you reading along and cheering us on, or if you find something I linked to useful and you contribute, at no extra cost to you, by making a purchase through my affiliate link. Either way, I sincerely thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by and read these words of mine.)
I love this! What an amazing way to take both of your kiddos out and about! And, the fresh air definitely helps recharge everyone’s batteries! I am looking forward to warmer weather to get out, this post is an inspiration! Thank you for sharing!
Your welcome! Yes getting out into the fresh air is a much needed recharge! Thank you for your kinds words! My next post I’ll be sharing what we do about going to appointments and other indoor places. Thank you very much for reading.
Hi Jody, this is my first time on your blog. I linked to it via the comment you left on Crystal Paine’s blog about how touched you were by her recent scope. I too thought it was SO powerful and I also had tears in my eyes at one point! I thoroughly enjoyed reading your blog. I’m not the mom of a special needs child, but the topics you write about are so interesting and so heartfelt. I’m sure your blog is such an encouragement to many moms! God bless you!
Wasn’t that scope so powerful? I was not expecting all of that when I watched it and didn’t realize how much I needed to hear what she shared about her struggles.
(In case anyone else reading this is wondering what we are referring to here is the link to it:
https://www.katch.me/MoneySavingMom/v/a1a49f10-bee5-3baf-b446-95647cc1ad8a)
Thank you very much for taking the time to read my blog as well and for your encouragement about it! I really appreciate it. Your compliment was so nice to come on and read, it gave me a nice boost today! Thank you 😊!
Thank you so much for sharing! I have been going crazy trying to find something that I can use! Often times I am alone with the kids and have no help. This summer I have a week long trip planned with the kids and dad won’t be joining us, and Ive been dreading the trip already until I came across your post!! But now I don’t know which I want to try first, the side by side or the front to back, choices choices choices! Thanks again!
I’m so glad this was helpful to you! I felt so restricted in what I could do with both kids by myself until I got this. I would love to hear which one you decided on and how its working out for you. I hope that it helps your trip this summer to be a little bit easier as well!
I have not been able to find this product and I’ve been searching like a mad woman. I take care of my mother who uses a wheelchair, and now watch my sister’s baby who uses a stroller. I’m going crazy trying to figure out how to have their rides connected so we can get around. Did they recall this item?
Hi Jess, here is a link to a similar product from the same company: https://travelwheelchair.net/products/random-tandem-connection-front-to-back.
I am not sure why the side to side one is not available anymore, this one attaches the stroller in front of the wheelchair. Full disclosure we did try the front to back one and had a lot of trouble getting it attached but I think it may have been user error on our part. I would definitely email the company (on their website) any questions about how it would work with the particular chair and stroller you are using prior to getting it.
Also here is a post (link below) about a little chair I used to attach to the back of my son’s chair. It can be used once the baby can sit up on their own. I used a random tandem bar attached to the back of my son’s chair to attach the chair to his chair but any bar would work.
Here is the link: http://www.thesweetandthesalty.com/?s=Getting+out+and+about+
I also used a baby carrier quite often and that worked out well while my daughter was still pretty young.
Here are the ones I used:
Becco Gemini: https://amzn.to/2JhhkM6
Moby wrap: https://amzn.to/2F83ZTE
I hope one of these will work out for you 🙏🏼.