This post is more for input from you guys than me telling you something. I know that we have a little while before we need the next step in car seats, but you know... we are nerds and we research. So here begins the research.
What kind of front facing car seat do you have? Do you like it? Would you recommend it? Are there things about yours you would change? Do we really need all the bells & whistles (cup holders, etc.)? Does anyone have one of the ones that upgrades to a booster seat for later? Was it worth the money??
I know she doesn't sit forward for another five months, but either I start looking now, or I'll be running at the last minute to get one when I realize she has outgrown the one she's in.
5 comments:
WARNING!!! This comment turned into a book! But in case you don't have enough of my thoughts, feel free to ask more questions. :)
We have the Evenflo Triumph. We have loved it with one exception. After using it for about 3 years, the chest clip broke. The problem is that it couldn't be replaced because of the way the seat was made. They have made a few changes to the carseat and I think this might have been one of them, but I'm not sure. The reason we got this one is that we felt like it provided plenty of support and safety. It can also be used rear or front facing. When rear facing, the knob on the SIDE for tightening the straps is very helpful.
Despite our trouble, we got another one just like it for Caroline. Once Nathan was old enough for a booster, we got the Compass folding booster from Walmart. It wasn't too expensive, but still has the high back and shoulder guide for the seatbelt.
We decided against a convertible carseat because we didn't know what we would really want once we got a few years down the road. I LOVE Nathan's carseat, so I'm glad we went this direction. Plus he was really outgrowing the Triumph (see blog pictures for 12/07).
On the bells and whistles...ours haven't had too many. Nathan's new one has cupholders. This has been helpful at his age, but I don't think we would have used it much earlier. We occasionally let Caroline have cups that could go in cupholders, but I don't think she would be able to use it well...or if she could, that she would.
Okay, mine might be a little lengthy too, sorry. But I have spent a lot of time on this issue and want you to avoid some of our costly mistakes.
I tried to go for safety without spending tons of money. In our case, it turns out the money is worth it in a car seat. We started with the Alpha Omega (the upper version is the Eddie Baurer car seats). The straps continually twisted and had NO padding. Grant could never rest comfortably in the car seat. Not good for a family that has long drives often to visit family.
We now have two Britax's. The first is a Marathon. We really like it and albeebaby.com has one on sale for $180 -- this is a steal for a Marathon (they usually run over $220). For Grant he is in a Britax Frontier. Its designed for kids from the time they outgrow the pumpkin seat to they are much older - we wanted to keep Grant in the 5 point harness as long as possible. It has the cupholder which is really nice for Grant. Later on it will change and be belt positioning only. Both Britax's have awesome padding and both kids sleep comfortably in them:-)
Now is a great time to go ahead and buy because they are trying to get rid of last year's model and come out with the new fabrics. albeebaby.com and amazon have some great sales on Britax right now. I find it has been worth the investment:-)
I have heard good things about Recaro and Sunshine Radian but have no experience with those. Happy shopping!
elise used a britax roundabout when she left the infant carseat. but cooper is in it now since he is so large. we just bought her the graco nautilus 3-1 just this past week. so far we like it. it looks comfortable and the head can be raised as she gets taller and can be used with car's seatbelt when she's ready for the booster stage. I do like britax but they are pricier. but if you can get a good deal, it's worth it.
http://www.woot.com/
Not sure if you are ready to make this quick of a decision but the Recaro Como is on sale for $105 (including shipping). Its originally well over $200. The sale is today only. It will keep Katherine in a 5 point harness until she's 70lbs!! Our Marathon got damaged when we flew with it (always put your car seat in a plastic bag if you fly!!!) so I think I am going to replace it with this.
Thanks for all the advice and comments! We are a little ways from buying one but will keep all of this info in mind!! You guys rock!
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