4 Our Health

Question:

Not sure if this should be here on in Life With a Babe...
:help
I've been reading consumer reports and epinions about car seats. My big point of confusion is, how many car seats will take my child from birth to teenage cruising? There are infant seats, which seem like glorified baskets, with handle-thingies. There are standard car seats, which seem to be rear-facing for infancy, and then front-facing for up to 40ish pounds (and if I have one of those, do I need one of those specialized infant seats?), and then there are the boosters, some of which look strikingly like regular car seats, and seem to take kids up to 100 lbs, at which point petite kids may actually be ready to get married. Do I need one of each? Or just two? Which two? Give me your opinions for convenience and safety...let's pretend money isn't an issue. :scratch

Answer:

If money were not an issue, I would be getting this babe a Britax Marathon carseat like her sister has. I think they are really safe, and they can go from infant all the way through toddlerhood and beyond. (My 7 year old can ride in her sisters seat safely and still be under the weight and height!) They also can rear face a much longer time, which is the safest position for a child.
I'm not an expert on carseats, and there are so many other mama's here that are... but thats my opinion!
Unfortunatly we'll probably have to get a baby bucket this time around because I just don't have the cash to fork over for a Britax.

Answer:

Britax car seats seem to have the best reputation. My favorite is the Britax Boulevard because it has side impact protection and an infant support pillow and infinitely adjustable shoulder strap height. You could use it from birth, although you should make sure that it would fit rear-facing in your car at the proper recline for a newborn (45 degrees). Because it is a taller seat (that will probably last until your kid is at least five), you need to make sure there is enough space between the back of the back seat and the back of the front seat.
While I am in NO WAY a fan of using an infant car seat as a baby carrier, there were times when it was VERY convenient to be able to bring both of my babies into the house from the car and have them still be asleep in the car seats. If that is something that you think you may be inclined to do, then I would recommend getting an infant "bucket" car seat. We have the britax companion, and for the most part I like it very much. It also lasts longer than a lot of the other brands, since it goes up to 30" and 22 lbs (some max. out when the baby is 26 inches long, which one of my boys was at 3 months). Also, a newborn baby does look awfully tiny in a big convertible car seat, especially in one of the larger britax seats (the marathon, decathalon and boulevard are all the same size).
If money is really no issue at all, then I would get a britax companion to use from birth, and a britax boulevard for when the companion is outgrown.
HTH!
Lex

Answer:

and then there are the boosters, some of which look strikingly like regular car seats, and seem to take kids up to 100 lbs, at which point petite kids may actually be ready to get married. LOL!! :LOL That made me laugh. I tease my mom cause she's so short (4'11" and a lightweight- under 100lbs) that she could ride in a booster seat, and technically should be riding in the back seat only (the safest place for kids 12 and under). :LOL
Sorry, I'm not much help. I always used a bucket carseat until age 1 ish (found it very convenient for when baby falls asleep in car, which is OFTEN), then move up to a regular carseat/ booster seat. The ones that are usable from birth through booster are the best bang for your buck.

Answer:

Before Nora was born, we were planning just to get the "convertible" car seat...the ones that go from 5 to 40+ lbs. I was also leaning towards the Britax Marathon. However, we were offered a gently used infant seat (a Graco) from some friends (we knew that the seat had not been in an accident so felt OK to use it) and I'm glad we had the infant seat, which she will soon outgrow (and we'll start using the as-yet-to-be-purchased convertible).
Why am I glad we ended up using an infant seat, which has such a short range of use (to 20 lbs. OR 26 inches in our seat - Nora is 5 months and almost 26 inches...some of the new Gracos go to 29 inches)?
--The convertible seats are HUGE and I know they can be used with newborns, but it seems like it would be uncomfortable for the babe without seriously padding around them, unless the seat comes with such padding. The infant seat seemed huge enough when DD was tiny!
--You can take it in and out of the car. I still :scratch when I see people actually using the infant bucket car seats as primary baby-carriers - they are sooo awkward and murder on your back - but they are darn convenient when babe falls asleep in the car seat and you don't want to wake them going into the house etc., or putting them in the stroller (see next one)
--I had planned to ONLY sling my babe but DH convinced me to get a stroller, one that can snap in the infant carseat and then converts to a normal stroller. It was a GREAT purchase. Sometimes I need something that I can put groceries or other stuff in, or we're going to be walking longer than I can comfortably plan to sling DD. AND, when she falls asleep en route to wherever in the car, I can just take her out in the seat and snap it into the stroller, usually without waking her - fabulous! I would be totally mean to wake her up and make her get in the sling when she's sleeping peacefully.
I always take the Hotsling *in* the stroller in case she doesn't like the stroller, btw. It's fairly easy to sling 'n push if that's what you gotta do.
SO, I recommend getting an infant seat, even though it's an extra expense. But if you just want to get one seat for a loooooong time, Britax makes a super-duper seat called the Decathlon and I think it goes from 5 to 65 lbs. and it looks like it has lots of padding for tiny babes...but I haven't checked it out too closely.
The "rules" (and laws in most cases) are:
--rear-facing carseat, either infant or convertible, to AT LEAST one year AND 20 lbs. (not one or the other)...but rear-facing is safer so you can usually leave them r-f to 30 or 35 lbs.
--infant seat, only use until the height OR weight limit is reached.
--convertible seat, may be used from newborn to 40 lbs. (check indiv. seat as this may vary.)
--after they outgrow the convertible, they need a booster. I don't know much about these. Laws vary on how long you HAVE to have them, but all kids are safest in a booster in the back seat as long as possible. Kids under 12 shoudln't be in the front seat if at all possible.
And the most important thing...
HAVE YOUR SEAT INSTALLED OR YOUR SELF-INSTALL CHECKED BY A PRO!!
Something like up to 85% of seats are installed incorrectly and hence, unsafely! I didn't believe this until we got ours checked. We had read everything available about how to install this particular seat and yup, we had it wrong. :( It is HARDER than rocket science to install a lot of seats, and the installation will be vastly different in different vehicles! So find a licensed car seat tech and even if you have to pay, it's worth it. Police depts. often do it for free but they may not be up to date on the latest seats.
Good luck! Car seats are one of the most frustrating, and important, purchases you will make for your new babe.

Answer:

I agree that it is nice to have a seat for each stage. There are certain feature that you really want for a 4 month old, and others for a 14 month old and others for a 4 year old.
An infant seat is nice because it is portable. You can bring it inside and it is not hot in the summer or cold in the winter. When you go somewhere else you have a safe place to put the baby if it is needed. And if they are asleep you can carry them in that way, especially nice if it is at a restaraunt or the doctors office.
Then it is nice to get a carseat with a 5 point harness that is rear facing a long time- I believe some go to 35 rear facing. It is much safer back wards even for a 2 year old, and will still go forward for the next 10 or 20 pounds.
Finally there are some things that make my life a lot easier in a booster seat. One that is narrow, so often those convertable seats are very wide, and even if you take the straps out and use them as a booster, it is hard to buckle. On the narrow boosters, my 4 and 6 year olds can buckle themselves. I also think it is important to have the hole so the seat belt goes through the booster and isn't just clipped to the side like so many of the covertables, again it makes it easier to use, and I think it is safer. I also like cup holders!
I say buy a seat for the age you need don't try to cram all of them into one design.

Answer:

We have a traditional bucket type infant seat for the first 4 months or so. Both girls were 26 inches by then. That is the height limit for that infant seat. At one time we did have a stroller that it snapped on to which was nice when we only had the one infant. After they outgrow the infant seat, they go into a britax roundabout. My oldest is 3 1/2 and she is just now weighing enough to go into a booster.
I like the little bucket type seat. It is easy to snap in and out of the car and bring inside to put baby in and out. This is really helpful with older siblings running amok while I am trying to get everyone loaded in the car. Also both my girls would never sleep in the car, but they would sometimes nap in the bucket, which I could rock with my hand or foot. I think they liked how enclosed they felt when they were sitting in it, it must have been like being swaddled. If you end up getting a bucket type of car seat, you can get a little stroller frame that you can snap the infant seat right in it. That would be useful if your kids are small and could ride in that sort of car seat a long time. My kids pretty much went around in the sling, but in summer you can do some power walking much easier if you have a stroller.
ND

Answer:

First off, money is an issue for us, but we've decided that carseats are the most important, so we have prioritized. We will be getting the Britax infant seat, then move up to a larger one. I am also not an advocate of carrying a baby around in a seat, but I decided there will probably be times when I want to bring sleeping babe into house(as a new mom, I'm sure I'll be uncoordinated!). I also think it seems like babies would be swimming in the convertible seats. I thought long and hard about this, because an extra $170 for the infant seat is a big chunk of money.

Answer:

We decided not to get an infant seat and have been very happy with our choice. There have only been a handful of days when we were running errands that we wish we had had one. Most of the time we're really happy that we're not tripping over it in our tiny house.
We have a marathon now after having researched poorly the first time. Our old seat (hmmm, yes, 'old' at all of 6 months... :( ) is now becoming the grandparents seat.
The marathon is great. fits well and is pretty easy to install. They're way more solid than the others.
If you're looking at a marathon or other Britax convertible, you might consider a cheaper option for the infant seat. You might only be using it for a few months at which point your child won't swim in the larger seat anyway. Just look for a good 5 point harness and get it installed right, use it correctly every time and your child will still be safe. Our DD is really tall and at not quite 6 months is now 28 1/2 inches tall and around 17 lbs. She would have outgrown an infant seat somewhere around 4-5 months old. $170 is a lot for something that is only used for a couple of months.
If our DD had been born in Feb (as your child will be) rather than April we probably would have gotten an infant seat to help deal with winter temperatures a bit easier.

Answer:

Wth DS1 we had a britax roundabout. He was 10 pounds at birth and never looked too small in it. My husband has the britax wizard in his car. Then once DS hit the weight/height he moved to a britax booster in my car and can still use the wizard in hubby's.
With DS2 we bought a britax companion baby seat thinking it would be easier to move him around in that. You always see moms using baby carrier/car seats and they look so handy. I actually regret spending the money on it. DS has reflux and hates the seat from what I can gather due to the position it puts him in. He overheats in it, is always sweaty when I take him out even in now cool temps. The seat weighs a ton and this coming from a person handling 40 pound bales of hay on a daily basis. I have to use 2 hands to carry it which leaves no hand for 3 yr old. I actually leave the seat in the car now and just put DS in a sling when we go places. DS2 will be moving into the wizard in my car in another month.

Answer:

Like other's said I love my britax marathon and the decathalon looks great also. You could just buy one of those and use it from birth until 65 lbs and at that time just get a booster seat.
Infant seats are convenient but unnecessary and they grow out of them quickly.
Basically you could end up buying 3 or more carseats or splurge and get a britax that will last up to 6 years.
Good luck, there is a lot of car seats and information out there!

Answer:

We are investing in two carseats for our babe. Our first one so far has been a Graco Infant Carseat, the newer one decorated in the Sage Toile. I am glad we decided to go with an infant seat because our daughter is petite and was born several weeks early. She only weighed six pounds when we left the hospital and had premie like features (very small head!) She is only like 12lbs now and just fitting comfortably in it. The Britax would have swallowed her whole! (however her brother did find in a Roundabout at the same age, he also weighed 20lbs at 16 weeks old!). I imagine I will be able to use the infant carseat until she is a year old, at that time we are going to buy the Britax Marathon carseat. This is something I just don't see us skimping on. I've used other brands of carseats and I have to say the Britax is worth every penny and is what everyone says about it!
Kim

Answer:

I LOVE carseats so here goes. :LOL
The new infant seats go up to 22# and 29". The old ones are allowed to be sold, so if you buy one, make sure you get one of the new ones (manufactured since August 05). Also, the Graco Snugrides are generally the most reccomended and the best bet for your $, especially if baby outgrows it fast. My oldest finally switched at 7 mos (we wanted him to get through the holidays), but my yougnest can still fit in his at 10 mos, though we've now put him in a convertible. He won't hit 20# for a long time I'm sure!
There is no reason to have an infant seat if you can get a seat that fits well on a nb. I've seen pics of a 5# baby in a Britax roundabout and they don't fit well. The Wizard on the other hand, looks great. Fit is very important and it's why most carseats fail at checks. 4 out of 5 carseats are used incorrectly!
Britax carseats go up to 33# rfing, some others go up to 35# rfing. Right now we have a Cosco Alpha Omega (I wouldn't reccomend this one) and a Scenera (a good seat if you're on a limited budget or need a 2nd seat for another car etc), both go to 35# rfing. My 28 mos old is 30# and 35" and still rfing in the Scenera. Babies need to be at LEAST 1 yr and now for the most part 22# to ff. Both of my seats don't ff till 22#. I have a combo seat which is only ffing that does start at 20# though. It's our extra seat in DH's car (he never takes the baby anywhere, just AJ). The longer you keep kids rfing, the better. I highly reccomend reading this and then checking out the crash test footage in that section as well. This was a major reason we actually turned AJ back to rfing after ffing for over a year! He has had no problems being turned back around. Here's another site w/ pics of older children rfing, most in Britax seats.
Yet another thing! ;) Carseats are generally only safe for 6 yrs, they now have expiration dates on them. So, even though a carseat says 5-100# etc, it needs to be replaced after 6 yrs anyways. It's safest, and the law in some states, to keep kids in carseats till 8 or 80# and 4'9" (I believe this is the height) so you'd still need to get a booster seat then. You should keep children harnessed as long as possible as well. In all seats but the Britax seats (except the roundabout) this is 40#, in the Britax seats it's 65#. Belt positioning boosters generally aren't reccomended till 4yo, though there's no reason to move them to that from a booster if they still fit safely in the harness.

Answer:

Wow! Thanks for all the great information, mamas! This thread really took off...everything I ever needed to know about car seats. THANK YOU! :love :love

Answer:

I'm in agreement with pretty much everyone. I LOVE my Britax seats and wouldn't get anything else. We have had 4. We used the Companion when he was little (until 4-5 months) at which point, even if he was asleep he was 16 lbs and the thing was too heavy, so the convenience factor was lost (he would have outgrown it at 10 months when he hit 22 lbs). I was glad to have it though, especially when we travelled. We use a Roundabout now for travel, and it stays in DH's car (secondary baby car LOL). I have a Wizard in my car at the moment, but will be moving it to our small airplane (don't ask...men!) for travel and I ordered a Boulevard to replace it. I like the Wizard and Boulevard (and Companion for that matter) for the extra side impact protection. I also like that Britax makes seats that keep a child in a harness until 65 lbs because a 40 lb child may very well not be mature enough for a booster and a 5 pt harness is safer :) I think the Britax seats give you the best safety features for the longest period of time.

Answer:

we have used an infant bucket seat with all 3 and loved the convenience.. Leila, however, suffers from silent reflux and the position her body was in in the bucket was causing her pain and she screamed every time we were in the car, the entire ride.
At 11 pounds and 2 months old (a few weeks ago :LOL ) we moved her into a britax decathalon and its been the best purchase we ever made (its our first britax, and when the other two kids hit 40 pounds and outgrow their current seats, we'll be getting them britax as well). I miss the convenience of having the bucket - we go out to eat every Friday, and since she can't sit up, she's in the sling and I try to eat without spilling on her..

Answer:

I didn't want to get the bucket seat but DH convinced me we should. He pointed out we don't have to carry the baby in the seat all the time, but it would be a nice convenience. And after two weeks with Baby G, I can say I am glad we did. I think that come winter, I'll be even more pleased with it so I won't have to move him from the warmth of his seat to get him into a store or home. I would like to get a Britax when it's time to move up to a convertible- they are supposed to be the best.

Answer:

If you're looking for a less expensive bucket, I think the Baby Trend Latch-Loc is a pretty good buy (can't seem to find it at BRU website, although we got it at their store ... maybe around $60??). We have this, and I like the fact that the base's connection to the LATCH fasteners in the car is a *bar* instead of a strap. It is extremely secure, and very easy to install.
There are a few quirks about the seat that I dislike, however -- the way the straps come together to click into the bottom fastener is somewhat awkward, although I'm mostly used to it now (very hard to fasten if the straps are tight). And I often have to fight with the handle to get it to release so I can move it to a different position. I've said a fair number of not very nice words during many a wrestling match with that thing.
Otherwise, however, I've been happy with it, lol. We use it with the Baby Trend Snap 'N Go () I do like the triangle shape of the handle, as it lets me hold my arm at a fairly natural position while carrying it. It still bangs into my legs, though -- I think this is unavoidable. If you get it, I think they have two models, so make sure you get the one that goes to a higher weight/height limit.
GL with your decision :).