Convertible Car Seats

My LO's are about ready to move to a bigger car seat. DS's shoulders are really squished in the infant one so I'm looking for one that will accomodate broad shoulders. I'd love one that would convert to a booster seat as well. We don't have a lot of money to spend but want something comfy and safe they can grow with. DS is about 19 lbs and DD around 17 probably. Can anyone recommend good car seats? Also does it get harder to go out with them once you switch? Right now I use the snap and go and love getting out as much as possible. Any tips for getting them to the car from the house?

 

yes it is harder, I will not lie! Not real sure on which seats would be good for you, sorry......I do know that there are some that are for broad shoulders. Keep in mind that they have to be 20 lbs AND one year old to face forward....and the new recommendations are 24 monts to face forward!

Good luck

 

I got my girls the Britax Marathon when they out grew the infant carriers. We are still using the Marathon.

 

i also got the britax marathon convertible seats and LOVE them, they don't convert to a booster but go up to 65 lbs i think so that is a pretty big kid... my DS is a big boy with broad shoulders too and he looks really comfy in the seat.

personally, i think it is easier to get out with them now that they are out of the infant carriers, they were getting WAY too heavy for me to carry. i just take them out to the car one at a time, they aren't really moving around too much but if i am worried about leaving one unsupervised for a few minutes, i stick them in the exersaucer.

good luck picking out your carseats, there are sooo many out there.

 

We have Evenflo seats and I really like them. The straps are adjustable w/out having to fiddle with stuff in the back of the seat. It makes it really easy when they jackets on one day and not the next. Keep in mind if you purchase from BRU to demand the twin discount when buying two seats. We also were able to use a coupon when they were having 15% off car seats (but only on one). My biggest suggestion is take the kids to BRU and try them out, both with the babies and in your car. Some of them are VERY large when rear facing.

My biggest tip for getting them into and out of the car at home is to have a bumbo at the door you'll be leaving from. I put one there then put the baby on the passenger into the car. This worked well for a few months. You will develop a routine if you go out often enough. I even find now that my routine is so down pat that it's quicker for me to do everything than when DH helps.

Here is my routine:
Park car.
Get out and take out stroller.
Take baby from driver's side and strap into stroller. (if there is a passenger in the car my bag is back there too and gets put on the stroller)
Wheel stroller around to passenger side and get out other baby and strap them into stroller.
Take out diaper bag (usually in passenger seat), lock doors and attach bag (Skip Hop Double Duo) to stroller and away we go!

 

QUOTE(LMW1015 @ Jun 14 2009, 10:32 AM) [snapback]1353730[/snapback]
Any tips for getting them to the car from the house?


My kitchen is right by the side door ( our main door), I have a mat there. I put both babies there with a few toys and take one at a time. They are crawling too, so i try and do it fast!! LOL!!

What I worry about is how do you take them to the grocery store with out the car seats? Right now I place them both in their seats in one cart........

 

QUOTE(BlessedByTwo @ Jun 14 2009, 01:57 PM) [snapback]1353880[/snapback]
What I worry about is how do you take them to the grocery store with out the car seats? Right now I place them both in their seats in one cart........


Push the stroller and pull the cart. Or put them both in the cart seat together. There was a thread about that a few weeks ago that a search might turn up.

 

We have the Evenflo Triumphs and the Britax Marathons. I love them both.

I actually liked once they outgrew their infant seats. They were so heavy to lug around all the time. As for getting them out of the house, I would just leave on a mat and get one buckled in and then come back for the next one. Once they got mobile I would use the PNP as containment. Some have used a Bumbo by the door (once they can sit for a bit) to make the switch. GL!

QUOTE(mommymeg @ Jun 14 2009, 01:59 PM) [snapback]1353882[/snapback]
Push the stroller and pull the cart.


Ah yes, I remember that like it was yesterday. Oh wait, I still do that sometimes. ardon: It's a pain, but it works.

 

I don't know how long the bigger carriers would last for you since your LOs are already as heavy as my 13 monthers! But there are carriers that last to 30 pounds and taller than the 22 pound ones. I don't know how it would work for the shoulders... but at least you could use your SNG if you wanted...

with that said, I haven't switched from our Graco SafeSeats, but I did buy the EVENFLO Symphony like the pp said. I just need to install, but I really like being able to use the carriers... so I keep debating on returning the Symphony carseats until ours get a little bigger.

I am not planning on keeping ours rear facing for longer than them being 1 and 20 pounds... not sure if we'll make it to 24 months, but ours do very well riding backwards so I won't be changing that anytime soon since they announced it was safer to be rear facing to 24 months...

As for the grocery cart thing... I finally got my twin shopping cart cover (you can get it at Walmart) its the Twins Clean Shopper http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4631196 guess I don't know how to post a link... but there is the web address.

I love it! has 4 leg holes in case the grocery cart you get has 4 leg holes... and 2 straps... though if you need to you can just wrap one around both.... I finally did this last month when they were a year old... wish I'd done it sooner... the only thing is they can't fall asleep like they can in the carrier... but it was nice to see them so alert and interested in the shopping. I gave my girl a canteloupe to "hold"... and didn't realize until 10 aisles later that she was trying to bite into it! funny!!

 

Right now I have a britax marathon and a graco comfortsport. I'll be getting a second marathon when my friend brings me hers in august. I moved the babies already because they are WAY too heavy to carry in carriers (around 15 lbs apiece I'm guessing), and I just use my combi twin savvy stroller everywhere.

I have 2 older kids as well so I usually take the two older ones and one baby out to the truck first and get them buckled in, then come back for the second baby.

When we get out at the store I also get the stroller out and set up first, get out the driver side baby, then around and get out the passenger side baby and both my big kids out of the back.

It's more time consuming, but it's doable!

 

I just bought convertibles for our girls. I did a lot of research before buying them. We went with the First Years True Fit, because it has a really tall shell and I think the highest shoulder strap slots out there, plus lots of legroom. Most kids outgrow their seats by height before weight. I found this great website www.car-seat.org. I've learned a lot from that site. The new recommendations by the AAP is 2 years before you should forward face. I'm leaving mine rear-facing for as long as I can. They don't know any different, so they don't complain yet. These seats seem really wide, so they would probably be great for broad shoulders. I would post a question on that website and see what everyone over there recommend. I'm not aware of a rear-facing seat that becomes a booster. I know the Nautilus does, but it is forward-facing only.

 

I plan on keeping my girls RF as long as possible so for us the Britax Marathon is the best option. The First Years True Fit is also a great seat but I heard it's harder to use RF due to the location of the straps. As for the groccery shopping, I just put them in the shopping cart seated. If the shopping cart only fits one baby then I put the other in a carrier.

 

QUOTE(june07girl @ Jun 14 2009, 11:34 PM) [snapback]1354421[/snapback]
I plan on keeping my girls RF as long as possible so for us the Britax Marathon is the best option. The First Years True Fit is also a great seat but I heard it's harder to use RF due to the location of the straps. As for the groccery shopping, I just put them in the shopping cart seated. If the shopping cart only fits one baby then I put the other in a carrier.


I've read that bigger kids tend to outgrow the Marathons before booster age. Obviously, that all depends on the child and their size. The harness adjuster does get buried with the True Fit, but I hardly ever use it. I just use the continuous harness instead. I also have a minivan and the captain's chairs recline, so that solves the problem for me. There is a new True Fit out that solved the buried adjuster as well. It also has ARB. I wanted to wait for that seat, but my girls outgrew their Snugrides too soon. The Evenflo Triumph Advance is also a great seat. I have several friends that have that seat and love it. It comes highly recommended. Good luck with your decision. It took me so long to decide. I went back and forth for months.

 

Thanks so much everyone!!! We're off to BRU today to try them out. I'll let you know which ones we decide on.

 

We decided to go with the Evenflo Triumph Advance - http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3028985

We first got the Safety First Alpha Omega because it went up to 100 lbs, it was $50 off and we had a 15% off coupon plus the 10% twin discount - SO we basically got one for free. We were so proud of our good deal. Anyway - went to install and it barely fit in our van (we have a Chrysler Town and Country). Then we realized that to recline it properly there was NO way my husband could drive because the seat had to be all the way up. Not to mention my older DS had no way of getting to the back seat. What a pain. We went back last night and decided on the Evenflo and it fits great. We are putting the kids in for the first time today so hopefully all goes well. That model was discounted as well so we still got a pretty good deal. Thanks for all your help! Now we'll put to work all those great tips you guys gave me on getting the munchkins from one place to another!

 

You are gonna love the Evenflo's. They are a great seat. Mine never complain when they are in them.

 

I have been using the Recaro convertible car seat in my car. I am planning to have a new one to my baby. He weighs upto 25 pounds. Some of my friends told that the Britax car seat can support weight upto 40 pounds. Can you body suggest me with other options.
http://www.squidoo.com/convertiblecarseats