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Monday, January 26, 2009
Can anyone enlighten me please?!
So Tylie is quickly approaching her first birthday, which means we can turn her car seat around! (if she is 20 lbs by then) YAY and hallelujah! The only problem is I have absolutely NO idea what kind to get. It seems like there is a million and one to choose from! The first stage car seat seemed so easy to choose from...I just picked the cutest pattern...just kidding! But really they all just seem so huge and look all the same to me! Some are $75 and some are $450 but they look exactly the same. So can anyone help a sister out and enlighten me please?! Thanks in advance!
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We got ours at target. It was around $75. Bailee was 20lbs by 9 months so we had to get a seat that could also be rear facing until she was a year. I like it, and it's not as big as most. My friend spent a lot more on hers and it doesn't seem to be a lot different....only a lot bigger.
We have two Britax Marathons. They retail for about $250 but I got ours for around 189 at Amazon. They have great reviews and they go up to 65 lbs so you never have to buy a booster. They'll live in those car seats basically! Britax are probably the most $$ but they are worth it.
Graco Nautilus and Evenflo Triumph are also good car seats but they don't have as high of a weight limit as Britax Marathons. So you will eventually have to buy a booster with those. That's what I factored in when I bought our Marathons. Good luck!
P.S. Marathons are also convertibles so you can rear face them for newborns. The lowest weight limit is I believe 5 lbs. I seriously love our car seats!
I agree with Traci, you don't have to buy a really expensive car seat for it to work properly. I took a car seat safety class through the utah county health department where they actually sold car seats afterwards. It probably retails around 60 dollars or something. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles... but let's be honest... does your one year old need a drop down arm rest and a cup holder?? They can't even reach them. Plus, if you do have to buy a booster for them when they are older. They are seriously 20 dollars. In my calculations... 60 + 20 only makes 80... pretty sure that is less than 189!
PS. Kids have to be in boosters until they are 80 pounds (here in Utah at least) so you would have to buy a booster anyway. :)
Hey Chels! Joe has the Britax Roundabout. I love Britax, I don't think I will buy anything else. I almost got the marathon, but since I travel frequently by myself with my buddy, the roundabout seemed like it would be easier to carry by myself to the gate, plus I loved a pattern with the roundabout. They retail for about $220 but I got mine brand new for about $180 on ebay. I agree with Carly, Britax and Recaro are probably the most expensive but I can't rave enough about mine. You splurged on the diaper bag, might as well splurge on the car seat :)
For the sake of argument cheaper doesn't mean safer. Easier? Lighter? Sure...safer? No.
Chelsea I looked up the Consumer Reports Ratings on Convertible Car Seats. I'm saying go convertible because I know for my daughter she won't reach 20 lbs until she's probably 15 or 16 months but she's way too tall for an infant car seat. (and it's actually safest to rear face your child for as long as possible) Okay so here are the top rated convertible car seats:
Evenflo Triumph 5 is the top. It retails for $120.
Next is the Britax Roundabout (Jen's seat)
Third is the Cosco Alpha Omega Elite (about $160)
and fourth is the Britax Marathon. It got a poorer rating because of the LATCH system fit but we don't use the LATCH in our car because it isn't equipped with it.
Anyway I'm not trying to say you have to shell out hundreds of dollars for your seat. Just do your research and set a budget. Also keep in mind what kind of car you have and how the seat will fit (rear facing and forward facing). Marathons are cumbersome and take up a lot of room rear facing. Roundabouts are smaller with about a 45 lb weight limit. The Triumph 5 goes to about 40 lbs.
Another thing to weigh in is the cat seat COVER. Kids are messy and will obviously be eating snacks and drinking in their seats. Is the cover easy to take off? Is it easy to put back on? Can you throw it in the washer? That's one thing I love about our Marathon. The cover is awesome and so easy to clean.
I'll agree with Rachel on the fact that kids don't need drop down arm rests or cup holders (Marathons, Triumphs, Roundabouts don't even have those) but they do need to be comfortable. When people buy cars one of the first things they check out is the comfort of the car. Kids spend a lot of time in their car seats and you don't want them to hate it!
Oh my gosh I'm back but I just have so much to say about this topic!
Make sure the seat you get has straps that don't tangle. My mother in-law has a seat in her car for Cadence that's a no-name brand from I think Wal-Mart or something and the straps tangle ALL THE TIME. It's insanely annoying and makes putting her in the seat 10x harder and takes 10x longer. That's another thing I love about the Marathon. The straps are wide and thick and never tangle and they fit comfortably with padding over their shoulders.
Okay I sweat this is my last post. A couple good, cheaper car seats are the Cosco Scenera. It's a basic, no frills seat. You can rear face to 35 lbs and forward face to 40 lbs. To get a good rear facing though you have to get some pool noodle to adjust it. It retails about $40.
The Safety First Uptown is another good, cheaper seat. Same weight limits as the Scenera. It's easy to install and has an 8 year life span (most seats are about 6 years). It retails for about $80-100 depending on where you buy.
Albeebaby.com and Amazon.com frequently have great deals on most of the seats I mentioned.
Wow... hot topic. I wasn't trying to be rude... sorry Carly. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and all I was trying to say is that in the car seat safety class I took they told us you don't have to have an expensive seat for it to be safe. You can find a reasonably priced seat (under 100 dollars) that is just as safe as the expensive ones. If you want to get an expensive one, that is just fine too... but according to the Utah County Health Department, it doesn't make that big of a difference. I really am sorry if I offended you Carly, I was kind of tired when I was reading blogs last night and I really didn't mean to be rude.
PS We have to cosco seat and Jacob falls asleep just fine in it. I am also done posting. The end.
Oh no Rachel I didn't think you were being rude at all. I'm sorry if I came across that way though. You're absolutely right that you don't have to spend a ton of money but I didn't want anybody to think I just made my purchase on a whim. I spent a lot of time...a LOT of time researching seats and prices before I bought the Marathon. Seriously I didn't think you were being rude at all.
And I had no idea in Utah the weight limit was 80 lbs! I was like 80 lbs when I was 10 years old. I can't imagine having to be still be in a booster at 10 years old. ha ha!
And I think I have officially worn out my welcome on your blog Chelsea. Sorry! :)
Hey guys, just catching up on a few blogs. It's fun to see what's up in your lives- I feel like I know you better already! :)Tylie is so so cute- I can't believe how big she is. I liked hearing what you do Chelsea- yes awesome job and Shane good job on your last semester of school..we're just right ahead of you and we're like what 5 years older. :) Someday we'll come see you in cali! Hope things are going well!
All I have to say is WOW!!!! Such passion about a car seat...my favorite part is that rachel went to a car seat safety class, that is AMAZING!!! I never knew that something like that ever existed...only in Utah I guess!!! All I know is I have never been so informed on the ins and outs of buying a car seat and I almost want to go out and buy one even though I dont even have any kids!!! I might even start this whole blogging epidemic, never knew you could get so enlightened.
According to Consumer Reports, they ALL have to pass the same safety stuff, so any one is as safe as another. You can get the cheapest and it's just as safe. However, we initially bought the cheapest but realized it lacked any real kind of padding, so we took it back and got the next step up money-wise so it was comfortable and pretty inexpensive (on sale for about $60-70). We got a Graco ConfortSport convertible car seat and we've loved it. Carter especially loves the cup holders for treats and drinks. ;-) It lasts up to 40 lbs. Carter is a huge kid, and he's still only 31 lbs. right now. As far as buying boosters in the future, they are super cheap ($20 for a Graco TurboBooster for 40 lbs. and up) so you can save tons of money by not buying one of the more expensive car seats. That money can be saved and spent elsewhere, like on pretty covers to change out on your car seat!
http://www.2littlemonkeys.com/toddler-car-seat_176_d.htm
Check out that link to see an idea of the covers you can buy. They are pretty pricey, but if you search online, you can find better deals. I found someone local who makes custom ones with the fabric of your choice on Craig's List for like $40.
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