Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Baby Talk :: Car Seat Help

Happy Tuesday mamas....it's time for another edition of BABY TALK!

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Easy as pie!

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Hello mamas. I have a question for you today - what do you suggest for a Stage 2 car seat? AND, at what age did you make the switch?

We have the Britax B-Safe Infant Car Seat and absolutely love it. 
This bad boy has been wonderful and with a weight limit of 30 pounds we can still use it for a little while, but Kenley is getting bigger and heavier which means the carrier is getting heavier. I've started just leaving it in the car and taking Kenley out which is working fine but I know the next step up is in our near future. 

So, what do you have? 
When did you start using it?

Any tips? Suggestions? Ideas?

Also, did you buy TWO car seats? Right now we have two bases (one for my car and one for Jason's) which works great. I hate the idea of having to buy TWO expensive car seats but I really don't see how sharing ONE is going to work since one of us usually drops Kenley off in the morning and the other picks up. 

What to do? What to do?

So far I've got my eye on this guy...
I like that it can seat up to 70 pounds, so we can use it for a while! And that it works as both a rear-facing and front-facing seat but any wisdom you can impart on this topic would be much obliged. 

Don't forget to link up every Tuesday! 


19 comments:

Laura said...

Ahh car seats - I'm in infant car seat research land right now. Glad to hear you liked your britax! I'm between the Graco, Britax or Chicco! Cool to know that Will and Kate are using a Britax though! You were ahead of the curve :)

Kelly said...

Of course I don't have any suggestions for you, but just looking at those car seats is getting me excited for our dinner date tomorrow!! :-)

Young and Fabulous said...

do they make them for adults because that looks comfortable :)

its so funny looking back in the day when we were babies how baby gear has changed SO MUCH!!

xoxox

Jess Beer said...

We actually JUST did this since Abbie is so tall for her age - we switched a week ago (at 7 months - she was about to hit the height limit of the B-Safe). Because she's so tall, we actually ended up going with the Britax Roundabout, which goes up to 55 pounds.

I was looking at the Marathon, but knowing how tall Abbie is, I knew she'd grow out of it by height before she even got near 70 pounds, and we'd be able to put her in a booster by then. It also was about $50 cheaper, which was a big help when you need two. Like you, sometimes one of us picks up after the other drops off, so having two seats was a necessity.

I'd definitely recommend taking into account how she's been trending with her growth. Abbie's always been off the charts with her height and in the middle with weight, which is why I went the way I did. If Kenley's been about in the middle for both, the Marathon might be a better fit. My daughter is just ridiculously tall!

That said, I do really like the Roundabout so far - she's so much more comfortable than she was in the B-Safe. I do miss the ability to just click her into the stroller though! Let me know if you have questions hon!!!

P.S. I've also heard good things about the Diono Radian I believe it is? It's an all-in-one that converts to a booster later. Pricy, but you wouldn't have to buy the booster when you get to it!

Schnelle said...

We bought 2 graco my ride 65's. both my friend and cousin suggested it and love theirs. I'm interested to see the responses. I'm not sure when to start the transition either. She still has 15 lbs to go before she grows out of the snug ride 35 but I hear ya - it's so heavy!!

Ashley said...

I've heard fantastic things about the Diono brand! They are incredibly pricey and I know our babes are worth it - but a lot of other (less expensive)brands are just as good. Keep in mind when a brand boasts they are side impact tested that there is no standardized side impact testing, only front and rear. So one brand could have tested their seat in a 10mph crash, and another brand tested their seat in a 50mph crash. HUGE difference!

That said, a bunch of my friends have used the Safety First brand and have had absolutely no complaints so that's what I went with for C. One of my friends was in an accident with her daughter in the car using a Safety 1st and she wasn't injured at all. It's a 3-in-1 so it's good for up to 100lbs.
http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/browse/4/Auto/ChildCarSeatsandAccessories/Stage1Infant/PRD~0466234P/Safety+1st+Alpha+Omega+Elite+Car+Seat.jsp?locale=en

Allison said...

We have that same car seat and we love it. It's super easy to install and easy to put the baby in and take him out. We had a different convertible to begin with and he seemed so small it in and even though he was getting bigger he wasn't growing into it like I thought he would, but haven't had any of those worries with this one.

Sarah @ Life, Love & Dinner said...

We have both of those. Of course, we don't need either one yet but we heard awesome things about both so we registered for both and were very lucky to get them already! I like that the Britax Marathon starts at 5lbs so we can use that instead of two bases and we can move to it at anytime and be able to use it for so long. Since you're already taking Kenley out of the infant carrier, you could switch to it now if you wanted. My sister only had one bigger carseat and she dropped it off at daycare with my niece and found that to be a better alternative than two big carseats.

storiesfromatx.com said...

We recently switched because M hates the bucket seat. We purchased 2 because my husband and I switch cars a lot. We ordered the Diono Radian (in Spring print) and the Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 (in Sweet Cerise). They are both beautiful seats and super easy to install and use. I absolutely love both of them. And I did a LOT of research.

I like the Britax seats (we have the B-Safe too) but a few car seat techs that I spoke to said they are overpriced and kids outgrow them quickly.

Good luck!

Carolyn said...

I just learned so much just from reading the comments! I am glad I get to stick with my infant seat for a while though! HAHA!

Jessica said...

I've heard the Marathon is great!

Jen @ wonderfullyunkempt said...

We actually had to switch Avery out of her infant seat when she was 7 or 8 months old. Mostly because I am not strong enough to carry that seat around!

We got a graco my ride 70. It had good reviews and was on sale at Target for a great price. So we got one for each car. The only thing we didn't like about it was it was a pain to install. But we can use it until 70 lbs and can go front facing when needed. And she seems to like it. :)

Stacie said...

I'm a new reader, just wanted to chime in! :-) We have two Britax Marathons, each one was a gift from either set of grandparents so we didn't have to pay anything from our money. No complaints on the car seats either!

Our family, two feet at a time said...

We ordered two of the Britax Boulevards when our guy was about 8 months old. We switched it out in the hubby's car - but I didn't like that with it rear facing - he has less room than in the infant one. So we still have the Britax Chaperone in my vehicle (our main car when going out as a family) so he has more leg room. We won't switch mine out until he can sit facing forward.

We picked the Boulevard because we liked the thicker - more heavy duty head/side head impact protection. But we LOVE Britax!

Our family, two feet at a time said...

He has less *leg room* And I just leave the bucket in my car and get him in/out as though the seat didn't come out.

Kristen said...

The car seat you Posted is the one that we have, we love it! We have two, one for each of our cars because like you, one does drop off and one does pick up. It was expensive, but what can you do.

As for when we made the transition, I think C was about 8 months and was too heavy for the infant seat. It was a relief, because I couldn't carry 24 lb Caleb and that heavy seat!!

Ruthie Hart said...

We have this same carseat :) wish baby Hart would come so he could be in it! And my sister just got that same Britax convertible for Embry :)

Catalyn H said...

I registered for the Britax too! I want to link up next week for this... such a cute idea!

Stacie said...

Hey! I have a tall and "sturdy" girl (35 lbs at 2yrs). We moved her to the marathon (exact one you listed from target) a little after her first birthday. Target has a twice yearly baby sale, and the next one will probably be in October. We got it $30 cheaper that way and it shipped free.

I don't think there is an option other than taking it in and out of your two cars or buying two seats. My mom works at Children's Hospital, so she was able to get us 2 extras for her and my husbands cars or $40 each. Check your local hospital for a carseat program! I think the public just goes to take a quick "course" on how to install it and its yours! The marathon is very easy to move, though. When we go places with friends, it is not hard for us to get it in and out of their cars. It is huge, though. I think they all are, but it is massive even in our SUV (esp when rear-facing).

I'd totally reccomend the marathon in a few months (wait for that target sale!) and good call on the carrier. I stopped pulling that out when mine was about 6 months old. Good luck!