need advice buying 5pt. for 4 and 6 year olds!!

[lorib12]

I am looking to buy new seats for my 4 and 6 year old. Both weigh 44 pounds and are 46 and 47 inches tall. My 6 year old is very small and my 4 year old is very active and I feel they are both safest in a 5 pt. I am using a booster with my cars seat belt now and feel they are both VERY unsafe! I thought I had decided on the Radian then noticed the height limit was 49 and my boys are 47 inches each. I read the post about it being OK to use it if they are taller but not sure I am comfortable doing that. I do not have top tethers (HOnda Odyssey 02)so I cannot use the safe guard go. The Regent is just so huge and I would like something that can fit 3 cross when they are in my husbands care since I have a 2 year old also. I guess I could just use the old boosters for those times but I would like them to be safe ALL the time. Has anyone used the Alpha Elite Apex 65? I looked at it in the store last night and it is cheaper than the Regent and maybe a little smaller. It has these big armrests though that seem pointless and take up space. I cold barely lift the regent myself. Price is my last concern though. I am desperate for advice as we are driving from Atlanta to Chicago in 2 weeks and I want them to be comfortable then and safe ASAP. Please help!
lorib12 - mom of 4 kids ages 10, 6, 4 and 2.

[mommyto4kiddos]

One idea until you figure out their new seats is if you have seatbelts that can lock when you pull them all the way out, would be to lock them into their boosters.

As long as you have tall seatbacks i think the apex works.

[mommycat]

Radian comments, not that you shouldn't get another seat if someone suggests one that will work better for you:
- at least in the Canadian ones, the height limit recently got changed to 51 inches, though I don't know if the same is true for US versions. This change was confirmed by Russ at SK when I emailed him.
- It would be worth it to check them in the actual seat at a store (or better, in a car) to see where their shoulders are in relation to the slots, since overall height matters less than torso height - you want to see if they still have room to grow up to the top slots.

As for top tethers, is it possible for you to retro-fit them if you feel you need to?

[lovinwaves]

Have you heard about the new Recaro seats coming out? I sell them if you are interested in purchasing.

Here are some links where we have talked about them:

http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=17810&highlight=recaro
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=10907&highlight=just+got+off+the+phone+with+recaro