Thinking ahead for my 11 wk old - 15 lbs and 26"!!!

[Caryn]

I'm a little taken aback that after Graco having redesigned the infant seat (SS1) to fit 97% of babies to 1 yr old, my guy is not going to be in it for much past 6 months or so!!!

He's 11 weeks old and is just over 15lbs and is 26" long. He's a MOOSE.

Since I'm going to have to take him out of the SS1 before he's 1 yr old, what would you recommend?

[NZ Child Restraints]

Mararthon or radian.

[CDNTech]

Marathon, Triumph Advance, Radian... in no particular order... maybe the new Trufit if it's all it's cracked up to be when we finally get our hands on it. ;)

What vehicle is it going in?

[skaterbabscpst]

Ignore the stated height limit - where is his head in relation to the top of the seat shell? His overall height isn't what matters. The seat is outgrown when EITHER he reaches the weight limit OR his head is within one inch of the seat shell.

[Caryn]

I have all three kids in the second row of a 2007 Sienna.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll have to look into those. Not sure exactly when I'm going to have to change him over, but he's already to heavy to carry around in the SS1 all the time. Plus I don't like how it scrunches him. I'd like to be ready to buy a bargain if I find one!

[Caryn]

The seat is outgrown when EITHER he reaches the weight limit OR his head is within one inch of the seat shell.

I wish they placed less emphasis on the height and pointed out the fact of being within 1" of the shell. The little guy is sleeping right now and I'm NOT going to disturb that :rolleyes: so I'll check as soon as he wakes up. It's got to be pretty close already...he has a long body...

[skaterbabscpst]

:) I know what you mean!

[Caryn]

Well, I got him in the car seat after he woke up and he's 3" from the seat shell.

Can anyone one else out there with a +- 11 wk old infant tell me what the average distance is at this age? It's so hard to tell how fast they're going to grow, but I'm curious as to just how much out of the "normal" range he is ;)

I'm thinking about changing to something else now because there are 2 issues going on in my mind with the SS1 right now:

I don't like the whole "cocooning" concept. It just doesn't sit right with me.
He's so heavy in the seat (25lbs altogether!) that I can't see myself carrying him in it for the next 8 months! I'm already ready to just leave the seat in the car, especially since I tend to put him in the stroller/carry him in the wrap a lot so he's not in that "sitting" position all the time.


I know not everyone has issue with #1, but hey. Perhaps I'm just looking for reasons to get a reallllly nice Britax ;)

[CDNTech]

If you want the RFing tether, then you just narrowed your options down to the Britax and the Radian. The Radian gives quite a bit more torso growing room than the Britax seats, but I think I've heard of some possible installation issues with seatbelts (in the Sienna) once it's forward facing... something to check out.

Another member on here has a very long torsoed baby... he made it to just over a year in the SS1 (14 months, I think).

Check out this thread so you know for sure what outgrown in height looks like. :)
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=30201

On a side note... if you are tired of carrying the infant seat around, leave it in the car and treat it like a convertible. ;)

[Caryn]

Thanks for pointing out that article - I had just assumed it was measured the first way, and didn't even think to check that that was the correct way :o Thank goodness my assumption was correct - this time! Lesson learned ;) And thanks for narrowing the choice down - I do want the rear tether. I think ;) The opinions on this board are so varied, and everyone makes good points about both sides of the argument!

I have been leaving the seat in the car, and I will do so until he outgrows it - I don't like him being in it for too long anyway. Looks all scrunched up and can't be too good for his little lungs etc. I just got an UPPAbaby Vista and was SO excited about the bassinet and - it's good to 25 lbs :( he's 26 lbs :( Fortunately the seat on it has an awesome recline. And I do have a Zooper Waltz just in case ;)

I think I'm just going to pick out his next seat to be ready to pick one up if I see a bargain.

[skaterbabscpst]

I would rather see you get a convertible with a higher Rf limit than a RF tether. Honestly, there isn't a lot of evidence suggesting that a rear facing tether is effective at preventing injury, but there is loads of information telling us that the longer kids are RF the better.

[Caryn]

You make a very good point. And I think the whole cocooning thing becomes less of an issue to me as their necks become stronger, whereas the RF thing is always an important issue.

[minismom]

25 lbs :( he's 26 lbs :( Fortunately the seat on it has an awesome recline. And I do have a Zooper Waltz just in case ;).

Is he 26lbs or 26" and 15lbs???

[melniemi]

Britax has their semi annual sale in Feb, so you can be on the lookout for a deal then.

[Caryn]

Is he 26lbs or 26" and 15lbs???

Sorry - you can tell I'm sleep deprived. I meant to say that the limit for the bassinet is 25" and he's 26". His toes touch the end if I put him in far enough down that his head doesn't bump the top!

[Caryn]

Britax has their semi annual sale in Feb, so you can be on the lookout for a deal then.

Thank you - that's good to know!

[Caryn]

I would rather see you get a convertible with a higher Rf limit than a RF tether.

So which is the one with the highest RF limit? I'm sure this is a question that is asked all the time ;) Perhaps someone should create a WIKI of FAQ that is kept updated as the seats change (and hopefully improve!)

[skaterbabscpst]

right now the highest rear facing limit in the US is 35 lbs. Of the 35 limit seats, I prefer the Evenflo Triumph Advance because it will last a FF child the same amount of time as a MA by height, and has a 50 lb weight limit FF. I can easily see an average sized child making it to 5 in this seat.

[NZ Child Restraints]

The Compass convertible is out soon by the looks.

[Caryn]

The Compass convertible is out soon by the looks.

I wonder what the RF limit is for this?

[crunchierthanthou]

If you're not going for a rf tether, I'd just leave him in the SS1 and use it as a convertible until he really has outgrown it. Maybe by then the 35 lb Britax convertibles will be out and you can have both. :)

The compass True Fit has a 35 lb rf limit.

[PixieEMT]

Well, I got him in the car seat after he woke up and he's 3" from the seat shell.

Can anyone one else out there with a +- 11 wk old infant tell me what the average distance is at this age? It's so hard to tell how fast they're going to grow, but I'm curious as to just how much out of the "normal" range he is ;)

I'm thinking about changing to something else now because there are 2 issues going on in my mind with the SS1 right now:

I don't like the whole "cocooning" concept. It just doesn't sit right with me.
He's so heavy in the seat (25lbs altogether!) that I can't see myself carrying him in it for the next 8 months! I'm already ready to just leave the seat in the car, especially since I tend to put him in the stroller/carry him in the wrap a lot so he's not in that "sitting" position all the time.


I know not everyone has issue with #1, but hey. Perhaps I'm just looking for reasons to get a reallllly nice Britax ;)


My DS was the same way! He hit 20lbs 27" at 4months old! He blew right out of his SnugRide! We had a Fisher Price Safe Voyage Deluxe, now we have a Marathon. Scary :eek: my pediatrician told me to FF him at 4months! Thank goodness I knew better and invested in convertible seats....when I found out I was due to deliver a 9lb bowling ball! Sounds like you've been doing your research about ERF though! :)
My little man is now 16months old 27lbs 33". He's only gained about 3lbs in the last 7 months.
~Sara

[Caryn]

Sarah,
Thank you for sharing that...it's very interesting to hear other people's experiences with large babies, because there aren't that many around!
I know that his rate of growth is going to slow down a lot. I wish there was some way of predicting this stuff so I could actually take advantage of clearance for next season! I envy those people who's babies wear their age ;)
~Caryn~

[Dillipop]

My guy was 17 pounds, 25 inches at 3 months.
18 pounds, 27 inches at 4 months
18 pounds, 6 ounces, 27 inches at 5 months
19 pounds, 6 ounces, 28 inches at 6 months
21 pounds, 30.5 inches at 9 months
23 pounds, 31 inces at a year.

At his 18 month, he was 25 pounds and 33+ inches.

So, he got really big, really fast and then slowed waaaayyy down in his second half of his first year.

He just outgrew his SS1 a week ago, by height. He was an inch away from the top of the shell.

At 8 weeks.

http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m43/goodwillie40/Gilbey%20Safeseat/carseat.jpg

Here he is at 6 months.

http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m43/goodwillie40/Gilbey%20Safeseat/misc058.jpg

At about a year.

http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m43/goodwillie40/Carseats/IMG_1158.jpg

You should have plenty of time with this seat. Just be careful carrying it down 2 flights of stairs with a 25 pound kid in it.

[Caryn]

Shannon - thank you! That is completely fascinating!