Booster seat for my 2-year old?

My daughter just turned 2 and is big for her age. She is two pounds away from being over the weight limit for her convertible seat. Is it too early to put her in a booster, and are there any boosters made for this purpose???

WAYYYYYY too early. About three years too early.

What seat is she outgrowing and what is your budget? We can help. Also, what car do you drive, and are there any other circumstances (you fly often, move the seat from car to car, only use it occasionally, need it to fit between two others, etc.)?

Wendy

No, your baby is absolutely not ready for a booster seat. Its vital that a child is kept in a 5 point harness as long as possible and there are alot of great seats out now that allow you to do this. Many parents, including myself, keep our kids rear facing as long as possible also. Having a child FF increases the risk of neck/spinal cord injuries during a front end collision. Here is a picture of my 2y/o who is about 24lbs. 34" tall with a 13" torso riding RF in her Uptown:

The Uptown is $99 at Walmart (you usually have to order it) and it RF to 35lbs. but only FF to 40lbs. But I intend on buying the Graco Nautilus for her anyway so that is why I bought the Uptown.
If you want to go back to RF here are some great car seats that will allow you to do that:

Recaro Como/Signo (~$249-$290 depending on model) - top harness height is around 19 inches (Signo is 18 inches, Como is 19 inches) and harnesses up to 70 pounds (5-35lb rearfacing).

Sunshine Kids Radian (~$199-$278 depending on model) - top harness height of 18 inches. Can hold a child up to 65/80 pounds (depending on the model you buy) (5-33lb rearfacing). This seat folds so it can be carried easily (though it is still a heavy seat to carry, especially around the airports). These seats can use the tether rearfacing. This seat is also pretty narrow when compared to other seats so often a good choice when trying to fit multiple seats next to each other in the car.

Evenflo Triumph Advance (~$129) (don't confuse with the original triumph which is actually a very short harnessed seat)- top harness height of 17.5 inches. Can hold a child up to 50 pounds (5-35lb rearfacing).

Compass TrueFit (~$179) - top harness height is 17.25 inches. Can hold children up to 16 pounds (5-35lbs rearfacing). This seat has a removable headrest for babies 5-22lbs rearfacing which might make this seat easier to fit into smaller cars rearfacing. The headrest is required forward facing and when rearfacing above 22lbs.

Britax Marathon, Boulevard, Decathlon (~$229-$289 depending on model) - top harness height is 17 inches. Can hold children up to 65 pounds (5-33 pounds rearfacing, though seats manufactured in 2008 should go to 35lb rearfacing). These seats can tether rearfacing.

Fisher Price Safe Voyage (~$149) - based on the Britax Marathon shell)- top harness height is 17 inches. Can hold children up to 55 pounds (5-33lb rearfacing). This seat is being discontinued so it is hard to find and might have older manufacturing dates (seat expires 6 years from when it was made).

Depending on what kind of car you have, height & weight of your child and your budget we can give you lots of more great advice!! :thumbsup:

Not only is your child not ready physically and mentally for a booster it's entirely possible that where you're at its illegal (it varies from state to state depeding on the wording of the law).

I agree with Wendy, there are plenty of affordable higher weight harnessing seats out there, we just need to know a little about your child and your budget and we'll have lots of recommendations.:thumbsup:

firemomof3 said:

If you want to go back to RF here are some great car seats that will allow you to do that:

Depending on what kind of car you have, height & weight of your child and your budget we can give you lots of more great advice!! :thumbsup:

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She said her daughter was big and outgrowing the convertible, so I'd guess RFing was not an option. I'd guess it was a 40 pound seat, so any of the HWH seats would work, but specific recommendations will need more info.

Wendy

The Graco Nautilus (shown in the picture above in the background of the rear-facing Uptown) is a great choice for a big two year old. It's harness can be used until 65lbs and will fit a tall child due to it's tall harness slots. It also can convert to a booster when the harness is outgrown in a few years. At $150, its one of the more affordable high-weight harness options. It can be used on a plane if needed and all the reports I've seen so far are that it's easy to install in a wide variety of vehicles.

WAYYY to young for a booster. The Nautius would be a GREAT low cost option. My 2 year old can fit in her brothers Nautikus just fine.

My daughter also outgrew most 40 pound weight limit convertibles at age 2, but she outgrew them by height (shoulders over top harness slots means the seat is outgrown by height). She hit 40 pounds at 3, so even if she would have fit the regular convertibles by height, she would have outgrown them by weight shortly after her 3rd birthday.

Good choices for you would be the Cosco/Safety 1st Apex/Safety 1st Biltmore (the same basic seat, lots of different names and cover choices), the Graco Nautilus and the Britax Regent. Knowing more about your situation will help narrow the choices down.

Carolyn is currently in an Evenflo Triumph - weight limit 40 lbs. At her 2 year checkup she was 39" tall and 38 lbs. I drive a Ford Taurus, and mine is the only car that she is ever in, so moving the seat is not an issue. Price, however, may be an issue as I don't think that we can afford anything more than $200. We haven't ever flown with her, and I doubt that will be an issue anytime soon. I need a seat that will last for a while (big weight range). Help! This is so confusing with my big girl!
Thanks so much!

The Nautilus is $150. GREAT seat. My 5 year old is 42in and 38lbs, and he has YEARS left in the harness, he is on the second from bottom slots.

I agree with the Nautilus. I love it. I would pretty much marry it.
It has a harness to 65 lbs and then turns into a very good booster, the top slats are high enough to accomodate tall kiddos, and it has relatively few installation issues compared to a lot of the seats out there. Wonderful and affordable for kids outgrowing the 40 lb harness.

I also agree with the others, with price being a factor and dealing with a very large child (both height and weight), the Nautilus would be my first choice. It has taller top slots than the cheaper Apex, and it's also a more sturdy seat (Apex requires high vehicle seatbacks and/or headrest at least up to the tips of the child's ears at all times because the seat shell is not sturdy enough to support the child's head during a crash). My daughter still barely fits a Nautilus at almost 7, 51 inches tall and 59 pounds. I think even the biggest kids should easily fit to age 6 in the Nautilus harness, and then it converts to a highback and backless booster. It's a great seat for the price.

Sorry, my original thread is MIA (I lost it), and I am still searching for solutions for my 39" tall, 38 lb. daughter who just turned 2. We currently have an Evenflo Triumph, which she will outgrow when she reaches 40 pounds. Her car seat doesn't have to be portable, as it is really only used in one car, and I drive a Ford Taurus. Flying is not an issue. I need something that she will be able to use for a while, and I don't want to spend more than $150-$200. Please help! I wish we would have found this site before we bought the Triumph, and maybe we wouldn't be buying a new carseat so soon! Thanks for your help!

(copied this post from the other thread to bump this thread up. )

Graco Nautilus $150 :thumbsup:

firemomof3 said:

Graco Nautilus $150 :thumbsup:

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:thumbsup: The Nautilus is great!!

I'm also going to chime in on the Graco Nautilus.
It's in stock right now and you can have it shipped to your local Wal-Mart free. :thumbsup:

You've all got me thinking! If I purchase a Marathon right now for my 7 month old son, am I going to have to turn around and get something bigger in two years? I would love to know... if I should get a Roundabout instead (saving $$$) and then plan on getting something bigger that is only FF later on, like the Nautilus. Or will the Marathon likely do just fine for the whole time DS is needing to be harnessed?

The problem with the Roundabout is that it won't last as long rear-facing OR forward-facing. This is due to the shorter seat shell and shorter top slots and lower forward-facing weight limit. Many kids get too tall to rear-face at 25-30 pounds in the Roundabout, even though it has a 33 pound RF limit. The Marathon actually fits in a surprising array of small vehicles, and it doesn't have to be a full 45 degree recline for an older rear-facing child.

Most kids, even big kids, fit in a Marathon until age 4-6. My own daughter has always been in the 90th+ percentiles for height and didn't get too big for a Marathon until 4y9mo. She would have been too big for a Roundabout by about 2y9mo, by her third birthday, most definitely.

Going from a smaller (than the Marathon) convertible into a Nautilus isn't a bad plan, just realize it won't get you maximum rear-facing time, most likely.

Triciadee said:

You've all got me thinking! If I purchase a Marathon right now for my 7 month old son, am I going to have to turn around and get something bigger in two years? I would love to know... if I should get a Roundabout instead (saving $$$) and then plan on getting something bigger that is only FF later on, like the Nautilus. Or will the Marathon likely do just fine for the whole time DS is needing to be harnessed?

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Depending on his growth pattern, the marathon should do just fine! My 6 yr old sister fits in DD's marathon, (she's right AT the top slots) so I have a feeling it will be the last harnessed seat that DD will need since it goes up to 65 lbs. Obviously if she outgrows it by height while she's still young, we'll need to explore our options, but I don't think that's going to happen!

Triciadee said:

You've all got me thinking! If I purchase a Marathon right now for my 7 month old son, am I going to have to turn around and get something bigger in two years? I would love to know... if I should get a Roundabout instead (saving $$$) and then plan on getting something bigger that is only FF later on, like the Nautilus. Or will the Marathon likely do just fine for the whole time DS is needing to be harnessed?

Click to expand...

I purchased the MA for my then-6-month-old DS, and he just outgrew it - he's now 5. I am hopefully purchasing a Nautilus this week to replace the MA. FWIW, he outgrew the 3-in-1 at 3, & the Triumph (not the advanced) at 3.75. He has about 1"-1.25" left on the Radian.