Carseat or booster recom needed

My daughter is just 7 and about 40lbs and 45 inches (114cm) tall (she's little. I only just turned her FF last year).

My husband would like to give little sister her The First Years True Fit and buy older sister the Graco Turbobooster, mainly because it was a good price ($70) and he wants her in a booster soon because he thinks carseats are for babies/young children. I will be keeping her in a proper seat for as long as it is the safest option, however.

What do you recommend for a seat for older sister for the next several years? Should I go with a combination seat/booster like the Turbo Booster? I like the model with the safety surround and see it is on the recommended list. We are currently not using the extra head support with the seats in our Santa Fe, but they must be around somewhere in the garage if the seat requires it.

Any advice will be appreciated. I haven't researched car seats since I bought these ones with this websites help 4 years ago.

Another question....

How important is the LATCH system? Should I focus on seats that use it?

Hi, welcome back!

The turbobooster would probably be an appropriate choice for your seven year old, but we call it a "dedicated booster." It is not a "combination seat" because it does not have the option to harness her with a five point harness.

At her age it is very likely that she is ready for a dedicated booster because of her bone maturity, size (although small for her age she is now within safe weight and height guidelines) and lastly, the maturity to stay in the proper position while riding. A five point harness keeps a child in a safe position no matter what (pretty much!) but in a booster with the seatbelt the child needs to be trusted not to lean all over, because they can do that if they choose to do so. Most seven year olds are ready for that responsibility

If you wanted her to still be in a harness at first, and then move towards using the seat as a booster, then look for a combination seat such as the Graco nautilus or Britax frontier. There are others but those are just examples.

If you are wondering about booster seats that use latch, that is basically just to keep the seat in place when no one is riding in it. The seatbelt will be holding your child in place. The latch keeps it a little more steady when climbing in and out of the seat, too.

If the booster doesn't have latch, it should be buckled back in when empty (like after dropping off a child at school) to prevent an unbuckled booster seat from being a projectile.

Ann,
Thanks for taking the time to reply. I'll be heading to the shops now looking for a dedicated booster that uses the latch. I like that it stays more stable during in and outs and I don't need to remember to buckle it in after my daughter gets out (although I'm sure I'd get into the habit soon enough).

The Graco Affix is the name of the latch-able version of the turbobooster. Also look for the Britax parkway - we have an older version but I've heard the new version is great too.

Correct me if I am wrong, but the Affix does not come with the safety surround, right? I like the safety surround version because it is more snug for my daughter and keeps her in place more (it seems to me).

Does anyone know which stores in Canada sell the turbobooster with safety surround? We tried her out in it in Target in the States but haven't found it in BC (Fraser Valley) to buy yet. I looked online but it might only be Babies r Us?

Does anyone have this seat and have any thoughts to share with me?

Thanks again,
Sarah

There is an Affix with safety surround available at Buy Buy Baby

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I don't think Buy Buy Baby is in Canada?

sunnysarah said:

I don't think Buy Buy Baby is in Canada?

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They are, at least online. No Affix with SS on the website, though.

sunnysarah said:

My daughter is just 7 and about 40lbs and 45 inches (114cm) tall (she's little. I only just turned her FF last year).

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Can you be more specific with the weight? If she's not yet consistently 40lbs then she needs to stay harnessed until she is. Otherwise yes, boostering is a completely appropriate way to go.

How old is your TrueFit? Keep an eye on the expiration date of it. I retired one of mine this past spring as it had reached its expiry date.