Arranging Three Seats Question

ecj98

New member
Okay, so the time is drawing near, and I need to decide how I want to arrange the car seats when the baby arrives. I have a 2008 Kia Sedona. Here is my dilemma. I originally planned to put the infant carrier in the captain's chair behind the driver, remove the other captain's chair, put one big kiddo on one side of the back bench and one big kiddo on the other side of the back bench. Both are forward facing. 2 year old in a Marathon, and 4 year old in a Radian. I'm not interested in turning 2 year old back rear facing as she gets motion sickness. However, here's the problem. The only tether anchors on the back bench are passenger and center. One time when I had friends riding with us, I did install their seats in those two spots. It is extremely difficult to get them both in correctly (and now I am contending with the preggo belly), and they are way TOO close as far as being able to annoy each other goes. So, what would you do?

1) Put baby and one kid in captain's chairs and one kid in back. Climb over the captain's chairs like a crazy person to buckle the one in the back.
2) Put baby in one captain's chair and remove other one. Put the kiddos on passenger side and in center of back and ignore the fighting.
3) Stick with original plan. Baby in one captain's chair and remove other one. Marathon on passenger's side with tether, and Radian on driver's side without tether (I've read that it performs well without the tether).
4) Something I haven't thought of.
 
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bobandjess99

Senior Community Member
Teach the 4 yo to buckle himself? DD sarted buckling herself at 3.5 when we got her a nauti, which has a really easy buckle.

If not possible, then i think each option is fine.
1 - I personially don't see the supposed difficulty others do about walking back to the third row. I'm a big fat 240 lb person, and I can easily walk to the back row to buckle someone in a sedona. There is no "climbing" or "crazy" involved. It's a van, it's designed to be walked through.
2 - sure. sounds fine, except I would personally "punish" the fighting, instead of "ignoring" it. But we're mean, authoritarian mommy and daddy here.
3 - Sure. Safe van, safe seat, radians rock without tether. Acceptable option.
4 - the aforementioned 4 yo buckles himself. Might require buying a nauti or other seat for him that is easier to buckle.
4.2 - put the RFing infant in the back on one side, with 1 FFing child, and the other FFing child in middle row, with the other chair removed. That way, no need to worry about a tether, since the infant is RFing, and the tether issue is moot. Also, if the 4 yo is back there with baby, can possibly help tend to needs? hand paci, bottle, etc?
 

Kat_Momof3

New member
I would start teaching the 4yr old to buckle themselves NOW

that way, all you have to do when you are putting kids in is put the 2yr old in, go around, set baby's seat on the passenger seat while you reach over the base and tighten the 4yr old and remind her to put chest clip correct, and then click the baby in and you're good to go.

NOW... if you really really still want to do it with your original plan (which trust me, really IS the easiest... even if you just fold that other captain's chair and are leaning over it to tighten the 4yr old and buckle the 2yr old)... I would simply make sure the one with no tether is the RADIAN... because it was made for these situations and performs better than most seats without the tether.

down the line I'd put the baby rf in the third row and load him/her through the hatch and have the 4yr old back there in the center next to baby to help soothe... and the 2yr old in the 2nd row.
 

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