Need help with upcoming flight!

First off, I just want to thank everyone on advice I got a few weeks ago regarding the purchase of a new seat. I ended up getting a Radian and am THRILLEd with it!


Anyway, long story short, our old carseat (Graco ComfortSport) is at my parents house and their carseat (some sort of Evenflo seat with overhead shield thing....which I hate) is at our house..sitting in our garage. I am taking a flight to their house in March. I have purchased a seat for DS obviously (he will be 2.5 years by then). I had planned on taking his new Radian but there are a few problems with that scenario. For one, I am leary of dragging that seat through the airport with just myself and DS. I had enough trouble last time WITHOUT a carseat. I am also about 6.5 weeks pregnant (will be almost 12 weeks then) and I'm not so sure that would be a great idea. Last pregnancy I was advised to not do any lifting of any sort. I know each pregnancy is different, but I have cardiac issues on top of eveyrthing so I am just leary of trying to bring that carseat and have DS with me. Anyway, so I was considering taking my parents seat (the evenflo) with me and taking our old seat (the graco) home with me. I need the graco here before the baby arrives anyway, adn that way I avoid having to ship them their seat and them having to ship me my seat. DS still technically fits in both of these seats (although just barely with the shoulder straps on the graco). I know the Radian is FAA approved, but are these seats? If they are not FAA approved, are you still allowed to bring them? Any suggestions?

BTW, in case it matters, DS will be just over 2.5 years old and he currently weighs approximately 30-33 lbs.

Thanks so much!

Heather

Both seats are FAA approved. However, the overhead shield one is not recommended in most instances. A child's face could hit the shield in an accident, especially younger children.

I do think your idea is a good one, though. Put him in your parents seat to go there and in your cs on the way back. It really will save you money on shipping and you won't have to worry about damage in shipping.

I would put the carseat on top of a stroller and have your son walk . This way you are not carrying anything heavy. You can pile your carryons on top of the carseat and then just gatecheck your stroller.

HTH and have fun visiting your family.

Your idea sounds fine if you can't lift. The Radian isn't terribly heavy, in the low 20 pounds, and when put in the backpack it doesn't feel like much at all. But I don't have cardiac issues and I'm not pregnant. So not quite the same.

Another option is to get a luggage trolley, or the Traveling Toddler. Attach whatever carseat you bring to something you can drag, then you can put him in it as well. I've read positive reviews on the Traveling Toddler. A friend of mine bought one and is using it to take her 2 year old's carseat on the plane this month, but they're going to Japan for six weeks, so I don't think I'll get a first hand review for a while yet. http://www.travelingtoddler.com/ It should work for any seat.

Wendy