Once you get an idea for something, does it ever bug you until you can figure it out?

*Warning, very very long, late night ramblings. Trying to make sense of the jumbled mess in my brain, trying to get it out and shut it off so I can sleep. Very long, you've been warned!*

I am being driven crazy and it's dumb that it's bugging me so much right now when it doesnt really matter and there isn't much I can do right now.
I get that way, once I get an idea and start thinking about it, it's hard to focus on anything else. This is the 2nd night in a row I've stayed up late on the computer trying to figure this out, but of course it can't be figured out right now so WHY can't I just turn my brain off and think about it later?

Here is the situation, and I've talked about it before on here.
My oldest dd wants a booster, and I'm ok with her in a booster now, but I'd like to wait until she's closer to 6 before allowing her to switch full time.
We have a Graco Turbo booster (high back) and I've tried it in my car before, she fits great in it, and it fits well with our 3 across, but it's a pain in the rear to buckle because of the arm rests in the way, the proximity to the seat next to it, and the floppy belt stalk. When I've buckled her before, I have pulled the seat way over to the side so I could put my hand in there to buckle her easier, then pushed the seat back into place after she is buckled. That is a huge pain and I will not do that all the time just so she can be in a booster like she wants, buckling her in the radian is so much faster and easier.

So, I've been thinking about flip up arm rest boosters, thinking that should help and make it easier for both of us, however it needs to fit her properly and fit with 3 across.
So far, there are just 3 boosters with flip up arm rests that I know of. The compass boosters, evenflo big kid, and the boost air.
I'm not totally ruling out the boost air, but I saw it in person the other day and I really don't like it. It's big and ugly and the arm rests don't flip all the way up because they bump into the ugly deep sides.
The evenflo big kid seems like it could be ok if she fits in it properly, but I hear a lot of bad about it too.
The compass, the main thing I'm hearing about them is they are wide so may not work for me, and the belt fit tends to not be the best on little kids.
Dd won't be 6 until July, and the last time I recall knowing her weight, she was about 35 lbs (I think near her 5 year old check up).

I'm obsessed with thinking about the compass, trying to figure out if it will fit in my car, or fit dd. Of course the only way to know for sure is to try it, which I plan to do in several months (buy it from walmart.com so I can return it to the store easily and for free if I need to). So why am I not content to just wait and try it then? There is no more info I can gain right now, why can't my mind put this issue to bed for now?
It's driving me crazy!

I keep running install scenarios in my head, thinking which seat I'd put where, and trying to figure out in my mind if they will fit. I keep picturing getting a radian RF behind the passenger seat and the other FF in the middle, or the booster in the middle, and I keep going over "Is that possible" and "What if I can't get the radian to fit RF behind the passenger and still leave enough room for the front seat?". We have advanced air bags so the seat can't rest on the front seat. Our RA50 is in that spot now, and I have the passenger seat as far back as I can, but then I try to imagine if I could be comfy in the front seat with it up further to accomodate the radian.

Then I agonize over "What if I can just barely make it all fit, and then dd jumps in and the belt fit is horrible?"
Then it bugs me because my brain doesn't want to have to think of any possible back up plan, my brain decided that the compass looks better than the evenflo or boost air, and refuses to want to consider them as what might have to be (in order for dd to use a booster, we CAN keep her in the radian if we have to, she's not using the top slots yet).

I'm just so irritated that I don't have the answers right now. My brain wants the answers, I want to plan and KNOW what we are going to be doing. It's frustrating me to not have any idea what we'll end up doing.
I keep trying to tell myself, She is FINE, we don't HAVE to move her to a booster, she will stay safe no matter what, but all the options keep swirling around in my head and keeping me up at night. It's ridiculous! At this point, if had an extra $60 laying around, I'd be tempted to just order the dang thing right now and try it out just so I'll stop thinking about it.
I keep trying to look up any more info on the booster, looking to see what cars people have had it fit in, if anyone has had success with 3 across, if anyone has pics of their kids sitting in one so I can guess how the belt might fit dd. UGH! NO! I must stop! I can try it out in the spring or something, it's not THAT far off, I can be patient, but no, I want to know now. UGH!

Yeah, I think thats all. Just late night ramblings from me at 1:30 am. Maybe now that I've typed this, I can turn off my brain for a bit and get some sleep tonight.
If you've read this, you are a saint, ths turned out WAY WAY long!

ETA, just remembered, I have been reading online that the compass boosters are only 2 inches wider than the TB, so thats been driving me nuts too, trying to estimate in my mind if there could be room for an extra 2 inches of car seat. UGH, there I go again. Must stop!

He he, my mind does that too. Lately is keeps going over all the reasons I *don't* want a FR85. Like really don't. Or a Nauti. And how a ProSport will never live up to the Youg Sport. And how miserable I will be with all the extended harnessesing seats for DD2. How long should she be harnessed? She sits great in the car, unless she is next to her sister, but she's never been in a booster before. And she has SPD. If she doesn't feel secure she goes white knuckled. You should have seen her first few FF rides.
Bleh... I'd better stop or I'll be joining you.
I can't answer the booster question. Anyone one sell one near you that may let you take it out the car?

I just wanted to say thank you for letting me know I am not the only one.. I am trying ti figure out the easiest way to get the kids in and out and I have been laying in bed thinking of where to install their seats and still have room for Grandmom who is 90.

Sometimes I think the more options.. The more headache..

I don't know enough to offer anything on your issue, just wanted to let you know you are not alone..

TBH- working with 2 cars with 3 acrosses and a booster in each, I don't think flip up armrests would work.

We have 3 across in our elantra with an old style parkway. It works great, ds just has to scootch towards the door, buckle, then scootch back. We've done a monterey in there as well and that one was awesome. Because it latched in, it couldn't move, but we were able to get the seats lined up so that the buckle was always in the same place. He could buckle and was done in seconds.

We have 3 across in our buick as well. In that car, we have a turbo next to a ffing RA50. It fits perfectly together. In theory, ds should be able to reach the buckle, but again he has to scootch out, buckle, then scootch back. I can't see a flip up armrest working in either situation. There's no room to flip up an armrest and even if there was, ds would need more room next to the booster to not have to scootch over.

He is 7.5 and has absolutely no problem moving the booster over before getting in, buckling, then scootching the seat over to the proper spot. He can even reach the door to then pull it closed.

If the turbo fits her well, I'd consider teaching her to move the seat over towards the door before she gets in. Then have her attempt to buckle while you get the other 2 kids in. If she gets it buckled, you just have to bump her back over. If she doesn't, then finish it for her and bump her over. I bet she can buckle in no time and all you'll have to do for the first while is bump the seat back into the car and close the door.

Did you see my thread recently: My cries for help in deciding

Trust me, you are NOT alone. I still haven't made up my mind either.

I was thinking a Monterey might be a good option for you. Of course, after reading your post this morning - I've been thinking about your situation too

The Monterey next to a FF Radian puzzles very well (leaving ample arm room to buckle/un-buckle which, like Dillipop said, makes it very easy to work with.

Not to add more to your thought process... but there maybe a completely different solution. That's why I post my "help me decide" posts - I love others input when I just can't come up a solution.

Oh yes. I spent many nights awake pondering similar things when I was trying to pick which seat to buy.


And even after I picked the XTSL, and installed it, I'm still pondering. The XTSL and Boulevard won't puzzle with one of them FF, and the only position the XTSL will fit in RF in my car is the middle. So basically whenever I decide to turn DD FF, I'm either going to need a new car or a new seat.

I shouldn't be thinking about it. It's (hopefully) at least 1.5 years away. But I can't stop pondering what I'm going to do at that point. And DH isn't going to be happy about buying a new seat! lol

atsuydam said:

Anyone one sell one near you that may let you take it out the car?

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I don't know. I haven't seen them in person for a long time. I used to see them at Walmart, (only at one particular store that we live far away from now and it was before I was even thinking about boosters at all so I didn't pay much attention to it). I don't know if BRU has them, or USA Baby, or Baby Depot. Going to any of those stores I'd have to make a special trip to go, except BRU, they are pretty close.

Dillipop said:

If the turbo fits her well, I'd consider teaching her to move the seat over towards the door before she gets in. Then have her attempt to buckle while you get the other 2 kids in. If she gets it buckled, you just have to bump her back over. If she doesn't, then finish it for her and bump her over. I bet she can buckle in no time and all you'll have to do for the first while is bump the seat back into the car and close the door.

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I don't think she'd be able to do that on her own. Whatever booster we use, I want to tape of put sticky velcro on the booster and the belt stalk so it's always up next to the booster where she can find it, that wouldn't work if we're pulling the seat to the side each time. I think that would get pretty old fast and I'd probaby just put the Radian back for her.
Why wouldn't there be room for the arm rest to flip up? The arm rest wouldn't overlap the seat next to it or anything.

autumnlily said:

I was thinking a Monterey might be a good option for you. Of course, after reading your post this morning - I've been thinking about your situation too

The Monterey next to a FF Radian puzzles very well (leaving ample arm room to buckle/un-buckle which, like Dillipop said, makes it very easy to work with.

Not to add more to your thought process... but there maybe a completely different solution. That's why I post my "help me decide" posts - I love others input when I just can't come up a solution.

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I haven't thought of the Monterey before, that could work if it fits, it's an inch wider than the compass booster (3 inches wider than the TB).
It's likely that the seat in the middle next to the booster will be a RF radian.
After being in the car today (in the passenger seat) I don't see how I could move the front seat up any firther and have enough room to be comfortable or safe, so unless I could get the RF radian to install in the exact same space the RF RA50 is now, I don't see how that will work.
If we could do booster, FF radian, and RF RA50, that could work, but right now I'm assuming that we'll save the most space if we use both radians, and ds needs to stay RF. The only option for him might just have to be RF radian in the center.
I'm open to keeping him in the RA50 outboard if that will actually fit well with the other seats.

This is such a pain! I also talked to dh about the car situation today, we can't get a van until we pay off the car, I asked him, exactly when will it be paid off, he said at least 2 years, maybe longer. GRRR, it seems like everytime I ask, it's the same answer, but how can that be if time is passing between when I ask?
If I would have known it would take us so long to get a van, I wouldn't have agreed to get the car. We had been talking about getting a van at the time (October 2006) but since it cost more and we didn't need it yet, we didn't do it. We had traded in a 1999 Galant and 1997 ford truck for 1 brand new Camry, I wish we wouldn't have done that.
Even though she CAN still stay in the Radian for a while, I'm starting to wonder if we'll have our van before she outgrows it. We might just HAVE to use a booster at some point.

Got another thought from you guys. Along the lines of the Monterey and having it latched in so it doesn't move, that makes it easier to buckle because the seat is solid and not rocking around while you fumble to buckle, correct?
From the pics of it, it looks like the arm rests kind of angle up, is it easy to reach around them?
Are there other boosters that can LATCH that could be good options? The newest Parkway can, but I've heard those arm rests are a pain.

Oh, and I forgot to mention before, we've tried an old style parkway in our car before, and it was a lot harder to buckle than the TB.

ETA, just realized the Compass B570 latches in. That combined with the flip up arm rest could help the most, IF it fits in the car.
It's an inch more narrow than the monterey, so out of the two of them, it would probably be the best bet. Plus I've heard you guys say it's the best one of the compass boosters because they redesigned the beltpath.
I hadn't been considering it much before because it only comes in that one black and yellow cover, but I guess it's really not too bad, it could be much worse. Anyone know if any other covers will be released by the spring?
Ok, Amazon shows 2 new covers, a black/red coming out in Feb and a black/green coming out in Jan. I like the black/yellow best out of the 3 I think.

Ok, last comment from me for at least a few hours, I have to go get a bunch of stuff done, but I've been doing a lot of searches and reading.
Sounds like the LATCH on the B570 is kind of pointless because the manual still wants you to buckle the booster in with the seatbelt every time it's not in use, and it's not solid LATCH anyway, that seems kind of dumb.

I searched the 3 across thread and searched "monterey" and someone with a 2009 Camry had a Monterey, RF radian, and a TB. That gives me hope that it could be done, when I've put our TB in before, I've left both other seats where they were and only put the TB in, and it fit in the same space that the radian had been in, so maybe it's possible to have a Monterey, RF radian, FF radian. I think there are a few Utah members who have a Monterey, so maybe I could try one out sometime, plus I think they are easier to find to try from stores too, USA Baby should have them.
They don't have the flip up arm rests, but if it still works ok to buckle it, that might not be an issue, plus I'd love to be able to Latch it in and not have to buckle it every single time I go without the kids.

(Oh, and our Camry is a 2007, so I don't think the back seat would be that different from a 2009).

There are some photo's of Monterey's next to Radians around here somewhere... When Genevieve tried the Monterey next to her Radian - it was like the two were meant to be used side by side. Do you have a store near by to try and see?

There is a USA Baby about 30 miles away. My parent's live 70 miles away. One day when we're already going in that direction to see them, we can stop and check out the Monterey.

In my van Benjamin was able to buckle the monterey when next to a rfing radian but had trouble next to it FFing. I don't think the monterey would be a good choice since it is so wide.

I think if you want to do this your best choice is a Harmony Juvenile. It has cut outs which make it easier to buckle.

Of course the best option is to buy a second car with a third row.

To answer your original question though yes I totally do that! Right now I'm trying to figure out what to do because I really want the nautilus in my van but I hate pink. If I put the nautilus in the van now and take it out later Elizabeth might get mad because she LOVES pink. My mom needs to buy some seats I could have her buy the sweet pea when it comes out and trade covers with her so I could have it. My mom really needs a gender nuetral cover but my SIL has an extra gray nautilus she could trade with my mom and take the daisy. If I did that though Elizabeth might be upset that she no longer has her pink seat. I could buy a pink cover for the radian and put it in Brian's car, maybe that will make her happy. Or sell the radian and buy sweet pea then Elizabeth could have the pink nautilus in Brian's car and I could have the green in the van. Head spinning yet?

emandbri said:

I don't think the monterey would be a good choice since it is so wide.

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Wide as in it won't be a good fit for Hannah (since she is on the smaller side) or wide as in it probably won't fit in the car?
If it's the latter, it could fit. I found a post in the 3 across thread where someone had a 2009 Camry (we have a 2007 Camry) with the monterey, RF radian, and a high back Turbo. Based on that, I think it should fit in my car that way, monterey, rf radian, ff radian. In her post, she said the boosters were a little hard to buckle, but doable, but in my case I wouldn't have 2 boosters so I could get both radians as far to one side as possible (and still safely in a correct position) and it might leave a little more room for buckling, plus if I can tape or velcro the belt stalk to the booster so it doesn't move, it could potentially be pretty easy.

My guess is wide as in Hannah might not fit well, but try it out anyway. My ds at 6 and 50 pounds didn't fit the monterey well. The shoulderbelt sat too far on the edge of his shoulder.

Do you still have your Monterey? Maybe we can have a playdate sometime and try it out?

Holly said:

Do you still have your Monterey? Maybe we can have a playdate sometime and try it out?

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No, it's long gone. I got it super cheap from babygagadeals, but it didn't work out in my van, so I traded for my bodyguard. The bodyguard is an awesome seat. Too bad it is discontinued. I've heard that USA Baby has the Monterey, though.

I think seatbelt geometry really influences whether a kid has a good shoulderbelt fit or not in the monterey. My dd isn't wide at all, and she fits just fine. I have no issues at all with putting the headrest up a notch in order to have a better belt fit.

I did this over the booster for our car for the longest time as well - hoping I could get something in the middle of our car that would install next to one of the seats I have and still be able to be buckled, but ended up just giving up and going with another monterey that I knew had a great belt fit.

Personally, at 35lbs and only 5.5yrs old I wouldn't consider boostering her FT yet. I wouldn't consider boostering a kid under 40lbs FT until they're 6 years old - but my view is definitely influenced by the fact that no Canadian booster starts prior to 40lbs. Given that you're in a 3 across situation anyways though, and harness seems to be easier, I'd just stick with it and while acknowledging your dd's wants, just keep her in a harness.

Of course you'll still keep thinking of it for awhile yet, but as long as the option isn't "on the table," it won't be quite as frequent a thought in your head. Or at least that's how it worked for me once I decided I was just going to leave dd harnessed until I could buy a 2nd monterey.

Yeah, USA Baby should have it. I'm going to try it out there unless I find someone else locally that has it. It was on babygagadeals yesterday but by the time I found the thread, it was long since sold out (and I hadn't started considering it yet). Is it on there often? I wonder if it will be on there again sometime in the next 4-6 months.

Oh, and she definitely won't be boostered full time until she is 6 (in July). She'll probably be closer to 40 lbs by then, she was around 35 at her 5 year check up. I haven't weighed her since.