Which is more convenient?

LISmama810 · Feb 26, 2011

Not talking safety--just convenience: If you have a rear-facing toddler and a rear-facing infant, which should go outboard and which should go in the middle?

There will be a booster seat on the other side.

Is it easier to lift an infant over the booster/other RF seat to get him/her in the center, or easier to lift a toddler in the same way?

I don't think DD would be able to climb into her seat without stepping all over DS's booster.

If it matters, the seats involved are a Complete Air for the toddler and a Coccoro for the n00b. Assume that either seat will fit in either position.

Vehicle is a Honda Pilot, so I will be lifting UP rather than down.

scoutingbear · Feb 26, 2011

M is in the middle in my car. When we did respite a couple months ago, the RF'ers were next to each other with a GN on the other side. I had M in the middle (Radian) and our respite kiddo outboard (CCO). I much preferred reaching over the CCO to get M in the middle. (M was the smaller of the babies at 4 months and respite kiddo was 10 months; I kept the smaller baby in the middle for lifting purposes). Normally, though, I prefer to reach over A's booster (turbo) to get M in her seat (Radian).

christineka · Feb 26, 2011

I much prefer infant outboard and toddler middle. It's much easier for me to comfortably reach the outboard seat. I rely on having an independent kid climbing into the middle.

LISmama810 · Feb 26, 2011

Yeah, I'm thinking whichever one goes in the center, I'd probably load on the booster side because there's no way I could load and secure a kid in the center while standing outside on the ground. At least I can sort-of sit in the booster to do that.

Times like this I really wish we still had our van.

Kyras_Mama · Feb 26, 2011

How old is the toddler and how reliable at standing by the car while you're loading? When we had our sedan I found it easier to have our infant outboard and toddler in the middle because I could leave the infant in the wrap while I loaded the toddler and no one was running off on me.

Also, if your toddler is big enough to crawl from one seat to the next that's less stress on your back than trying to lift someone into that seat all the time. I find it's no easier/harder to do the buckling part of putting an infant in that middle seat than a toddler. This time we'll have toddler/toddler/infant (think toddler by the door I'm least likely to load from) rearfacing across the second row of a van and I'm still putting the infant outboard since now our toddlers are big enough to crawl over from one seat to the next so I can start with the younger toddler and just have them crawl over and then buckle once everyone's already in the car.

LISmama810 · Feb 26, 2011

christineka said:
I much prefer infant outboard and toddler middle. It's much easier for me to comfortably reach the outboard seat. I rely on having an independent kid climbing into the middle.

I'm not sure how she'd climb into the seat on her own, though, without stepping all over DS's seat. Or do I just let her step all over DS's seat?

LISmama810 · Feb 26, 2011

Toddler will be 2.5. I haven't had her stand alone by the car yet, but if I told her to hold onto my keg or something she probably would.

Jillybeans5 · Feb 26, 2011

LISmama810 said:
Toddler will be 2.5. I haven't had her stand alone by the car yet, but if I told her to hold onto my keg or something she probably would.

Do you carry a keg everywhere you go? j/k LOL!

My 2.5 yr old fights getting in his seat at least 50% of the time, so if it were me I would want him outboard. I don't know if your child fights getting in his/her seat but that might be something to consider.

Chely7425 · Feb 26, 2011

I have 3 across in my liberty (all RF) and have the baby in his cco in the center. My older 2 are just too heavy to hoist into the middle!!

DaniChildcare · Feb 26, 2011

If you put the baby in the center, you could put the 2.5 year old in first, and then go around to the other side, and sit/kneel on the booster to put the little one in the center.

christineka · Feb 26, 2011

If shoes are dirty, I make toddler sit on the edge of the van, I set baby in seat, remove toddler's shoes, then help toddler over baby's seat. I buckle baby, then climb up and buckle toddler.

It's also easy to quickly put baby down in seat, then help toddler, then back to baby.

Kyras_Mama · Feb 26, 2011

LISmama810 said:
I'm not sure how she'd climb into the seat on her own, though, without stepping all over DS's seat. Or do I just let her step all over DS's seat?

At our house, we just step all over the seat.

If it's wet/mucky I slip shoes off as I'm lifting them into the seat closest to the door and they crawl over from there. I figure better they step on the seats than I hurt my back trying to lean over and set them in without their feet touching the seats and even if I did that half the time they stand back up in between getting into their seats and actually getting buckled anyway.

singingpond · Feb 26, 2011

LISmama810 said:
I'm not sure how she'd climb into the seat on her own, though, without stepping all over DS's seat. Or do I just let her step all over DS's seat?

I prefer to have the older child in the middle, and younger ones -- who HAVE to be lifted/maneuvered all the way into their seats -- outboard (we've done it both ways at various times, as seat configurations changed over time in our cars). Lifting a young child into the middle seat was always harder on my back than just climbing into the vehicle to help harness a toddler who was able to climb in most of the way under his/her own power.

Currently DD (3 y.o.) is RF in the center. She sits in her older brother's outboard booster, takes off her shoes (or I help her take them off sometimes), and then climbs over into the center. I either lean in, or actually sit in the booster myself to buckle her.

LISmama810 · Feb 26, 2011

Jillybeans5 said:
Do you carry a keg everywhere you go? j/k LOL!

ROFL! I really like my beer, ok? Uh, yeah, that was supposed to be leg...

DD typically doesn't fight getting into her seat, but she has her moments.

Maybe I'll have to try it both ways and see.

I also need to figure out if the Coccoro will fit in the center of the Pilot with the weird buckles. If not, I guess the whole thing is sorta moot.

Starlight · Feb 26, 2011

I have dd outboard (RFing in a MA, she's 14 mo) and ds in the center (RF in SR22, he's 5 mo) and ds (in backless booster, he's 9) on the other outboard side. I lift ds over the booster. I like it this way because the baby often needs more attention than dd needs - a lost binky, etc - and ds1 is old enough help him out. All dd needs anymore is a playful giggle, and they can all see eachother clearly back there just fine to giggle at her.

LISmama810 · Feb 26, 2011

Starlight said:
I have dd outboard (RFing in a MA, she's 14 mo) and ds in the center (RF in SR22, he's 5 mo) and ds (in backless booster, he's 9) on the other outboard side. I lift ds over the booster. I like it this way because the baby often needs more attention than dd needs - a lost binky, etc - and ds1 is old enough help him out. All dd needs anymore is a playful giggle, and they can all see eachother clearly back there just fine to giggle at her.

Ah, I hadn't thought about the interaction aspect. That's a good point to think about, too.

Starlight · Feb 26, 2011

LISmama810 said:
Ah, I hadn't thought about the interaction aspect. That's a good point to think about, too.

I didn't either, until ds was 6 weeks old and I kept having to pull over to locate a missing binky. lol

bobandjess99 · Feb 26, 2011

Unless there is a lap belt in the middle, I'd put both RFers on teh sides. but, I'm not very strong and have a bad back, so lifting and twisting and lunging over, etc simply don't work for me. Plus, then the booster rider (least protected) is in the more protected position. I suppose it would also matter what the access was like..I can flip my front seats pretty far forward to let a kid slip through to the middle...if i couldn't, then I guess it would be hard for the booster rider to access his/her seat. Of course, in a vehicle such as the pilot, the booster rider could just enter from the back and hop over into his seat.

luckyclov · Feb 26, 2011

Ummm...probably the infant outboard and the toddler center.

Currently, in DH's vehicle, I've got my RF'ing youngest outboard and my oldest - boostered and independent - in the center, with my middle boostered in the other outboard spot (she requires help buckling/positioning). It's that way partly because it's easier to help load the 2 who need help in outboard spots and partly because if I had my youngest in the middle, his sister would probably try to feed him Polly Pockets.

ETA:

Coccoro for the n00b

Actually, it's easier to load a CCO in the center (it was for me, anyways - 5'2" loading into a Jeep Liberty), especially if you're Euro-routing. It's a big 'ol pain in the arse to deal with the shoulder belt with an outboard spot. DS2 rode center in his CCO in DH's previous vehicle because of that. I preferred the around-the-back-routing, though.

Judi · Feb 26, 2011

I have the 3 yr old in the center. He climbs over the base of the infant seat. Sometime I put him in his seat. The infant is outboard.

Which is more convenient?

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