Maybe baby 2012? Haven't done the infant thing in a while...

Several things have changed in the infant car seat world since my last baby 2.5 years ago and I have a few questions about infant carriers, if we were to choose to use one. We have a 2005 Toyota Sienna and will drive it for several more years.

If my babies are long and lean and don't even hit the 30 pound mark until they are around 3 years old (my girls are 4 and still hover at 30-35 lbs!), what is the benefit of having an infant carrier that goes up past the 22 pound mark? I saw on here where no one is recommending anything unless it's a 30 or 35 and I just know that we would in no way use a carrier that long, since ours outgrow in length WAY before weight.

We used 22 lb Snug Rides with my others, but I don't want to do that if it's not recommended. I have looked at Keyfits and Keyfit 30s. Besides the heavier weight allowance, what are the other differences?

My girls were very uncomfortable in their SnugRide carriers and I loved it when we switched them to RF in Roundabouts at 7 months. My son sweat terribly in his SnugRide, and we switched him to RF in a TF at 5 months, so I'm really wanting to make sure the next *maybe* baby has a seat that is well padded and also has material that is breathable.

Differences in the SnugRides, Keyfits, and the OnBoards?

Thanks, I read through a lot of the threads and found a lot of good information, so thank you for helping out!

The major difference in the 22 and 30+ pound seats is that they have taller shells, and more harness slot options. They also tend to have front adjust harness adjusters rather than the rear adjust that most of the 22 pound seats have. Most of them also have a lockoff built into the base which makes seat belt installation easier.

You're correct that the 30 pound weight limit is pretty pointless, VERY few kids actually max them out in weight (my almost 3 year old isn't even 30 pounds yet), that's the case with most high weight limit seats. However, a lot of kids outgrow them in height before parents are ready to give up the convenience of the bucket seat. The taller shell allows most babies to get to 9-15 months or so before they outgrow it, so it just allows more flexibility for the time moving to a convertible seat.

The 30 pound seats now also start out with a much lower harness slot, and tend to fit small babies and/or preemies much better from the start.

I haven't played with the Onboard much to speak about it, I know it has a basic base that is kind of a pain, and a premium base that has a lockoff and a better recline adjust.

The Keyfit has really great newborn padding and tends to fit small newborns very well. It has premium push button LATCH connectors and a cool adjuster that's built into the base. The seat belt lockoff is a slide in style that only works with a shoulder belt... I've had a little trouble installing it with older lap-only belt styles. It's a little bit heavier than the Snugrides.

The Snugride 32 and 35 have clip on style LATCH hooks, and the seat belt lockoff is a clamp that snaps down over the lap/shoulder belt, I've installed tons of them and pretty much never had an issue with installation.

I both the Keyfit and the SR32/35, I recommend them all the time to pregnant friends and family. I'm not a big Dorel/Safety 1st fan, so I typically don't recommend the Outboard to folks unless they're on a tight budget, since it's a good $50 or more cheaper than the Keyfit and the Snugride.

So do you want an infant seat you can use for a while, or are you rather ambivalent about them? You could do a convertible from birth if you'd rather.

Wendy

wendytthomas said:

So do you want an infant seat you can use for a while, or are you rather ambivalent about them? You could do a convertible from birth if you'd rather.

Wendy

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I can never decide about that. We've always done carriers, but I'm always wondering if things would be simpler with a convertible from the start. It is hard for me to lug around a heavy carrier with a 15 pound baby in it, that's for sure. Gets heavy after a while.

We love our TF and our EFTA that's in my mom's car. It may be my favorite seat of all. I would love to have another one.

kaceylauren said:

I can never decide about that. We've always done carriers, but I'm always wondering if things would be simpler with a convertible from the start. It is hard for me to lug around a heavy carrier with a 15 pound baby in it, that's for sure. Gets heavy after a while.

We love our TF and our EFTA that's in my mom's car. It may be my favorite seat of all. I would love to have another one.

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If you like your True Fit - they fit newborns nicely! So does the Graco MyRide, either would be great from birth on up!

The Triumph 65 does as well.

Wendy

wendytthomas said:

The Triumph 65 does as well.

Wendy

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Would it get the child to backless booster height/age/weight?

*Possibly* by size and weight, but it would expire first. I prefer kids to be eight or nine before they're in a backless full time. The EFT65 wouldn't last that long. But it should get most kids to five or six easily, and it expires at six years, so a booster would be all you'd need.

Same with the True Fit, though it has a seven year expiration. It'll nearly definitely get you to a booster age without expiring.

The My Ride, maybe. It has top slots 1.5" shorter than the other two, which is about 18 months on average.

Wendy

wendytthomas said:

*Possibly* by size and weight, but it would expire first. I prefer kids to be eight or nine before they're in a backless full time. The EFT65 wouldn't last that long. But it should get most kids to five or six easily, and it expires at six years, so a booster would be all you'd need.

Same with the True Fit, though it has a seven year expiration. It'll nearly definitely get you to a booster age without expiring.

The My Ride, maybe. It has top slots 1.5" shorter than the other two, which is about 18 months on average.

Wendy

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Thank you! One more question. My 4 year olds are in Nautis and they are still harnessed. They are 31 lbs w/no clothes, 40.5 inches tall, and 23.5 inches seated from floor to top of the head. Are we right to keep them harnessed and in the Nautis? At what point do we move to the high back booster option of the Nauti and then the backless option? Then Nautis are less than 2 years old.

Right, they need to be harnessed. After five years old most kids have the maturity to sit properly in a booster, but if they're still tiny and the lap belt fit isn't good, I'd keep them harnessed longer.

Wendy

You could also check this video out, it's very informative and answers a lot of questions that people have.


‪American Academy of Pediatrics Publishes New Car Seat Recommendation (March 2011)‬‬
Dr. Alisa Baer
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULJ8Vx79Vv4"]YouTube - ‪American Academy of Pediatrics Publishes New Car Seat Recommendations‬‏[/ame]