DH was wondering

I've got DS in a Peg perego infant seat for now, until I can get my new radian, and when I told DH we needed to get the radian with the next check, he said, 'but you only have him on the 2nd slots' which is true, I only have the straps of the infant seat in the middle slots, the cover is funny, and pulls the straps up once they come through the shell, I have to stick my finger deep inside to see where the next slot is in the shell, and the cover would put the strap from the top slot waaay above DS' shoulder. so DH's question is, is it possible to outgrow an infant seat by height, without ever using the top slot or should I be using the top slot anyway? His head, depending on how relaxed he is is between 1 and 1/4 inch and 1 and 1/2 inch from the top of the shell, the cover sits another 1/2-1 inch above the shell, and I can't get it down, the slots in the cover are very stiff, and tightening the straps doesn't pull them down either, the middle cover slots are now even with DS' shoulder

I'm a bit confused about the cover vs. shell harness slots. Is the top set of harness slots in the shell at or below his shoulders? It's the shell that matters - from what I'm understanding the cover itself is making it so that the straps would come out above his shoulders - but what about where they come out from the car seat shell itself?

Some car seats have a big problem with the cover and the shell slots not lining up well. Has the cover been washed at all? That might soften it up some..

Regardless, if he's at or above the top slots in the shell, the harness needs to be moved up. When the straps are tightened down properly, hopefully the cover slides into place, if it's not going to and is interfering with being able to tighten the straps or is folding over onto your ds's shoulders - and washing the cover doesn't improve the fit of the cover, then in this case if the middle holes on the cover line up better with the top slots on the shell, I would say to use the middle cover holes just so that you don't get too much interference between the cover and the harness straps. This isn't something I'd normally recommend, but if the cover is changing how the harness routes as much as it sounds like and the middle harness holes on the cover are lined up with the upper slots on the shell, it would be better than having the straps looser because of the cover not flexing when you tightened down the straps. My concern with the current problem the cover is causing is that it could be causing a false sense of tightness with the straps - especially if it's as stiff sa you're describing.

To answer your main question, yes, it's possible to outgrow an infant seat without having to use the top slots. Baby's head size and torso size can vary a lot - if baby has a longer torso and smaller head, they could need the tallest slots, a baby with a larger head and shorter torso might only need the middle slots - even if their bum to top of head height was the same overall.

What matters is that there is at minimum 1" of hard shell above your ds's head. An infant carrier is outgrown when there is no longer 1" of hard shell above the head or the weight limit is reached. Also, since the cover is interfering with the harness, I would also check to make sure you're feeling the seat shell itself when checking the remaining room. My concern would be that the cover is puffing up over the seat shell giving a false sense of how much growing room he has left.

It's hard to tell where the top slots are exactly in relation to his shoulders, because of the way the cover fits, but I just checked without him in it, and the top shell slots are above the cover slots, so def above his shoulders
I'll try washing the cover and see if that helps though I'm sure it has been, because i got it from a close friend who smokes, and it didn't smell like smoke when I got it.
As for where the shell is, that I'm sure of, as I make sure to compress the cover everytime I check (almost everytime I use the seat), and the cushion only goes to 1inch below the shell (probably to help parents know when their baby has outgrown it??)

Go by the head/top of shell rule for outgrowing it; that's what matters in a rear-facing infant seat. Straps need to be at or below shoulders, so I could see some kids outgrowing some infant seats by height before needing top slots, if they have a long neck and/or big head or if the seat is just designed funky.

dd9736 said:

It's hard to tell where the top slots are exactly in relation to his shoulders, because of the way the cover fits, but I just checked without him in it, and the top shell slots are above the cover slots, so def above his shoulders
I'll try washing the cover and see if that helps though I'm sure it has been, because i got it from a close friend who smokes, and it didn't smell like smoke when I got it.
As for where the shell is, that I'm sure of, as I make sure to compress the cover everytime I check (almost everytime I use the seat), and the cushion only goes to 1inch below the shell (probably to help parents know when their baby has outgrown it??)

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Ok, I was reversing which direction I thought the cover was affecting the harness. So then you definitely want to make sure that you have the right slots in the cover lined up with whatever slots you're using in the shell.

I have had the perego bucket seat & I have never had this issue. r U sure U are lining the fabric slots up correctly with the slots on the shell? My DS outgrew his when he was 9 1/2 months but he us pretty tall & most of it is in his torso.

katrintrin said:

I have had the perego bucket seat & I have never had this issue. r U sure U are lining the fabric slots up correctly with the slots on the shell? My DS outgrew his when he was 9 1/2 months but he us pretty tall & most of it is in his torso.

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DH has the camera, but I will take pictures of the seat, and how the whole thing lines up when I have it back.
I've taken the cover off several times to try and fix this, but it just won't fit quite right.
The bottom slots of the fabric are 1/2way between the bottom and middle shell slots, and the middle slots in the fabric are 1/2way between the middle and top slots, the top slots in the fabric are a good 1/2 inch above the top slots in the shell