Growing family and Seats for second vehicle

mom2ari

New member
I'm wondering if other families keep seats for a second vehicle if it is too small to hold all your kids.

We are expecting number 4 in September and primarily drive an Oddy. DH drives a silverado and up until this point we have had seats for both vehicles just in case. But with baby number 4 coming is there a point to keep buying two sets of seats?

Can he safely drive all 4 kids in his truck?

If it makes a difference our oldest will be 6 in early May. She is harnessed in the van, but just started booster training also. Dd2 will flip FFing in the next 3-6 months, Ds will rf for roughly 2.5 more years
 
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MommyShannon

New member
We have 4 kids also. They are 8.5, 6, almost 4, and 18 months. We have an Ody, an F250, and commuter car for DH. DH hates my collection of seats, but yes I do have extras. They aren't necessarily specifically for the other cars as much as I am a worry wort and want back up seats for whatever. The older 3 ride in the truck semi-regularly to go fishing or to ride bikes with DH so it often does have 2 boosters and a rf seat in it. I do happen to have 1 extra rf seat that I use occasionally for our 3 year old or 1 year old in the car if I'm just taking them while DH has the van with older kids. It's my spare for if my mom takes either of the younger ones too. You could easily just have 1 back up that either of your youngest kids can use.
ETA: the airbag in our truck can be turned off with a key so I could put all 4 kids in there if needed but not me too safely really. It's mostly that any combination of them might be riding in it at different times.
 

mom2ari

New member
Yeah, I was thinking if I wasn't along. I think at this point we will mostly have the van, but wasn't sure if it would be ok to have all four kids in the truck with him should he situation ever arise.
 

YinzerMama

New member
I have only ever had to put all the kids in my husband's car once, and that was when I still only had 3, and my van was in the shop. Generally speaking it is way easier to switch cars than to cram a bunch of kids in a non-ideal buncha kids vehicle.

I have two seats in the back of my husband's car. I like to take his car if he is home (better fuel economy than my van) and I usually take the youngest but will sometimes take one of the middle two. I like him to have some means of picking up kids from school if by some chance there is an emergency and they can't get a hold of me.

I like being able to escape with only one or two kids, too.

"Can I come with you?????"

"Oh, sorry, I have to take Daddy's car because he's blocking me in and your sister already asked... " ;)
 

christineka

New member
I have 6 kids and my husband's car only holds 3. I just have second seats that all of them can use, but not at the same time. At this point in time, it's one super easily adjustable convertible seat and a few backless boosters.
 

Keeanh

Well-known member
Yes, absolutely :) We have 8 kids and our day-to-day vehicles are a 6-p truck & 8-p van. LOL

What year is the truck? Does it have smart airbags? Does it have a switch for the airbags.

DH insists he's NOT a chauffeur and I've given in to letting the boys (9 & 11) sit in the front in their backless boosters because they're light enough that the "smart" airbag is supposedly off. I won't let them up front in my van because it's old-school with a regular airbag. HOWEVER in a pinch I have put a harnessed seat in front of the old-school airbag with an older child (5-7yo). I have a tether anchor and I feel that the harnessed seat is up higher and will do a better job of holding them back.
 

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