Feeling newly invested in RFing...

As my DD approaches the RFing limits of her seats, I have been feeling fine about turning her around. Hey, I've done my part, and followed the AAP recommendations about RFing "to the limits of the seat." But now I'm feeling more concerned about keeping her RFing to age four.

So, here is our current situation:

DD is 2y32m. She weighs 31.5 lbs., and is about 36 inches tall with a long torso.

Cars:
-1999 Honda Odyssey, no LATCH, no usable top tether anchors for second row seats (I have been anchoring to a third row seatbelt for FFing. No side airbags.

-2002 Subaru Forester, no lower anchors, but great top tethers for all three rear seating positions. No side airbags.


Seats:
-Britax Roundabout: DD outgrew RFing by height at 20 months. Now, for FFing, she is on the top slots, and her head is just slightly higher than the seatback. She has an inch to go until she is at the top harness slot.

-Britax Boulevard: 33 lb. RFing limit. I have it FFing right now as DD is so close to the RFing weight limit. Also, she really was running out of legroom RFing, and it was hard to get her in the seat. Not a deal-breaker, by any means, but all together RFing just isn't working really well.

-Evenflo Triumph Advance: currently our only RFing seat. She's still well within the weight limits, and has plenty of legroom, as well as shell above her head. It is a really comfortable seat for a larger RFing toddler, and I'm sure she'll stay RFing to the limit in this seat.


Other concerns: DD has been fine RFing around town, but on long drives over the mountain passes (i.e. windy roads at high speeds) she gets carsick. I started turning her FFing for these trips when she reached two years and 30 lbs.

Right now she is RFing in the EFTA in the Odyssey (primary vehicle) and FFing in the Boulevard in the Forester.

So, I'm seriously considering another seat in which she could ERF. The Graco My Ride would be the obvious choice, but I haven't been able to play with it IRL. I'm also concerned that it wouldn't be the greatest FFing seat. And then today I tried out the Radian XT and I LOVED IT! I especially love that it has SIP wings and that DD would be able to FF in it for a looooong time. Also, I like that it performs well FFing without a top tether. But of course it only RF to 35 lbs. It seems silly to spend $270 for an extra two pounds RFing, when we have a perfectly good Boulevard.

So, what to do? I would love to hear any thoughts, options I hadn't considered, etc. One thing I will not do is buy a Scenera for the extra two pounds RFing - I am just not comfortable with the lack of EPS foam.

Oh, and DD really liked the Frontier. FFing only, I know, but man, she loved that thing!

Can you afford to buy a new seat? If the RFing is important to you, your child fits the seat, and you can afford it, I'd try out the MyRide 65 and install it. (Ie can you install it in the car you want it in)

My personal comfort zone (at least currently) is that I won't buy a seat to rear-face my kid past 2y6m. And we could not afford $300 for a new seat at this point at all. (If you really want it, though, you could hunt the sales and try to get it cheaper. HOWEVER: Make sure they have the Radian in stock. I tried to purchase one earlier this year and finally cancelled it after waiting 2.5 months with no seat.)

I agree with you about the Scenera -- we bought one as a travel seat and I am about to buy a new seat to replace it and sell it to someone who is comfortable using it because I've found I'm not.

Several people on this site are in a similar predicament. The problem they are finding is that the Graco My Ride has minimal RF height difference from a Marathon (or Blvd, for that matter). Just because it has a 40 lb RF weight limit on it does not mean it will neccesarily last you longer than the radian will RF, with its 35 lb weight limit (especially with a tall-torsoed child).

I have a regular radian. I love the seat. Our DS will likely outgrow it by weight, but we have only a 33lb limit. He is similarly built to your DD (29 lbs and 35 inches). As I look at him in the marathon, I think he'd outgrow it by height before reaching 35 lbs.

I am not as worried about the benefits of SIP, so I'd throw in a regular radian into my decision, but understand if that is a priority to you.

I'm just about in the same predicament as you as dd1 is 39" w/a long torso (so a little taller) and 31lbs at 31mo. She fits great in her true fit, but I'm thinking the mr might have a little too short of a shell for her to get to 40lbs. My plan is to max out the TF, and hope either the TFP or a Radian gets tested to 40lbs before that time. So basically, I'd just wait

What about contacting Honda Canada to get TT anchor parts for your Ody? If her seat in the Ody was TT'd, would you feel better about turning her?

Another option would be a seat like the RN that performs well without a TT.

HTH

Remember this: in the data analyzed that led to the British recommendation to RF until age 4, forward-facing children were usually not in tethered seats, or able to be harnessed past 40 lbs. (or sometimes less, if long-torsoed.) If you have tether anchors in your car, it changes the equation somewhat. Is rear-facing still safer? Absolutely. Heck, I would ride rear-facing if I could. But at some point we do all go forward facing. If you're not comfortable yet, absolutely do what you need to do. But I do want to point out the difference in their seats vs. ours, too.