Graco Snugrider "Travel System" at Target - $99

[mom2juliarose]

I noticed in our Target ad this week that there's a Graco Snugrider Travel System at Target for $99. I decided to call my local Target and they didn't have one in-stock, but the one 10 miles away has 3, so I'm heading there tonight to check it out.

It says it comes with the Snugrider car seat frame (which is usually like $55-$75 depending on where you buy it from) and a Snugride car seat, so my curiosity is piqued.

I'll update more after I see it... it's exactly the route we plan on going with Dois (Snugride + Snugrider), since Julia's seats will be ready for Dois by the time he/she is a few months old, and we have a Maclaren for when baby gets older. We had the most basic Snugride with Julia, too--rear-adjuster and all, and it didn't bother me. I might wind up coming home with it!

 

[mamajava]

Let me know how this goes. I saw it in the Target ad to yesterday and was thinking about getting it. Sounded like a pretty good deal.

 

[ShumNum]

I'm curious too!

 

[mom2juliarose]

I wound up getting it, but haven't opened the box yet. I couldn't lug it to our 2nd-floor apartment. Anyway, the pattern of the car seat is called "Boxy." I found a similar TS on the Graco site with the Boxy pattern, but it's different. The one from Target is a rear adjuster, and the cube-like pattern is all over the seat cover (it doesn't have the black sides like the one linked above).

I can give more input once I get the box open, although I won't be assembling the stroller...we're moving in 3 weeks, and I plan on moving the box all together instead of assembling things!

Oh and the sign at Target had the original price as $149.99.

 

[mamajava]

Umm...Do you think that a SR would fit in the back of a 2002 Impala with an AOE and Evenflo Big Kid? I am trying to think of a seat that would fit for my friend. I don't want her to have to get another convertible cause she just bought the AOE.

I would really like to get this for her, but I am worried about the fit.

 

[mom2juliarose]

Umm...Do you think that a SR would fit in the back of a 2002 Impala with an AOE and Evenflo Big Kid? I am trying to think of a seat that would fit for my friend. I don't want her to have to get another convertible cause she just bought the AOE.

I would really like to get this for her, but I am worried about the fit.

I have no idea, since I don't have experience with those cars or those seats. Perhaps someone else can help you out if you start a new thread? I know someone is keeping a database of the dimensions of seats so maybe that would help knowing how wide those 3 would be together?

 

[mom2juliarose]

So I opened the box tonight to feel the fabric, and it isn't terribly stiff like I imagined it would be! And the pattern is really cute, too. I didn't want to take the stuff out of the box (we're moving, and I want to move it IN the box, and knowing me I'd get it out and not be able to fit it back in).

But here's a photo of the pattern up-close (it's taken from the canopy, which is mostly black but has some of the pattern on it--the whole seat is this pattern and the infant head support that comes with it is pale blue):

 

[crunchierthanthou]

is it rear adjust like the ones at Target usually are?

 

[CTPDMom]

That was my question too!

It's a great deal if it's a front adjust, if it's a rear-adjust I wouldn't want it.

 

[Maedze]

Yup, and I definitely wouldn't recommend one to the average parent. Only the most dedicated CPS advocates seem capable of using them correctly :twocents:

 

[mom2juliarose]

is it rear adjust like the ones at Target usually are?

The one from Target is a rear adjuster

Yes, it's a rear-adjust. We had one with DD, and it didn't bother me, so I don't mind having one again. I know we'll only be using it for the first 3-4 months before Dois gets DD's TrueFit and Radian.

 

[mom2juliarose]

Yup, and I definitely wouldn't recommend one to the average parent. Only the most dedicated CPS advocates seem capable of using them correctly :twocents:

And that's frustrating, because the cheapest front-adjust Snugride that I have seen is $109.99 (Pippin, Mickey Mouse In The House, Sterling, and Jewel). I recommend front-adjusters to all the new moms I talk with, but when you can get a rear-adjust for cheaper (Graco has 19 Snugrides for under $100, and all but one--which is on clearance--have rear-adjusters), I find many of them wind up with a rear-adjuster. It's only a 20 dollar difference (the cheapest SRs seem to be $89.99) but to some people, that's too much.

 

[ketchupqueen]

Yeah, it's a shame people can't use them properly. (I actually found it easier to get a tight fit on my oddly-shaped child than the front adjuster. But she was bizzarre. )

I like the pattern. And the price is great!

 

[DreamFlower]

Can someone please tell me the difference between front and rear adjust? It seems like rear is looked down upon and I would like to know why. I am worried now lol!
Thanks!

 

[Maedze]

Can someone please tell me the difference between front and rear adjust? It seems like rear is looked down upon and I would like to know why. I am worried now lol!
Thanks!

The front-adjust allows the harness to be tightened by a single-pull of a strap at the baby's feet. The rear adjust has two separate straps at the rear of the seat, which must be tightened independently, often with a great deal of fussing and mucking about.

Both pass all the same testing requirements.

The rear-adjust is traditionally not recommended because not once, in hundreds of infant seat checks, have I ever seen a parent use a rear-adjust tightening mechanism correctly.

It's very difficult to tighten them properly with a baby in them, and most people don't bother to try. This means the harness is not adjusted properly, which means the seat will not protect the baby correctly in an accident.

 

[crunchierthanthou]

Front adjust have a strap near the child's feet that you pull to tighten the harness. It is connected to a splitter plate that tightens both straps together.

Rear adjust have two buckles on the back where you tighten each side independently. It's not nearly as convenient and IME, most parents leave the harness too loose rather than taking the time to adjust it each trip.

here's a front adjust seat - [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Graco-SnugRide-Infant-Seat-Zurich/dp/B001GQ2P6O"]Amazon.com: Graco SnugRide 32 Infant Car Seat: Baby[/ame]


eta: and here's a thread with pictures of a rear adjust - http://www.car-seat.org/showpost.php?p=461321&postcount=14

It took me a minute. I was looking for a stock photo.

 

[mom2juliarose]

Can someone please tell me the difference between front and rear adjust? It seems like rear is looked down upon and I would like to know why. I am worried now lol!
Thanks!

Here's a thread that shows how a rear-adjust car seat adjusts:
http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=47732

ETA: LOL we were posting at the same time.

 

[mom2juliarose]

Well, I wound up returning it. DH and I sat down this weekend and hashed out my maternity leave/post maternity-leave plans and he'll be a SAHD for a month after I go back to work... and honestly, I love him, but I'm not sure he'd do it right all the time... so I'll wait and keep an eye out for sales on a front-adjust seat.