Question How do you do it? Buckling and three across

[cottonmama]

We are planning to do a three across in our 2000 camry if our family grows to 3 children in the next couple years, but I'm baffled as to how I would buckle the middle seat while juggling two other kids who need lots of attention. How do you do it? Should we be saving for a van instead?

 

[mylittlet]

Many on here do 3 across in a car, truck or minivan. We will have 3 across our 3rd row of our minivan this year.

What ages are your kids? Weights? What seats do you have?

Having seats that puzzle well together is important when doing 3 across. Also using seatbelt instead of LATCH to install seats gives you several more buckling inches. Keeping kids in a harness is much easier then trying to buckle a booster in a 3 across situation.

There is a 3 across thread under installation forum and you can search your type of car.

 

[hrice]

Welcome to car-seat.org! You have come to ther right place!

Answers to the above questions will help us help you.

 

[Baylor]

I was a " no way I am ever getting a van gal" but now that I have one. It makes life much easier. I can separate them and dont fret over extra passengers.

Welcome!

 

[MomToEliEm]

I have a 2001 Camry and have been able to do 3 across before with the right seats (we had a radian at window, Marathon center, radian at window). I even did 3-across with booster seats. I wouldn't suggest doing the 3-across with boosters on a regular basis though as it was a pain trying to reach the seatbelt buckles.

 

[lorismurph]

What I would do (after finding seats that fit 3 across). Keep them all harnessed as long as possible. Then, I'd put the oldest in the center and teach them to buckle themselves (before baby comes). That way, if you use a bucket for the baby, you can open the door, let the oldest climb over to their seat, click the baby bucket in the base (while keeping one hand on the middle child), then walk the middle child around to their seat and buckle them in. Then, you can double-check the oldest either from the side while you are there, or turn around from the front to check.

My 4.5yo has been buckling herself for a while now. She cannot unbuckle so I just reach back to unbuckle first, then walk around to get middle child, hold them while you get baby, and oldest climbs out.

 

[ketchupqueen]

When we had 3 in a Corolla, we had the oldest stand next to the car while we leaned in to buckle the littlest in the middle, at the same time the middle child climbed in her seat and got ready to be buckled. Then went around and buckled middle child, while oldest climbed in and got ready to be buckled. Then buckled oldest, then went. If there were two of us with the kids it was easier as one could do two kids while the other did one.

 

[Unregistered]

My children are 3 and 1 right now. We are hoping for another, but that would be at least 9 months away, so I'm not sure current weights would help. 3yo is avg height and skinny, and 1yo is tall and avg weight. As far as ages, at this point my oldest would be newly 4yo at the youngest, and my current baby would be 19 months at the youngest. And then there would be a newborn.

Right now we have one Radian that we would be using for 3 across. We also have an Evenflo Triumph and a Cosco Scenera, but they are big and will probably go to our second car for times when one of us will take one or two of the kids somewhere.

My 3yo rides in the Radian now and can barely get the chest strap buckled; I'd never tried to see if she could get the crotch buckle by herself. I'm pretty sure she would not be strong enough, at least right now. I wonder if we could put the two littles in Radians, and then something that's easier to buckle for my 3yo? Or just wait and see if she learns to buckle the Radian as she gets closer to 4?

 

[cottonmama]

My children are 3 and 1 right now. We are hoping for another, but that would be at least 9 months away, so I'm not sure current weights would help. 3yo is avg height and skinny, and 1yo is tall and avg weight. As far as ages, at this point my oldest would be newly 4yo at the youngest, and my current baby would be 19 months at the youngest. And then there would be a newborn.

Right now we have one Radian that we would be using for 3 across. We also have an Evenflo Triumph and a Cosco Scenera, but they are big and will probably go to our second car for times when one of us will take one or two of the kids somewhere.

My 3yo rides in the Radian now and can barely get the chest strap buckled; I'd never tried to see if she could get the crotch buckle by herself. I'm pretty sure she would not be strong enough, at least right now. I wonder if we could put the two littles in Radians, and then something that's easier to buckle for my 3yo? Or just wait and see if she learns to buckle the Radian as she gets closer to 4?

Just realized that I posted the above as an unregistered guest. I've never been on a forum that lets you do that! Sorry if that was confusing.

I'm definitely interested in suggestions of easy-buckling harnesses that puzzle well with Radians.

 

[Holly]

I had a 2007 Camry that I did 3 across in for 2 1/2 years. When my 3rd was born, my other two were 3 1/2 and just over two. We had a FFing FPSVD (same size and shape as any classic Britax seat) on the driver's side, FFing radian in the center, and a Chicco Keyfit behind the passenger.

We could have fit two Britax seats and one radian back there, but when we switched baby to a convertible, we put him in the FPSVD and got a 2nd radian. He was behind the passenger. I'd take the kids out and hold the baby while opening the door for the older kids. They would climb in and sit down and put their arms in their straps. I'd go buckle baby in then come back around and buckle them.

They didn't learn to buckle themselves all the way until 5 and 3 1/2. We later had 3 radians in there, one RF and the others FF.
I liked each set up, but probably liked the 3 radians the best because the RFer had more leg room and because I liked the look of 3 of the same seats in there.

If you have two RFers at the same time, I'd want the FFer to be outboard so they don't have to climb over or under a RF seat to get to theirs. I'd probably want the youngest in the middle because they would be lighter to lift in.

 

[abacus2]

We have three across in one of our cars. When Naomi was first born, I would set her infant carseat in the front passenger seat while I buckled the middle child in the middle of the back. Then I would put the infant seat in its base and help my oldest buckle on the other side. When we moved to convertibles, I would have the middle child climb into her seat in the middle from the oldest's side of the car while I buckled the baby. Then I would walk around and buckle her in the middle seat and then the oldest would climb in and get buckled.