wanting opinions - baby crys when in his "bucket"

[amandav]

wanting some opinions - Vincent my 2 mo old son, seems to hate his car seat. Every time we put him in it he crys, and has done this since birth.
he can sit in his bouncer, or swing with no problems, but when we put him in the bucket, he has a FIT, and he does it loudly. there have been a couple occasion he is quiet, but only for about 30 seconds tops before he begins to cry..
Paul, my husband thinks its the car seat itself, that it sits him at an angle he doesn't like or something, but I think they make all car seats with them seated at and angle.. and for those times he is asleep in the bucket, he has usually been too tired to stay awake and keep crying.
We both have tried feeling around it there may have been something poking him, feel nothing. he just will not sit in it without crying!

should I go to BRU and put him in some other buckets there, and see if that changes things?? or just suck it up.. think he'll get over it?

what do I do? what are my options? why do you think he crys when in the seat, and he crys everywhere while in it, not just in the car.

thank you for reading
~a

 

[Judi]

What angle is the seat at? I agree with your husband.

 

[wendytthomas]

If he has head control he can sit more upright. What carseat do you have? You could move him to a convertible seat if he wants to sit more upright and has head control.

Wendy

 

[safeinthecar]

Bucket seats put baby in more of a "C" shaped sitting position that a lot of other baby equipment. This can put a lot of pressure on a little tummy. switching to a car seat that puts him in more of an "L" shape might help. Most convertibles will be more of an "L" than a "C" so it is worth going out to try sitting him in some different seats. He can go into a convertible seat at 2 months old, just make sure his shoulders are at least as tall as the bottom harness slot.

 

[griffinmom]

As Wendy said, neck control is crucial here. I almost hate to say this but some kids just cry in their seats. No matter what.

I'd try a convertible as soon as it is appropriate.

 

[amandav]

What angle is the seat at? I agree with your husband.

If he has head control he can sit more upright. What carseat do you have? You could move him to a convertible seat if he wants to sit more upright and has head control.

Wendy

I have a Graco Snugride.. do all buckets have the same angled seat?

Bucket seats put baby in more of a "C" shaped sitting position that a lot of other baby equipment. This can put a lot of pressure on a little tummy. switching to a car seat that puts him in more of an "L" shape might help. Most convertibles will be more of an "L" than a "C" so it is worth going out to try sitting him in some different seats. He can go into a convertible seat at 2 months old, just make sure his shoulders are at least as tall as the bottom harness slot.

he is 2 mo and has head control, I might just go that route. I keep thinking I want to keep him in the bucket cause it easier, but it really isnt cause I have to take him out of it as soon as we are out of the car. I just remember it being so much easier with my girls.

As Wendy said, neck control is crucial here. I almost hate to say this but some kids just cry in their seats. No matter what.

I'd try a convertible as soon as it is appropriate.

here is a pic of the seat we have. is this considered the "C" shape?
it was $35 on clearance at target w a base, and snap style stroller, I couldnt pass it up, now its looking like a waste. I could always resell though its worth more than what I paid..

 

[wendytthomas]

It's a Graco Snugride 22. See the level indicator on the side of the seat? Put the foot on the base back in if you have it out, add weight to the foot area as you're tightening it down, and see if you can get it so that the blue is showing, but the orange is just peeking through.

Also, make sure his bum is back. No armadillo babies.

Also, remove the dangerous aftermarket headrest. It's not been tested with the seat, and it can cause a suffocation risk (if it gets behind his head) or an ejection risk (if it pushes the harness to the sides).

Wendy

 

[daycaremom2002]

How far reclined do you have the seat installed. If you can take a picture, we can possibly make suggestions for him to be more comfortable. A lot of babies don't like to be too reclined.

I agree that the head support really needs to come out. Anything that does not come with the seat, is prohibited by the manufacturer. There is just no way to know how a seat will perform with after market items in them. Better safe than sorry for sure.

 

[amandav]

It's a Graco Snugride 22. See the level indicator on the side of the seat? Put the foot on the base back in if you have it out, add weight to the foot area as you're tightening it down, and see if you can get it so that the blue is showing, but the orange is just peeking through.

Also, make sure his bum is back. No armadillo babies.

Also, remove the dangerous aftermarket headrest. It's not been tested with the seat, and it can cause a suffocation risk (if it gets behind his head) or an ejection risk (if it pushes the harness to the sides).

Wendy

when I put the bucket in the van, thats how it sits, with the indicator how you say. he is sitting more upright. I'd really love to have him happy anywhere we go while hes in it, but so far, its a hate relationship. he crys when we put him in it in the house, when we carry it to the car, the whole car ride.

I dont know anything about other buckets because weve only ever used a snugride. we had the same seat for my girls ( not same same as in he is using their old seat, of course this one is new)
.
as far as the headrest, I had a bottom part on it and figured taking the part that went behind his back was was enough to make it safe, but Ill go ahead and stop using the head part too.

 

[all together ooky]

I'd definitly try a different seat. My kids didn't really like the infant seats, expecially the Graco ones (even though I did). If you take the cover off you'll notice that the foam padding only goes halfway down the back. That's always irritated me. If you like having a bucket then there are other that he may like better. Or move to a convertible. My kids were so much happier in a convertible.

 

[amandav]

I'd definitly try a different seat. My kids didn't really like the infant seats, expecially the Graco ones (even though I did). If you take the cover off you'll notice that the foam padding only goes halfway down the back. That's always irritated me. If you like having a bucket then there are other that he may like better. Or move to a convertible. My kids were so much happier in a convertible.

Ive never looked. Ill have to check that out!
I will also probably make a trip out to BRU and try some seats there, I think thats our best option esp since whatever I get I dont want it to be a waste of money!
.
.I took a trip out to my van just to make sure I was sure of what I was talking about lol.
I did go ahead and take the aftermarket head rest out, I was able to find the one that came with the seat!
sorry so dark, it was in the garage, and Im not opening it, cause it is FREEZING outside. it was super cold as it was!

 

[wendytthomas]

Yeah, that's about as upright as it can go. I'd try a different seat, then. Make sure you install it in your car before you buy, see how he fits in your car.

Wendy

 

[DaniChildcare]

Honestly, Graco snugride 22's have VERY little padding in them, i'm not surprised that he's not happy. (the larger versions have better padding IMO.)

I would probably get a convertible as well. Isn't the Graco MyRide supposed to be good for younger babies?

 

[luvsviola]

My kids just hated the carseat. I had a SnugRide 22 (with the Gracopedic foam) for DD, and moved her to a convertible at 4 months because I couldn't take the screaming anymore, thinking it would help. It didn't.

DFS was in a SafeSeat and he hated it as well. Moving to a convertible helped a little, but not a huge amount. Some kids really just don't like to be strapped in. However, it is just not negotiable! We tried to limit our trips out, and kiddo just had to deal, sadly.

 

[family5oregon]

we had a graco in 2003 and had to go buy a new seat becasue our DS3 cried all the time also plus he had colic for the first 6 months. we ended up with the evenflo discovery that had more padding. I spend all day trying different seats and was sooooo happy that he was smiled again.

 

[andre149]

Do you have any convertible seats available to try him in? You mentioned you had other kiddos, what are they riding in? Maybe you could take a short drive with him in a convertible seat you already have (as long as it fits him well, harness slots below his shoulders) just to see if that will help or not. Some kiddos cry and it's a phase, but it may be the bucket seat... so that would help see if it's a seat problem before you buy a new one for him right now. If you don't have access to a convertible seat I would buy one and see how he does in it, might help a lot.

 

[SusanMae]

Does he or will he take a pacifier? That helped my son for awhile. Has he always been that upright or did you recently make it that upright? Maybe he needs a bit more recline.

Remember not to drive with the handle in that position....you can leave it all the way up though.

Susan

 

[amandav]

its always been that upright when in the car, but it is reclined when out of the car when carrying him in and out of places, and he crys in both positions.
I am going to test out other seats, and Im guessing if I come to any conclusions it will be
either
A he hates being in a car seat period no matter what kind and we will just keep the snugride, and try and limit time he is in the car seat OR
B he just hates the graco snugride we have, and I will get a new seat, and hopefuly he will be a happier baby when it comes to car seats.