Car Seat suggestions

[Queen2PrincessG]

Yeah I'm stupid. I didnt realize it was at it's lowest setting my husband showed me on the website how it adjust. She was actually at the lower end of the harness strap setting. I ended up watching the demo video on the website and realized she will be fine.

 

[labdogs42]

I know you already got the Marathon, but just in case you decide to buy a second seat or anything, don't forget the Evenflo Triumph 65. That's a great seat at a great price. My DS had a Maratho and a Triumph for his convertible seats (one in my van, one in DH's MDX) and we actually liked the Triumph more than the Marathon. I loved that I didn't have to re-thread the straps! And, after your baby outgrows these seats, I love the Graco Nautilus! My 6 year old is still riding happily in his Nautilus.

 

[*Seanaci*]

I know you already got the Marathon, but just in case you decide to buy a second seat or anything, don't forget the Evenflo Triumph 65. That's a great seat at a great price. My DS had a Maratho and a Triumph for his convertible seats (one in my van, one in DH's MDX) and we actually liked the Triumph more than the Marathon. I loved that I didn't have to re-thread the straps! And, after your baby outgrows these seats, I love the Graco Nautilus! My 6 year old is still riding happily in his Nautilus.

Ditto the bolded! That was the convertible we had for our son...and I LOVED that didn't have to unstrap the carseat to move the straps up and down. I wish his Generations booster was like that.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

If you dodn't buy it already check target. Sometimes they have super deals on the Britax seats. I love the marathon. You won't be disappointed!

 

[momof3poohlovers]

I know you already got the Marathon, but just in case you decide to buy a second seat or anything, don't forget the Evenflo Triumph 65. That's a great seat at a great price. My DS had a Maratho and a Triumph for his convertible seats (one in my van, one in DH's MDX) and we actually liked the Triumph more than the Marathon. I loved that I didn't have to re-thread the straps! And, after your baby outgrows these seats, I love the Graco Nautilus! My 6 year old is still riding happily in his Nautilus.

You do not have to re-thread the straps on the Marathon. I was not sure if you were talking about the Triumph or the Marathon but I just wanted to make sure it was clear in case anyone was considering the Marathon.

 

[labdogs42]

You do not have to re-thread the straps on the Marathon. I was not sure if you were talking about the Triumph or the Marathon but I just wanted to make sure it was clear in case anyone was considering the Marathon.

That's cool! When we had the Marathon, you had to re-thread. Nice to hear that it has changed!

 

[Piecey]

We have a Boulevard. I researched and honestly can't remember why I went with it in the end...

DS 10months is 29lbs & 31"... He fits just fine in it and usually falls asleep within 10 minutes. He's much happier than he was in the infant carrier (a Graco SafeSeat)... His height is mostly in his torso, though. Which helps with leg room obviously

I *think* I went with it because it had a higher rear facing weight than the Safety 1st Alpha Omega Elite I used with my first DS. (we loathed that car seat, gave it to my parents for the rare time they have a boy out and about)

DS 10 months has some health issues and will be having brain surgery soon so it was especially important for me to rear face him longer than I did my first DS. which is how we ended up with a Boulevard. Luckily, he doesn't mind it and when he gets fussy big bro reaches over and tickles him. Smooth sailing so far haha.

DS2 is in a Graco Nautilus. Both vehicles they have the same seat- Boulevard, Nautilus. Both boys are comfortable and I'm happy with the choices.

 

[Queen2PrincessG]

So we installed our Marathon and took it to our local CPTS. Well she said we did it 100% correct AND SAID that if DD did become cranky again it is total OK to turn her around in a BRITAX SEAT ONLY because the min is 1 year 20 lbs and since she is closer to 2 than 1 we would be ok but to make sure to bring it back to check that it is correct. She was very nice and we chatted for a bit. SO DD is rear facing and happy for the last two days which is very nice!

 

[Bren's Mom]

So we installed our Marathon and took it to our local CPTS. Well she said we did it 100% correct AND SAID that if DD did become cranky again it is total OK to turn her around in a BRITAX SEAT ONLY because the min is 1 year 20 lbs and since she is closer to 2 than 1 we would be ok but to make sure to bring it back to check that it is correct. She was very nice and we chatted for a bit. SO DD is rear facing and happy for the last two days which is very nice!

Oh my, that is not good, not good at all. If you want to pm me the location where these techs were I would really like to notify Safe Kids. That is terrible information and NOT correct.

There is NO difference in safety between a Britax seat and any other. And there is nothing about a Britax seat that makes it safer to turn a child forward-facing sooner just because they're in a Britax. NOTHING.

And there is nothing in the CPST curriculum that says that, they are simply making things up as they go along.

That said, I am thrilled that your dd is rear-facing now, and that she is happy! It seems, then, that being so reclined was at least part of the issue and, I hope, that you don't feel the need to turn her too quickly. You have, most likely, a 40lbs rear-facing limit on your new Marathon and I hope you make good use of every last pound of that!

Coleen
CPST

 

[Queen2PrincessG]

Oh my, that is not good, not good at all. If you want to pm me the location where these techs were I would really like to notify Safe Kids. That is terrible information and NOT correct.

There is NO difference in safety between a Britax seat and any other. And there is nothing about a Britax seat that makes it safer to turn a child forward-facing sooner just because they're in a Britax. NOTHING.

And there is nothing in the CPST curriculum that says that, they are simply making things up as they go along.

That said, I am thrilled that your dd is rear-facing now, and that she is happy! It seems, then, that being so reclined was at least part of the issue and, I hope, that you don't feel the need to turn her too quickly. You have, most likely, a 40lbs rear-facing limit on your new Marathon and I hope you make good use of every last pound of that!

Coleen
CPST

I'm all set with ratting out someone who gave honest information. Thanks!

 

[ThreeBeans]

Oh my, that is not good, not good at all. If you want to pm me the location where these techs were I would really like to notify Safe Kids. That is terrible information and NOT correct.

There is NO difference in safety between a Britax seat and any other. And there is nothing about a Britax seat that makes it safer to turn a child forward-facing sooner just because they're in a Britax. NOTHING.

And there is nothing in the CPST curriculum that says that, they are simply making things up as they go along.

That said, I am thrilled that your dd is rear-facing now, and that she is happy! It seems, then, that being so reclined was at least part of the issue and, I hope, that you don't feel the need to turn her too quickly. You have, most likely, a 40lbs rear-facing limit on your new Marathon and I hope you make good use of every last pound of that!

Coleen
CPST

C, I just read her snarky response and my guess is, it translates to, "Ok, you caught me, I made that up from top to bottom, but now that it looks like someone could get in trouble for my lie, I'm not willing to back it up."


(Trust me, muh deah, this one doesn't want to, and can't, be helped.)

 

[LISmama810]

LOL, there's nothing honest about that information. That tech was 100% incorrect. Britax is not safer, and a child is less safe in that seat FF than RF.

Unfortunately there are a lot of bad/misinformed techs out there, and a lot of people who believe them.

 

[Bren's Mom]

C, I just read her snarky response and my guess is, it translates to, "Ok, you caught me, I made that up from top to bottom, but now that it looks like someone could get in trouble for my lie, I'm not willing to back it up."


(Trust me, muh deah, this one doesn't want to, and can't, be helped.)

LOL...yes ma'am, I do believe you're correct...on both counts!

 

[Queen2PrincessG]

Well sign me up as someone who believed her. Should I not believe her statement that Britax is the only company that has a rear facing tether line that attaches to the driver or passenger seat to secure car seat stability?
Should I not believe her common sense statement that "suggestions keep changing and they will constantly change year to year so don't worry as long as your seat is installed properly you are fine."?

Thanks for all the advice and suggestions.

 

[ThreeBeans]

Well sign me up as someone who believed her. Should I not believe her statement that Britax is the only company that has a rear facing tether line that attaches to the driver or passenger seat to secure car seat stability?
Should I not believe her common sense statement that "suggestions keep changing and they will constantly change year to year so don't worry as long as your seat is installed properly you are fine."?

Thanks for all the advice and suggestions.

I realize that I'm falling for your fake "i want to know something" line again, when you aren't actually interested in information, but, sigh, I'll bite.

1. No, you shouldn't, because Sunshine Kids has been allowing rear facing tethering on their products since they first released their original convertibles. In 2006. And Combi recently updated its information to allow rear facing tethering of the Corrocco. All three companies rear facing tether in the exact same way with the exact same D-ring. Any technician who was even moderately intelligent would know that.

2. No, suggestions do not keep changing. The information that children under 4 should be rear facing is roughly FIFTY YEARS OLD. And Safe Kids has advocated keeping children rear facing as long as they fit since its inception in the 90s.

3. Having your seat installed properly is great, but it doesn't change physics and physiology. So no, just having the seat installed correctly will not reverse the fact that toddlers need to be rear facing.

 

[Bren's Mom]

Well sign me up as someone who believed her. Should I not believe her statement that Britax is the only company that has a rear facing tether line that attaches to the driver or passenger seat to secure car seat stability?
Should I not believe her common sense statement that "suggestions keep changing and they will constantly change year to year so don't worry as long as your seat is installed properly you are fine."?

Thanks for all the advice and suggestions.

Correct. You should NOT believe her statement that Britax is the only company that allows tethering while rear-facing because is is not a true statement.

Correct. You should not believe her 'common sense' statement that 'suggestions keep changing' because they DON'T keep changing. Since 2002, the AAP has been recommending rear-facing to the limits of the child's convertible seat. But parents weren't 'getting' it. So CPS advocates pushed for stronger wording to help parents understand better. Finally this year they came out with the stronger wording, both AAP and NHTSA, but it is NOT a NEW recommendation just better, stronger wording so that parents really 'get it' that forward-facing too soon is dangerous.

Children between the ages of 1 and 2 are NOT fine in a forward-facing seat, even if the seat is appropriate for their age and weight and installed properly. They may be more fine than a child in a poorly installed seat, or an expired seat, or no seat at all...but they are MUCH (5x) SAFER in a rear-facing, properly installed, appropriate seat.

 

[LuvMy3Monkeys]

Well sign me up as someone who believed her. Should I not believe her statement that Britax is the only company that has a rear facing tether line that attaches to the driver or passenger seat to secure car seat stability?
Should I not believe her common sense statement that "suggestions keep changing and they will constantly change year to year so don't worry as long as your seat is installed properly you are fine."?

Thanks for all the advice and suggestions.

I don't believe for one second that a CPST told you that "as long as your seat is installed correctly you're fine". So if you have a correctly installed forward facing seat with a six month old it's fine simply because "suggestions keep changing"? No. Not at all.

Either A, you grossly misunderstood what she said.

B, you are twisting her words to tailor to your story.

Or C, she didn't say anything of the sort and you know she didn't.

In any case, it would take me far too long to correct everything that you just stated. Luckily, I know most folks on the DIS aren't that impressionable and won't take one person's fallacious rant for truth over the years of studies and documentation that show that rearfacing is safest to the maximum of your seat, at least till age 3, and ANY seat that fits your child, fits your vehicle and can be used properly 100% of the time is a safe seat.

 

[RooRach0906]

OP ~ sorry to hijack....

To you CPST ~ I was just wondering if you could tell me a location near me where I could get my DD seat checked. I live in Richmond, VA.

 

[Bren's Mom]

There are at least 2 awesome techs in your area, I will pm you the info!

 

[*Seanaci*]

OP ~ sorry to hijack....

To you CPST ~ I was just wondering if you could tell me a location near me where I could get my DD seat checked. I live in Richmond, VA.

I know here in Colorado...you can have your carseat checked at fire stations with approved techs...as well as the local Children's Hospital.


*sighs* As for the digs at OP...you guys are real winners. >_< We're all so quick to judge based on our own opinion/view/experience.

Do we know that OP had her carseat checked by a tech? Nope. Do we know that the carseat tech told her as long as the car seat was installed properly, OP was perfectly within her own right to turn her DD forward facing? Nope.

So, we have to take the OP's word for it. We have to agree to disagree. And we have to walk away. It does no good to sit here and say "Oh dear. Send me the info of that tech so I can report them for relaying totally incorrect info to you." That's not right. Just because you are a carseat tech, doesn't mean the "training" carries over from state to state.

As far as I can tell (I've been doing loads of research on all this...cause I'm passionate about carseat safety and how we treat each other for the choices we make that are best for our families), carseat safety GUIDELINES DO indeed keep changing yearly...suggestions added/taken away. They HAVE to keep changing them so we can keep our kids safer while travelling in a car. If they didn't change the guidelines, well, then, there would be little need to ask questions about carseat safety, right?

Also...I would like to see evidence that

The information that children under 4 should be rear facing is roughly FIFTY YEARS OLD.

Really. I'm crying foul on that one for now till you can back it up with a RELIABLE source.

My parents are in their 50s...my aunts and uncles are in their 50s and 60s. They (aunts and uncles) remember the days when their kids (some of my cousins, who are approaching their 40s) sat in their carseats forward facing before a year and/or in the front seat between mom and dad. These are very responsable people...they were responsable parents back then. SO, IF there was indeed suggestions/guidelines 40+ years ago that kids should be rear facing till 4, I know they would have abided by it.

Sometimes I wonder where some carseat techs get their "certification" from. >_<

Sorry...just giving my few cents worth...and giving my opinion on how this thread has gone from asking about specific carseats to whether or not OP should rear face or forward face her DD (and how stupid/dumb she is for even thinking about forward facing her 18 month old DD).