Carseat Pros and Cons

I had the exact same problem. I chose the smaller seat because if you can make it 12 months in the infant seat you are lucky! My 4 month old will be out of his just after Chrismas! It is already very difficult to carry anywhere with him in it, even just to the door of the store.

I completely understand. My husband is really big into research. If you are looking for one that will last longer get the Symphony. It doesnot belongto a travel system but it goes up to 100 pounds. My sister got a Graco and loved it but my nephew out grew it by 7 months. The Symphony is one of the best on the market. She ended up by it to replace her Graco. It is a bigger expense in the beginning since you will need to by a car seat and stroller but it will from seat to booster seat.

hi K.! i have a graco that goes to 22 pounds. when my little girl got to be around 6 or so months, i quit taking the carrier out of the car as much, because she could sit in the grocery cart, a high chair at a restaurant, etc, easier. she didn't outgrow the seat until right at a year, when we bought a new carseat and flipped her around. now the american academy of pediatrics is suggesting keeping kids rear facing as long as possible, up to 23 months so long as they are in a seat approved for their weight, but they only HAVE to be 12 months and 20 pounds. we are using the same seat currently for baby #2 and plan on around 6 or so months, when the carrier isn't as needed, to just get a new carseat that can be rear facing up to 40 pounds... my plan is for the graco my ride 65-- it goes rear facing, and then forward in a 5 point harness up to 65 pounds, which i love the idea of. my older girl is almost 4 and about 34 pounds... the 5 point harness she's in can't be used as such past 40 pounds, so she'll go to a booster seat, which i don't think i'm ready for! bottom line, my advice-- b/c of these things-- go with the one you like regardless of the weight limit, and invest in a good seat that will take you further when your little one outgrows this one. i do highly recommend using a carrier initially though instead of a seat that stays in the car when they're little. hope that helps and good luck!

I would go with the smaller one if that's what you prefer. I would be surprised if you are able to use the infant seat for the whole first year. My first son was over 20 lbs at his 6 month checkup and my second was 24 lbs at his 6 month checkup. I switched both of them to a convertible carseat and installed it facing the rear. Not only will the carseat be very heavy by that point to carry, but when they can sit up (around 6 months) they don't like to have to sit laid back in the infant seat when they're not in the car. I have a 2 month old daughter now and she was 13 lbs at her checkup so I'm sure she won't last in the infant seat past 6 months either. They're nice to have when they are little, but it's so much easier when they get a little bigger to just pick them up and carry them around without the carseat.

I'm with everyone else my son is 10 months and out of his carrier because he got go long for it even though he is still under 20lbs. If you can borrow one or buy a used one you will be happy you did. They don't last long but are so useful the first 6 months. Like the other posters said save your money for a good carseat that can rear face for a while. They have found that toddlers fair much better rear facing in an accident. If you want to see what I am talking about go to www.joelsjourney.org. I got the Radian 80 and it goes to 40lbs rear facing and 80lbs forward facing which I am very happy about. Also a good umbrella stroller. I am very happy with my Chicco C6 and it was a lot cheaper than a McClarren and works just as well.

Get which ever one you want because you will need to buy a convertable seat (one that goes rear and forward facing) anyways cause usually they outgrow the height before the weight at least mine did. Also I want to let you know that just because the law is to keep your child rear facing till 12 months and 20 lbs doesnt mean you should. The American Academy and Pediatrics suggests keeping babies rear facing as long as possible until the limit of a convertable seat. Most good seats go to 35 and 40lbs then turn around and go to 65-80lbs in a 5point harness. Yes the legs are bent up but in the event of a collision its far better to have a broken leg then to have a child that is internally decapated. I saw this happen to my friends 15 month old in a very slow wreck in which no one else was hurt. My son is still rear facing at 21 months old and my daughter was till 2 and a half years old. Just something to think about when buying a carseat. The carrier doesnt matter much its the convertable one that you really need to spend the money on.

UT Hospital would not let us bring our preemie twins home in the car seats we bought. They gave us measurments to go by. The crotch strap could not be more than 1/2 the length of a dollar bill from the back of the seat and the shoulder straps had to be no longer than the length of the dollar bill from the seat.
We only found two that fit. One was black, $170 at Babies R Us. The other was at Walmart for $75 and was grey and blue. With twins, of course we bought the less expensive. It had a base that stayed in the car and the seat was also a carrier. Our girls, being early are just now 20 and 21 lbs. at 17mo. old. (Our neices girl is 8 months and 18 lbs. so it just depends on genetics and preemie or not).
The seats that convert to front facing and heavier weight are not carriers also. The carrier makes it easier to move a sleeping child without waking them. We also have a snap and go stroller. It's just a frame that the car seat/ carrier attaches to so you don't have to undo the straps, lift child, restrap into stroller.
Oh, don't buy used! You never know where its been -unless you know the person and the seat is still in date. Yes, they have expiration dates! And the newer ones have the 5 point harnesses not the old 3 point. 3 was just the shoulders and crotch, 5 also goes from crotch to outside of hips holding the baby in much more securely.
Good Luck,
Beth

We got the larger car seat and are glad we did! Our son was HUGE by the time he was 7 months old (would have surpassed the weight restrictions on the other), but would still fall asleep in the car on the way to the store. Even though it was heavy, I would park by the carts and it was SO wonderful not having to wake him up! Once he outgrew his infant car seat (about 9 months) we got the convertible one that goes up to 100 lbs. It may cost a little more initially, but we are going to have to buy fewer car seats in the end. One more tip from the mama who said to buy used...DON'T DO IT!!! It is so important to know exactly where your car seat was. We were rear-ended almost a year ago and were reimbursed to buy a new one because even the smallest accident can destroy the base of a car seat. If someone had a minor collision (maybe even one that wasn't reported), their car seat could have issues, but you would never know. It may be cheaper, but safety for your child is the most important thing! Good luck! P.S. I LOVED my Graco and would never buy anything but a Graco because of it! :)

Get the one you want and resell it when the baby outgrows it. About the same time the baby's too heavy - it'll be time for the convertible one. Carrying it with the baby every day, you'll hardly notice the weight. I personally despise crawling into the car to strap in an infant. It is so much easier to have that detachable seat and do all the situating in the house.lol Also most manufacturers have the bases for sale separately so you can get one for the other car.

We chose the Chicco carseat that goes up to 30 lbs. for our first baby, born in March. She is a chunky baby and already weighs about 21 lbs at 8 months, so we would have been close to max on the other carseat already. Although it is heavy, I do still carry her in the carseat sometimes. It is still great for when she has fallen asleep and I want her to stay asleep or even if she's close to sleep I can leave her in the carseat to go to the grocery store/run errands and she can just relax. I don't think she'll outgrow it based on weight by 1 year, but maybe by length - she is 28 in. and they're only recommended to 30 inches I believe. This is my first baby, so I have nothing to compare it to, but I am very happy with this carseat. Plus it gives you some extra time before buying another carseat again - I feel like I got my money's worth vs. if we had the smaller carseat and I had only been able to use it for 6 or 7 months - it's alot to spend for a short time of use. So, I would recommend the chicco keyfit30!

Buy the one with the print you like. Save your back, no one wants to lug around a 30 lb baby in a carseat. Good luck to you.

My son is a smaller child and I was able to use his infant seat for the whole first year. I LOVED being able to detach the carseat from the base. But once he was able to sit and ride in shopping carts, I didn't take the infant seat in and out of the car. He still hadn't hit 20 lbs by then, but it was already hard to carry him in the carseat. I just went in and out of the house with it. I wouldn't bother with the seat that goes to a higher weight, b/c you probably can't carry the baby around in it at 30+lbs.

There are some infant seats that are heavier than others too. My sister had a baby 2 mos before me, we both got Gracos and hers is a smaller carseat and stroller than mine. I called mine "The Beast". The stroller was too wide to fit in aisles of stores, too big for car trunks, the carseat was heavier and too big to fit in some smaller spaces, like restaurant booths. Also, my bigger seat didn't fit on a single shopping cart the way you see them on the handle. Whichever kind you get, make sure the seat is secure up there, or it can fall and the baby can crack their skulls. My seat had some complaints of exactly that. Although I am not sure why the mom would be so stupid to put the seat up there when it obviously didn't fit and wasn't secure. My sister's smaller set was much better. I would use the size and weight of the seat and stroller as one of my criteria for picking. Next time I will get a smaller set. I loved having the set, but mine was just too big. I believe it was the Graco Quattro, but I am not sure.

Infant seats are supposed to be safer for infants than convertibles. I know you can put a newborn in a convertible, but I have read that isn't a good idea. Just another reason to get the kind with a base. The base makes it safer too, because you don't have to check that it is properly installed every single time. Definitely get your installation checked by a pro (call your fire dept or police dept, they do them free). And once baby outgrows the infant, get a good convertible that can be used for longer, ours goes up to a pretty high weight and height. I would spend more money on that than on the infant seat since you will use it for years. And keep baby rear-facing as long as possible, at least 1 yr and if possible up to 2. And NEVER buy used, not worth the savings there. Five-point harnesses are safest also, for both infant and convertible (and I guess boosters too, but we aren't there yet). Hope all that helps.

We went with smaller one with our first child,so he was in the convertable at 4 months.He loved sleeping in the car so I actually would unbuckle it and put it in the stroller(yeah I got some looks:))So with our second we went with the bigger one. I am glad we did.Yes he was heavy to carry but It's not like I was doing him for hours in it.However pretty VS practical....ah Ido not know:) My 2 cents

It does hurt your back to carry an older infant in an infant car seat. I switched my boy to a convertible car seat before he was one and installed it so he was still backwards in the back seat. I had a Graco and it worked great. Plan on using it for the second on the way.

K.,
Honestly - I loved the infant seat that detached and you could take baby anywhere in it....however, all three of my kids out grew that seat (length not weight by the time they were 6 months old. SO I ended up buyng a new car seat for them at that time...you would think that by the time #3 came along I would have learned my lesson...but I didn't. So - I scrimped a little on the infant seat (got the one that was the least expensive of the highest safety ratings) and then spent a little more time and money on the one I bought at 6 monhts...I made sure it converted to a Front Facing seat with a weight capapcity of 35 or 40 pounds....one of the ones I chose even converted further to a belt positioning booster seat.

It is a big decision...good luck as you make all the final plans for the birth of your daughter.

T.

The used ones are a dime a dozen and barely used. Here's the real dish from a mom of two. It doesn't matter how many pounds an infant seat can hold. It only matters how much YOU can carry around. My kids got too heavy to carry in their baskets at about 5 months old. Also, once they can sit up they don't want to be in one anyway (also 6 months). Plus, the stroller that comes with the combo is heavy and exhausting to keep clean. However, it is useful for the first 6 months. After that I would spend real money on a good quality umbrella stroller like a Mia Moda. See if you can borrow or buy a used Graco travel system. They're safe, durable, and easy to use.

Hi K.,

We purchased the Chicco travel unit for our son. We based our decision on several points. A. It had an excellent rating on Consumer Reports website for safety. B. It would hold an infant up to 30lbs. C. The convenience of taking the seat out and putting in a shopping cart or the stroller it came with and we also purchased an additonal base for my husband's car so we didn't even have to worry about moving the base.

My son rear-faced until 18 months and while his legs were a little scrunched up, I agree with the mom that stated the injuries would be far worse to his entire body than his legs if we'd been in an accident.

I felt a little guilty when choosing it, because I felt like we were choosing something convenient for us, but in the end, it was the safest and best choice for our son.

Congratulations on your impending blessing!