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Should I splurge on a new car seat?


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I think I need permission to splurge :)

 

I have a perfectly workable infant car seat that I used with my last baby.

 

I've pulled it out and checked it over and double checked the manufacture date. It's fine.

 

Thing is...I've always been frugal with baby gear. I go for whatever is cheap, often used, frequently hand me down. And that has been just fine. I'm not a gear person.

 

But...well...this is probably my last baby. And there is a part of me that just really wants to choose something not because it is the most frugal and convenient choice but because it is actually what I want.

 

I've read safety ratings and think I have a seat picked out. One that goes up to 30 lbs because my babies grow like weeds. My midwife is estimating this one at over 9 lbs already and my last 9.5 pounder was 24 lbs at his 4 month check up...(fortunately he slowed down after that!)

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I think the only car seat I would splurge on would be one that rear faces up to 50# and front faces up to 120 and 57", so essentially, one that would get me through to the end of needing a car seat.

One that only went up to 30# just wouldn't last long enough for me. 

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I think the only car seat I would splurge on would be one that rear faces up to 50# and front faces up to 120 and 57", so essentially, one that would get me through to the end of needing a car seat.

One that only went up to 30# just wouldn't last long enough for me.

And that really is the sticky point...I really like the infant carrier seats because it is so easy to transition a sleeping baby in them, but...their usefulness is limited with huge babies!

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And that really is the sticky point...I really like the infant carrier seats because it is so easy to transition a sleeping baby in them, but...their usefulness is limited with huge babies!

Ah, I'd forgotten about that feature. So why not keep your old one for that and splurge on one you will get more mileage out of when baby outgrows the infant seat?

Edited by bibiche
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And that really is the sticky point...I really like the infant carrier seats because it is so easy to transition a sleeping baby in them, but...their usefulness is limited with huge babies!

Mother of huge babies myself :) This is the first time I've gotten the gear I wanted.  Totally worth it. Love my carseat this time and go out more because of it.  Agree with the portability factor, especially if you use it with a stroller or one of those converty things.  I do recommend going to a store and trying to lift the carseat alone though before deciding -- esp with big babies, these things can get heavy and some feel like they hid a ton of bricks somewhere in the mold. (eta: this wasn't something I'd ever thought about before with past kids, because price and gifts were the main factors)

 

Get the gear you want, I vote. 

Edited by Moonhawk
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You don't have to get it now. Why not wait and see how big this baby ends up being? If you've already got a seat that you could use, then you have time to decide. You may find it more fun to splurge on something you and baby can enjoy for a long time, rather than just a few months.

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Get what you want. I'd never have given up my baby bucket because I live in Wisconsin and all my babies were born in the winter. No, I don't care that they only use it for a year or so. Even if you spread that cost out over 12 months it won't be enough to buy groceries for a week I bet.

 

My splurge on my last baby was slightly pricier clothes. She ended up growing at a different rate than her sister so needed her own wardrobe as a baby. Sometimes it's nice to have the thing you'd like instead of making do. It's just the one thing. Go forth and enjoy. :)

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And that really is the sticky point...I really like the infant carrier seats because it is so easy to transition a sleeping baby in them, but...their usefulness is limited with huge babies!

I would go with what you like for an infant car seat if you could afford it. People (friends and hubby's colleagues) gave us ToysRUs gift cards for my second boy's baby shower so we spent that on a second convertible car seat and a double stroller.

 

I have problems carrying my kids once they reach the 20lb weight as babies so we splurge on the convertible seats instead and never bought an infant car seat. A friend loan us an infant car seat to try and my DS12 outgrew that one within a month, he was tall and stocky as a newborn. Our splurge was on two Britax Frontier car seats which my boys used until they outgrew it.

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Let me put this in perspective for you. Dd is approx 30 lbs now. She's 2. She hasn't been in her infant car seat in a while. She uses a convertible seat right now (rear facing). Your child will outgrow height long before weight more often than not. Our infant seat goes up to 35 lbs. but that is meaningless now. Also, the heavier they are, the less likely you will carry the seat into buildings. Maybe invest in a baby carrier/sling. Also better for head development I think (mine had torticollis and plagiocephaly. She appears fine now).

 

Before reusing an old seat don't just look at the man. date. Ask yourself did you ever wash the straps? If so, you would want to replace those. They should not be submerged in water, it removes the fire retardant stuff.

 

A friend of mine is a car seat tech. If you want I can probably get her to recommend some seats. Is your goal longevity? Because even the Graco 4 Ever and some others can backfire (I can't remember if it's that one or another where by the time the child is old enough for the no back booster the seat will look babyish).

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I would not at all. Here is why. It HURTS your back and shoulder to go up to the higher weights with infant seats. If your child is approaching 30 pounds, you will not want to carry a detachable infant seat with him in it. I actually have permanent damage on my one shoulder for it. Plus, you will want your child to be rear facing well beyond 30 pounds, so you will need a convertible seat anyway.

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Also, my youngest was over 9 pounds at birth too. But he has slowed down enough that at his second birthday, he was 26 pounds. My cousin shocked me by also having an over 9 pounds baby, who also hit 24 pounds by 4 months. It was 24 pounds, I was so shocked! I was shocked because she is enough younger than me that I was a teen when she was born and she was always so dainty. Anyway, her baby has slowed down a lot too. 

 

But even regardless of that, it would not matter if your 4 month old hit 30 pounds, you would not want to lug that car seat around anyway. You would want to switch to a convertible. 

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I wouldn't, but I have never used the buckets. My first was over 10 lbs, and with a c-section, I couldn't lift her and the bucket! :) I have 4, and none of mine stay asleep. I did buy a fun-color car seat for my last. (Purple Chicco Next Fit) We splurged on a nicer stroller for the last babies.

 

What do you use the most with your babies? What would bring you the most joy in an upgraded item?

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Also, my youngest was over 9 pounds at birth too. But he has slowed down enough that at his second birthday, he was 26 pounds. My cousin shocked me by also having an over 9 pounds baby, who also hit 24 pounds by 4 months. It was 24 pounds, I was so shocked! I was shocked because she is enough younger than me that I was a teen when she was born and she was always so dainty. Anyway, her baby has slowed down a lot too.

 

But even regardless of that, it would not matter if your 4 month old hit 30 pounds, you would not want to lug that car seat around anyway. You would want to switch to a convertible.

Not necessarily. I almost never used my infant seats as bucket carriers. I almost always took the babies out and put them in slings. I just liked how the infant seats fit older infants and young toddlers better and how easy they were to swap between vehicles. My current 3y8m son was over 9 pounds at birth. He used the bigger sizes infant seat until 18 months, when he outgrew it in length, although not height, and then we switched him to the Graco MyRide, where he is still happily rear-facing.

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Let me put this in perspective for you. Dd is approx 30 lbs now. She's 2. She hasn't been in her infant car seat in a while. She uses a convertible seat right now (rear facing). Your child will outgrow height long before weight more often than not. Our infant seat goes up to 35 lbs. but that is meaningless now. Also, the heavier they are, the less likely you will carry the seat into buildings. Maybe invest in a baby carrier/sling. Also better for head development I think (mine had torticollis and plagiocephaly. She appears fine now).

 

Before reusing an old seat don't just look at the man. date. Ask yourself did you ever wash the straps? If so, you would want to replace those. They should not be submerged in water, it removes the fire retardant stuff.

 

A friend of mine is a car seat tech. If you want I can probably get her to recommend some seats. Is your goal longevity? Because even the Graco 4 Ever and some others can backfire (I can't remember if it's that one or another where by the time the child is old enough for the no back booster the seat will look babyish).

 

:iagree:

 

Audrey is only 23 pounds (at 18 months), but she outgrew her 35 pound weight limit infant seat by height almost 6 months ago.  Even then, I was totally ready to move her to a convertible seat because it was annoying getting her in and out of the cramped infant seat, and I had long since stopped taking the seat out of the car because she was too heavy to lug around and old enough that she was rarely falling asleep in the car anyway.

 

I have mixed feeling about infant seats, and did not use one at all for my oldest, but I did end up buying one to use for the next three.  However, there is no way I would splurge on a new one for a last baby if I had a perfectly functional one that would suffice until we were ready to graduate to a convertible with a high rear-facing weight limit...which I would splurge on.

 

Wendy

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I didn't read the replies, but I splurged on a few things with my last baby and I don't regret it at all. When I splurged I did feel a tiny bit guilty because he was the fourth boy in less than 6 years so he didn't really "need" anything. I think you should get it if you want it.

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I remember buying a Radian 80 that was pretty dear. But steel-framed and built like a tank. My wife thought it might be overkill, and that we could get by with a cheap booster.

 

A couple weeks later they were rear-ended by a rental truck (whose driver was oblivious to the fact traffic had stopped) and the $$$$ seemed like some of the best I'd very spent.

 

I'm in the go for it camp.

 

Bill 

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I think the only car seat I would splurge on would be one that rear faces up to 50# and front faces up to 120 and 57", so essentially, one that would get me through to the end of needing a car seat.

One that only went up to 30# just wouldn't last long enough for me.

They make a car seat with a 120 lb capacity???

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Not necessarily. I almost never used my infant seats as bucket carriers. I almost always took the babies out and put them in slings. I just liked how the infant seats fit older infants and young toddlers better and how easy they were to swap between vehicles. My current 3y8m son was over 9 pounds at birth. He used the bigger sizes infant seat until 18 months, when he outgrew it in length, although not height, and then we switched him to the Graco MyRide, where he is still happily rear-facing.

What's the difference between length and height?

 

Clearly I am now an Old Mom because the new car seat conversations confuse me.

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What's the difference between length and height?

Length is baby/toddler's body length and the height is torso length. My kids have long torsos like me so they outgrew their front facing car seats by height. For rear facing my kids when babies just rested their feet on the headrest.

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When you do go car seat shopping, check the man. date immediately. Ugh I got burned by buying stuff that had sat on the shelf a long time. Didn't realize it til years later and did the math.

 

Very good piece of advice.   Can't do much about it if you buy online.  Unless you can return to a store.   But yeah lots of times they are already a year or so old.

 

But also be careful if you buy one at Target.  This has happened to me 2 times now, buying one at the store.   I look at the outside of the box to see DOM and then it didn't match the seat inside.  Someone had bought the seat, taken it home and took their seat and put in the box and returned that.   Last time it wasn't even the same seat.  I bought a britax BLvd and it was a Used Britax Marathon in the box. 

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What's the difference between length and height?

 

Clearly I am now an Old Mom because the new car seat conversations confuse me.

Oh. That was a typo. I meant outgrew it in length, but not in weight. That's what I get for using my phone.

 

(I'm an old mom too LOL. I used to be a young mom. I took my 3 and 5yo boys to a nature program the other day, and all the other mom's looked so young!)

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So with DS4, we still had the Graco Infant seat that all of his siblings had used.  It was past the expiration date, but I felt comfortable using it for the first few months.  Then I moved to a new convertible car seat that I loved...and that worked until he transitioned to a normal booster at 5.  I am happy that I was a little frugal at first...and I love the easy portability of the infant carrier type car seats.... but the super duper convertible was wonderful too.  

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Very good piece of advice.   Can't do much about it if you buy online.  Unless you can return to a store.   But yeah lots of times they are already a year or so old.

 

But also be careful if you buy one at Target.  This has happened to me 2 times now, buying one at the store.   I look at the outside of the box to see DOM and then it didn't match the seat inside.  Someone had bought the seat, taken it home and took their seat and put in the box and returned that.   Last time it wasn't even the same seat.  I bought a britax BLvd and it was a Used Britax Marathon in the box. 

 

that's awful!!

 

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OP, if it will bring you joy then do it. I've usually splurged on something with each baby that wasn't totally necessary - pretty diaper bag, new little sleepers or yummy smelling natural baby lotion etc. Those things made me smile when I was so exhausted and overwhelmed. I know people who love carseats/strollers/etc and like to try something new each time. It's fine.

 

 

 

 

I would not at all. Here is why. It HURTS your back and shoulder to go up to the higher weights with infant seats. If your child is approaching 30 pounds, you will not want to carry a detachable infant seat with him in it. I actually have permanent damage on my one shoulder for it. Plus, you will want your child to be rear facing well beyond 30 pounds, so you will need a convertible seat anyway.

 

What I have noticed is that the bigger infant seat limit enables me to postpone "graduating" older siblings to the next seat, if that makes sense. The longer baby can stay in the infant seat means the longer the toddler can stay in the convertible. Then I can move that child to our forward facing 5pt harness seat and baby to the convertible, instead of buying a second convertible. That all depends on the spacing of children but ours averaged 2.5 years apart and it worked well. I left the infant seat in the van for the most part once the baby was 7 or 8 months old, but it was still nice to have the option of pulling it out for the occasional times I didn't want to disturb a nap.

 

 

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I remember buying a Radian 80 that was pretty dear. But steel-framed and built like a tank. My wife thought it might be overkill, and that we could get by with a cheap booster.

 

A couple weeks later they were rear-ended by a rental truck (whose driver was oblivious to the fact traffic had stopped) and the $$$$ seemed like some of the best I'd very spent.

 

I'm in the go for it camp.

 

Bill

Safety is definitely my biggest concern. Though I might be better served by evaluating the safety of the longer-use car seats and boosters we currently have and upgrading any that may need it. With this baby I'll have four children in car seats or boosters of some kind and people are right to point out that a bucket seat will see limited use--I don't even really plan to take the baby anywhere but a doctor's appointment or two for the first couple of months. We do have two multi hour car trips coming up later in the summer though.

 

Hmm.

 

Think I'll go do some more research.

 

We did bite the bullet and take out a loan for a newer vehicle last year primarily for the significant upgrade in safety features compared to the 1996 van we had been driving :)

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I splurged on one thing I wanted with the last 3.  With the first 3 I was accumulating baby things. But, after them, I did not need anything(except expired seats...)

 

With DS9, I bought 2 baby carriers($$$)  Had I known I was going to have 2 more, it would have made me feel better.  I also spent $$$ on cloth diapers.

 

That said, my splurge for #5 was a new car seat(unneeded- I had a seat that was not expired).  My babies are huge.(#5 was 11 lbs 3 oz)  The seat was a high weight limit, I think 30 #?  Well, it was HEAVY!  I mean the seat itself was heavy and then him also!  Ugh.  I left it in the car most of the time and transitioned him to a baby carrier when we were out.  Nice also because it doesn't take up space in the cart.

 

I say that you should go to the store and carry a few around.  Maybe they have gotten lighter. :)

Edited by rjand6more
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Safety is definitely my biggest concern. Though I might be better served by evaluating the safety of the longer-use car seats and boosters we currently have and upgrading any that may need it. With this baby I'll have four children in car seats or boosters of some kind and people are right to point out that a bucket seat will see limited use--I don't even really plan to take the baby anywhere but a doctor's appointment or two for the first couple of months. We do have two multi hour car trips coming up later in the summer though.

 

Hmm.

 

Think I'll go do some more research.

 

We did bite the bullet and take out a loan for a newer vehicle last year primarily for the significant upgrade in safety features compared to the 1996 van we had been driving :)

 

Do look at the current Radian car seats. These have the downside of being heavy. On the upside, they are narrow (and can often go 3 across when many will not) and accommodate a range of ages. 

 

Bill

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