8/17/12

Britax Frontier 85 Combination Booster Car Seat

Britax Frontier 85 Combination Booster Car Seat

Britax Frontier 85 Combination Booster Car Seatclip_image002
           I own several high weight harness seats, and this is my favorite! My son (5 yrs old, 47", and 43 lbs) has previously been in a Radian XT and a Graco Nautilus. He started to complain about the crotch strap being tight on both seats- I looked at it closer and it turns out the straps were coming out from underneath him even though they were on the furthest setting out- in both seats! We tried the Frontier 85 and he was much more comfortable- he has at least an inch or two until he'll be up against the crotch strap in the FN 85. I was worried about install, especially after reading about the original Frontier not installing well (or at all) in Toyotas. I had the FN 85 installed with the seatbelt in my '05 Highlander within 10 minutes, and that includes trying the short belt path first (I had to recline the seat and use the long belt path, but I have a rock solid install.) It really helps to watch the Britax install videos before trying to install it, as I could see how I would have had some trouble if I didn't watch the video first. The 9 year lifespan of the set is also a huge bonus!

Evenflo Tribute Sport Convertible Car Seat, Daisy Doodle

Evenflo Tribute Sport Convertible Car Seat, Daisy Doodle

Evenflo Tribute Sport Convertible Car Seat, Daisy Doodleclip_image002
          I bought this as a secondary car seat to use while traveling, specifically on an airplane, because my daughter's primary seat has non-removable armrests that make it too wide to fit on one. It worked great on the plane, and in the rental car when we got to our destination. It is light enough to hang off the back of the stroller while racing through the airport (as long as you leave the baby in the stroller) and a great, compact size, even rear-facing (which is how I used it) for small cars. My daughter is also very comfortable in it, and we now use it as a secondary seat in my husband's pickup, and it is easy to put in/take out, which we have to do every time we use it in his truck because it is a work vehicle. Adjustment of the strap height was very easy, and only took a few minutes. However, the button/strap used to adjust the tightness of the straps is a bit hard to use in the rear-facing position. You have to be careful not to pin the strap between the car seat and the vehicle seat when you're installing it. The button you push to loosen the straps is hard to reach, however, no matter what you do. I imagine this is not a problem forward-facing. Also, once you get the button pushed, the straps adjust easily. We have had some issues with the straps twisting and it is a pain in the butt to have to fix them 50% of the time I put my daughter in the seat.

Graco High Back TurboBooster Car Seat

Graco High Back TurboBooster Car Seat

Graco High Back TurboBooster Car Seatclip_image002
         I bought it because it is recommended by Consumer Reports and also it is probably the narrowest booster seat out there with good test results. My child is happy with it. Oh, and the price is right too, much cheaper than Britax which I also have for my other child. Comparing between the two of them, the Britax probably has slightly better fabric, but in terms of cushioning, I find them pretty much the same.

Evenflo Tribute 5 Convertible Car Seat

Evenflo Tribute 5 Convertible Car Seat

Evenflo Tribute 5 Convertible Car Seatclip_image002
         I dont personally have kids, but in order to steal my nephew for an afternoon I needed to get a nice car seat that my sister (first time mom) would approve of. She personally paid over $300 for her car seat and she told me there was lots of swearing and sweat as her husband attempted to install their expensive top of the line car seat. I paid pennies for this car seat and it was super easy to install, had good reviews already and was super easy to take in and out of the car. My nephew is comfortable and its really easy to pull him out of the car and put him in. I also must say that this seat is compact. My sisters expensive car seat makes it impossible to sit other people in the back seat cause its sooo overly bulky. But this car seat is slimmer without loosing out on any protection or padding. I can fit 2 people NO problem in the back of the car. I highly recommend this car seat to any new parent or an aunty looking to have a spare car seat!

Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat

Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat

Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seatclip_image002

         I did a LOT of reseach before buying this, read multiple message boards, then to the store to look at them, etc. This replaced a britax that was passed down to DD #2 for my rather large 4 yo girl(40lbs, 40inches)I want to keep her harnessed for as long as I can. I finally decided to go for it b/c of
1)price (though it really wasn't an object) but I am a big fan of bang for your buck,
2)sturdiness, i was never a fan of graco until i bought this seat. It's got a nice weight, sturdy frame.
3)comfort, memory foam! DD loves it, she sleeps very comfortably in it without slumping over like she used to.
4)size, not gigantic like the regent but large it enough to have a big kid sit in it
I was concerned about its looks but it's much better looking in person.