When I first went shopping to pick out our infant car seat the one thing I knew above all else was that I needed the lightest one possible (I ended up with the Graco Snugride Lotus). I was/am a huge wuss, and had no idea how I would carry both a child as well as that carrier once the baby arrived. Fast forward to the birth of our son, and I soon realized that I actually COULD carry that thing, and it wasn’t so bad. Fast forward again to today, and now I am beginning to rethink that. These days it is getting harder and hard to carry him in the infant seat. With the kid at about 18 lbs…plus 15 lbs of the carrier itself, that thing is HEAVY! But as I think it through I start to panic about the change in using a regular car seat…I have a feeling that won’t be easy either.
I’m used to the carrier. I plop him in it, and carry that sucker to and from the car. That is about as far as I can carry it. Any farther and it has to be put on the snap and go. I hate carrying it to run quick errands like the post office or the dry cleaner, but it’s too quick to take out the stroller. In those situations I begin to think it will be easier when he is in the regular car seat. But then I begin to think it through. At least in the infant seat I can put it on the ground. Once he’s in the car seat I have to carry him, and continue to hold him as I run the errand. How do I get in my purse? How do I carry the dry cleaning in?? Sounds complicated to me…
My infant seat can hold a child up to 22 lbs. We certainly aren’t far from that, but I doubt I’ll be able to carry it when he gets that heavy. So when do I make the switch? My thought is maybe wait until he can sit on his own. That way he will be able to sit in shopping carts and high chairs.
As with everything else with being a mom, anything new scares me. Once I get the hang of one thing, I have to switch it up and change. Why would car seats be any different? Now I just need to decide when….
I feel you! We are in the opposite situation (used a convertible carseat since birth) and that feels normal now. What I do in stores is use my sling or mei tai. Now that I’ve gotten the hang of it, it’s easy to pop her in (I look at myself in the reflection of the car to help get her in) and then I have my hands free for my errand. It’s kind of a pain to have that extra step but it’s better (usually) than carrying her, especially since she can’t sit up in a cart yet (but is 18 lbs at 3 months!)
I do have to use my carrier more..I love my ergo and use it in the stores sometimes..I guess if I get more used to it it will become second nature!
Yeah! Love my Ergo for longer trips and that it’s easy to hang around my waist when she’s not in it (although my husband says I look like I’m going rappelling…haha!) I just have a bit of a hard time with that top buckle.
Me too! i thought it was just me! lol I lift him and drop him through the top..but I won’t be able to do that soon…not sure exactly how to do it correctly…
Goodness! I know I’m dreading that part myself…but I guess I’ll make do somehow! The one thing I DO know is that they just changed the rules to rear facing until 2 years old, rather than just one year, so make sure you find a convertible seat that can handle the extra weight so you don’t have to buy a third seat! Let us know what you choose…I’m all about stealing other people’s research! haha!
I think I’m going to go with the Britax Marathon…but I will definitely post about my choice! ? Yes I did know about the 2 years..good idea about checking the weight though. A new car seat would stink! 2 years sounds like a long time thought!
We skipped the infant seat this last time around after 3 months I think. Louis outgrew it by 5 months. I have a feeling this new baby boy will likely do the same. We ended up with the Sunshine Kids Radian seats because they took up less space (we need to fit 3 across) and went up to 80 lbs which means Leah can use the seat too.
These kids make everything so complicated lol.
On the 2 year rear facing thing? Louis is 17 months. He is 33 lbs and 36 inches tall. He fits comfortably and is happy. It is all he knows. The difference in safety between front-facing and rear-facing is 75%. That is a big number for me. To be 75% safer one way versus another? So much to think about!
Definitely check the laws in your state as well! VA is making the 2 year rule a law even though the Federal law hasn’t been changed (yet)! Safety is obviously the #1 priority, but not getting a ticket is a bonus too!