High chairs- cloth vs vinyl?

[wolverine2]

Hi- we're about to buy a high chair and are debating between the Fisher Price Healthy Care (new jungle plad pattern- no ruffles!) and the Baby Trend (palm tree? breckenridge?) Having no experience with feeding a baby, does anyone have opinions on cloth vs vinyl? The cloth seems more comfortable, but is it a pain to clean? Any opinions on these chairs?
Thanks,
Carrie

[kristenk]

Hi! There was another post on cloth or vinyl a little while ago. It got bumped to page 2, so you might not have seen it if you were looking. Here's the thread, hope it helps:

http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=12&topic_id=30951&mode=full&page=2

[wolverine2]

Thanks... I read another post further down that now has me wondering if I should get a booster instead of a high chair. Is there anyone who is glad they have a high chair instead of a booster?

[LucyG]

I'm glad that we had/have a high chair. It is nice to be able to roll the baby around the kitchen (if your chair has wheels, and if your kitchen is large enough!). I think the wheels alone were the best feature of our chair. We have the Baby Trend khaki gingham (cloth), and I just keep a khaki bath towel over the seat. It's not been a big deal at all. I wash the towel when it gets dirty, and off we go! We got a booster when DD was about a year old, and she sometimes sits in it now. But, she still regularly uses the high chair at two years old.


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2 years and counting!

[vikivoly]

We are now using a booster about 75% of the time for our 2 year old, but I prefer the high chair for younger babies. You can't use a booster for babies and a high chair that has a recline feature can be used for young infants. I put my now 5 month old in the high chair all of the time. She likes to be near me when I'm cooking or doing the dishes, and it enables her to be with the family at dinner time. Another down fall to boosters is the mess. A toddler who is just learning to self feed can make quite a mess and I find it easier to clean the tray than the table. Plus the tray will contain spills.

As far as cloth vs. vinyl, I opted for cloth and had my reservations at first. However, I'm glad we went with the cloth because it really hasn't been all that difficult to keep clean and like you, I think it's more comfortable. The bibs and the tray capture most of the mess and what makes it to the seat can usually be wiped up fairly easy.