For Newborn: Infant or Convertible car seat (Britax / SnugRide) - New Mommy to Be needs HELP!

[njj]

I read in Baby Bargains that the infant car seat is recommended over a convertible for newborns. However, I have a bad back and am very concerned about being able to carry the infant carrier w/infant, which may eliminate the convenience factor of purchasing the infant carrier at all, IF newborn is JUST as safe or SAFER in a Britax convertible. I'm also dismayed by the short length of time the infant carrier is typically used, especially if the convenience factor is gone.

IF the infant carrier is the safest, best way to go, I will absolutely do it. With the Britax options, however, I wonder if this is so.

Here are my considerations:

1. Infant car seat is a must. Therefore, is it the Graco SnugRide (I hear they have a version 2 that's nicer and goes to 29") or the Britax Companion (It has a rebound bar)? Again, keep in mind poor back - loss of carrying convenience / short usage / fact that I'm willing to spend whatever $$ are needed for the best decision.

2. Forego infant car seat because the Decathalon, Boulevard, and Marathon serve infant needs JUST AS WELL, minus the convenience of a carrier which I don't anticipate being able to use anyway. In this case, which Britax? Here's my understanding:

Decathalon: Reclines, TSIP???, newborn features like padding
Doulevard: Reclines, TSIP, crotch strap adjustment issues
Marathon: 1 handed recline, NO TSIP

The lowest harness strap on all is 10". As I haven't delivered yet and don't know baby size, I don't know how to evaluate this for a newborn. (I, myself, was over 8 lbs at birth.)

All are RF 5-33 lbs and FF to 65 lbs

I'm NEW to this and don't know what I don't know and the importance of those things. Your feedback will be a HUGE help to me!!!

Thanks!

Nancy

[njj]

One more thing:

While the Britax Companion has the rebound bar it does NOT have the versa tether or HUGS. I really don't know how important that is.

Also, it goes up to 30" and the new Snug Ride up to 29". The new Snug Ride is supposed to be heavier now; the Companion is about 10lbs.

Thanks again for your patience!

Nancy

[kimbe]

I can't really give you advice, but I will tell you my thoughts on what I did and what I will do next! I know just how overwhelming all this carseat business is. Hope it helps you out.

We had a snugride for DD and she hated it. We only used it for 3.5 months (she grew out of it.) I didn't like using it because it was heavy and she cried while she was in it. It wasn't as convenient as I thought that it would be. We then purchased a Boulevard. It is the seat sent from Heaven. DD loves it and we love it. (Oh, the Decathalon does not have TSIP!) It took DH about 3 minutes to install it, however it took a bit of time to find a spot to tether with our stupid car.

When (God willing) I have a second child, I am not sure if I will use the Snug ride or not. If I do, it will just be for a carseat and I will take the infant out and sling him or her while I chase after DD. I don't know how I would go after a toddler while carrying that bucket.

I hope this helped a little! Good luck.

[kimbe]

Forgot to respond to this. As for the Companion holding up to 30" --DD is 30" and 20lbs right now and there is NO WAY that I would be able to carry her in an infant seat. No way being that she would not allow it :) (she would probably explode!) and I just don't have the strength. HTH.

[kellyotn]

Britax's website (and subsequent retailer websites) are wrong about the Decathalon have TSIP. They have that little logo shown on product details, but its not on the info sheet. grrr.

I used and liked my infant seats - granted, I had the beloved FP Stay in View w/ the sling-like handle. Brilliant!

Anyway, the times it came in handy for me -

1) Winter babies. Bundling them up indoors is vastly easier. Buckle them in w/ a thin jacket and cover with blankets. With a convertible, you have to remove a heavy jacket, or somehow bundle with blankets that will need to be peeled off to get into the convertible....

2) Shopping. It rode in the basket of shopping carts. I did sling a bit, but couldn't master it at the grocery store/Target, and with winter babies - ugh. Once they were in it was fine, but the process of getting them in was daunting in winter wear.

3) Eating out. Before they are old enough to use a high chair, they don't really have any place to sit while you eat. You could use a stroller though, depending on the restuarant I guess.

4) Doctor appointments and other times you'll need to "wait". Could use a stroller though.

If none of these things are considerations for you, then a convertible right off would be fine, given that the baby isn't really tiny or something. The new infant seats do have larger size limits than previous ones, so you should be able to get more use out of it.

HTH

[Joolsplus2]

In general (here's an educational blurb...), you want harness slots to be 'at or below' the child's shoulders, so people tend to freak out that the bottom slots on the Britaxes aren't low enough (they are usually a bit above a newborn's shoulders). However, this is because a seat tips backwards/down in a frontal crash, and the straps should be sort of holding the child down in the seat... it's a LOT more important of a recommendation for 3 point seats that don't have lapstraps...Britaxes have 5 pt harnesses and lapstraps to hold the baby down in the seat, and it's truly no big deal that the shoulderstraps are a bit above the shoulders.
It can be convenient to have an infant seat before they can sit up, but it's not truly necessary. Of course, if you have a bad back, then maybe slinging (the Kangaroo Korner Adjustable Fleece Pouch is SO comfy, you might even be able to use it) won't work. In reality, you get a stroller that takes an infant seat and plop it right in, no carrying needed, or get dad to carry the infant seat into the restaurant ;). The Combi Connection is a VERY light seat, but also seems shorter than the others...and what's an extra couple pounds in a seat, really, if it lasts months and months longer? So I love the Chicco Key Fit...it snaps in and out of the base super easy, and the handle can be left up in the car (NOT so with the Britax, but you can also leave the snugride handle up)...so no leaning in to put it down.
I've done both: Convertible from birth for my oldest, infant seats for my 2 younger ones...and they are all doable... I think I do slightly prefer having an infant seat, especially for cold weather babies...maybe with summer babies it's not such a big deal (you'd want a light stroller, like a combi with a full recline for a newborn, fyi).

Just a matter of personal preference and lifestyle, really, so think about how much you'll actually be going out and how much of a safe place you need to plop the baby when you need two hands (for my son, dh and I just learned to pass him back and forth or eat one handed for the first 6 months, lol).

:)
Julie CPS Tech and mom to 3 in seats
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx

[hudsonam]

I have a very bad back too, and I managed Ok with the Snugride. You build up a lot of strength having a baby. :) If you don't want to carry the Snugride around though, you can take baby in and out of it the same way you can with a convertible - just leave it in the car instead of taking it in and out. (Unless I'm not thinking of something, but I think that would work). I would definitely recommend the Snap N Go stroller though. I loved that thing, and it was much nicer than I expected.

Good luck, and HTH!

[ktshea]

I'm a definite wimp and knew from carrying around my nephew in his infant seat that that was NOT an option for us. They were much too cumbersome and difficult for me to carry. We bought an Evenflo Triumph (straps are a little lower than the Britax) and have used that since we came home from the hospital 17 months ago. I'm now getting ready to buy a Britax, as soon as I figure out which one I want, lol, and baby #2 will probably get one too.

Anyway, back on topic, a friend gave us a used SnugRide without a base that we used for restaurants (we'd bring it in the trunk of the car) and we very occasionally used it in a friends car, without the base. I have to say that I never missed having an infant seat and don't plan on getting one with the next child. DD was a winter baby and I just got into the back seat of the car and closed the door when I strapped her into her seat or put her into the sling/Baby Bjorn so neither of us would get cold or rained on. I "wore" her at the grocery store, which was a MUCH easier way for me to carry her. (My husband, on the other hand, never had any problem carrying the infant carrier.) If I was going to be walking more, like at the mall, I put her in a stroller, fully reclined when she was little. If she fell asleep in the car and I wanted her to still sleep when we got home, I simply removed her from her car seat and went straight up to her crib with no talking or playing. She never had too much trouble falling back asleep and is still able to do so today. I know lots of folks absolutely love their infant carriers and they do seem convenient, but for me personally the convertible seat worked better.

Good luck with your decision!

[amp]

I, personally, felt better having DS and DD in the snugride for the first few months. I'll readily admit that carrying that carseat is not easy, and with your bad back, I wouldn't recommend carrying it yourself, but as someone stated, it's very easy and convenient to plop baby into an accomdating stroller or shopping cart (in the seat), or have your DH carry when possible. I nearly always pass of the carrying duties to DH when he's available.

I know that convertible seats are rated as being safe for newborns and infants, but I just always felt that my kids were better protected in a smaller seat that fit and cradled their little bodies more snugly in the early months. In fact, DD is very close to outgrowing her Snugride, and I have a Marathon waiting in the wings, so we're totally 100% prepared, but we feel that she is safer, at this very moment, in the Snugride. And if my nonworrying, non-neurotic about anything engineer of a husband feels she's safer in there than in the convertible we have just bought, then I'm inclined to go with that until we can't safely do it anymore.

You certainly won't be neglectful or a bad parent by putting your child in a convertible seat from the start, but you may find you like the convenience of the snugride to be very nice! My DS moved out of his at 4 mths and DD is still in at at 5 mths. Those two time periods combined have made the Snugride very worthwhile!


Just my 2 cents.

[Splash]

My son (11 lbs 7 oz at birth) has been in a BV since he was born. We had a baby basket in one car and the BV in the other (used both just as often). When he outgrew the basket, he was in a BV in both cars.
There is absolutely no need for an infant carseat. A convertible is just as safe (and I think some are safer).
If you DO get a basket, why not the Graco SafeSeat? Since you won't be carrying it, the extra size won't matter. We just got one (because I got a much better install with it in the center of my vehicle than his BV, not because we thought it was any better in and of itself, just better for that vehicle). But he has been out of his original 22/29 basket for about 4 months, and still has a LONG way to go in this one.
A SafeSeat will last your child much longer, and you'll have the carrier option for when you really need or want it, but can leave it in the car most of the time. That way you're not wasting money on having one for such a short time and hardly ever using it as a carrier. Plus it is way easier to install than the SR and much cushier.

[MeAndMyStar]

I can't tell you which is safer for a newborn, the infant seat or convertible seat, but I can tell you about my experience with the Graco SnugRide. I liked the seat for the short time I did use it because of the convenience: the base was installed in the car and I could just click the carseat in. Also, I didn't have to wake my DD when going into a restaurant, friend's house, etc to take her out of the seat. I often used the accompanying stroller also which was a breeze to snap the seat in and out of. Having said that, I have a bad left shoulder and tended to carry the seat in my right hand all the time. Well, I ended up badly hurting my right shoulder (and it is still not healed since December) because the seat was just SO heavy! My DD only used the seat for 5 months even though she still technically had a few pounds to go in it. I just bought a Decathlon this week to replace the Eddie Bauer 3-in-1 (aka Alpha Omega I think) because I didn't care for this particular seat and it will become a spare. The infant padding system in the Decathlon looks like it would be great for a newborn..nice and padded and supportive. I personally chose the Decathlon over the other Britaxes because of the adjustable harness belt (3 positions). Good luck purchasing a seat..hope this helps!

-Sarah

[njj]

Thanks so much for sharing your opinions. I appreciate the help. I have decided to go with an infant carrier and now must just decide which one.

Thanks!!

[AddiesMom]

The Britax Companion is very, very heavy. Just moved DD to a Marathon at 5 1/2 months, 14 pounds because I just couldn't handle it anymore.

I do recommend a stroller frame if you have a bad back. I put the Companion in a Combi Flash so I didn't have to carry it as much.

[deborahpollack]

We have the infant Britax Companion and I have to say that we love it. I feel that it is so safe with the side impact head protection and the anti-rebound bar. It is worth the additional weight. Our DD is now over a year and only weighs 19 lbs, and she is still in it (and comfortably, I might add!). However, I am at the point where I think she is ready for the convertible seat now, especially since she is too heavy to carry in the infant seat, but we are very happy we chose the Britax over the SnugRide. It goes up to 22 lbs and 30 inches, and at a year old, the fact that we are still able to use it says a lot.