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View Full Version : As a soon to be mom - looking for clarification!



scubagear
08-23-2003, 12:11 AM
As a soon to be mom (due 11/5), here's what I've done so far in the car seat dept...

1) Bought Graco SnugRide
2) Bought Britax Marathon for when child outgrows Snugride

It's at this point that I get confused! Because the Marathon goes up to 65 lbs., do I then need to get a booster? And if so, until what weight and/or height are they in the booster for?

I told my mom that the Britax goes up to 65 lbs. and she thought that I wouldn't have my 6 or 7 year old child still sitting in the Britax! (Are kids even at age 6 or 7 at 65 lbs.?)

I was also reading that some boosters have a weight limit of up to 100 lbs. (which I also told my mom....whose response was "you could be in high school and weigh 100 lbs."

Could somebody please shed some light on this for me??!!!

Thank you!

CPSDarren
08-23-2003, 09:57 AM
How long a child will make it in the Marathon will vary a lot from one to another. Some will be too tall for the seat by the time they reach 65 pounds. Also, some kids will reach the weight limit years before other kids. And, of course, once there is peer pressure that is another factor to overcome.

Most kids do not fit properly in the seatbelts in most vehicles until around 8 years old, or 4'9" tall. That is a general guideline only, so we usually rely on first hand judgement of the fit to be sure. As you said, some adults technically need a booster to fit properly in a lap and shoulder seatbelt. Fortunately, adults should also be mature enough to stay seated properly in a seatbelt even if it doesn't fit well.

It sounds like you have a great combination of seats. You may well need a booster for a couple years after your child outgrows the Marathon. If your vehicle has adequate head restraints, this could even be an inexpensive backless model that retail for $15-$20. I hope that helps!

Darren
www.Car-Safety.Org

Joolsplus2
08-23-2003, 01:22 PM
Britaxes "expire" 6 years from date of purchase, so if you have your's now, your child will have to be out of it at age 5 or so, which is ok, since at that age, your kiddo should be over 40 pounds, almost too tall for it, and mature enough to sit in a belt-positioning booster. Here are some pictures of some cute kids (not mine!) in the Marathon http://pages.ivillage.com/momika/carseatphotos/id21.html and http://pages.ivillage.com/momika/carseatphotos/id24.html.

The reason I love MY marathon, is for the extended rearfacing capabilities. If you want to shock your mom even more, tell her that some kids sit rearfacing till they are 3 or 4! Here's my daughter http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum/SarahMA.aspx she's 31 pounds now and 40 inches, and she will be rearfacing till she's 33 pounds. It's safest to be rearfacing as long as possible, and she enjoys it, so that's what we do :)

Your child will need a booster after the Marathon, like Darren said, and you should have a pretty big selection by then, including either a $15 no back booster, or a $120 booster with backrest and headwings for side impact protection...the choices should be superb in the next couple years! (Which is great, since age 8 is really the low end for getting out of boosters...quite a few kids need them till 10 or even 12, depending on the car)

:)