Car Seat Tips

After nearly eleven months use of the Graco Infant Car Seat I am glad to be saying good-bye. The Graco SnugRide carseat comes in many different sets (stroller and seat) and colors. We had purchased the seat over the internet, months before our son was born.

If you purchase a Graco Travel System for infants, one component that is included is the Graco Stay In Car Adjustable Base. This base is also available for separate purchase. I received the Graco Stay In Car Adjustable Base as part of the Sterling LiteRider Travel System and we also purchased one separately for use in an alternate vehicle.

The base is available in a variety of colors, sold to match your Graco Carseat. Our base was Navy Blue with a red foot and lettering. I’ve seen it in tan and also white or black.

Additional bases are considered “accessories” for your carseat and are sold most places that carry infant seats. We got ours from Babies ‘R Us and it was under $30.

I purchased this car seat after my Graco infant car seat got recalled. I chose this seat because it was very similar to the Graco one I had and liked.

At first this one seemed to have great features. Such as it was a little lighter than the graco, it had a foot cover, and a nice shade to block out sunlight. Well the shade kept coming out then there was a hole in the back of the material, then the base stopped unlatching as easily. In fact there were moments where it was easier to unstrap my daughter her and leave the whole seat in the car. I wish my Graco had not been recalled.

Weight and Height Limit

Rear Facing only for infants 5-22 lbs and up to 30″.

My son was 7lbs when we left the hospital and fit it well. We purchased a Cosco Alpha Omega Elite when he was 4 months because he seemed squished in the infant car seat. We used the infant seat as a back-up. He outgrew it completely at 9 months and 20 lbs because of his length. I was able to use it for my friend’s daughter who was one week from her first birthday. My friend commented that it was much roomier than her Graco Infant Car Seat which she could no longer put her daughter in since she screamed every time she did (She had graduated to a Britax Marathon.) She didn’t scream when put in this car seat, in case you were wondering. She just sat and smiled at her mom.

I bought this car seat about a year ago for my 9 month old son. He is tall and had outgrown his graco infant car seat. I liked how it could hold a child up to 65 lbs and 49 inches, so I wouldn’t have to worry about buying another car seat because he outgrew this one. In my opinion he loves his car seat, he falls asleep in it and it doesn’t look like he is stuffed in there and is uncomfortable. He has a cousin that is 4 and she fits in this seat, so it is nice when I need to quickly take her somewhere I don’t have to get her booster I just pop her in this seat. The one con for me is that it is really big compared to other seats I have seen. It is fine for my car because the seat is in a captain’s chair in my Toyota Sienna but for smaller cars it might be a problem. Especially if you want to fit other car seats in your car. I recently went on vacation and chose not to take this seat on the plane because it is big and heavy. Airlines suggest car seats to be 19 inches or less and this one is around 22 inches I think. But other than that I love it.

Three weeks before my due date, I received this car seat as a gift.

If it were up to me, I would have perused the Consumer Reports and read reviews until it was time to push. When I was eighteen, I was in a very frightening car accident where little children got hurt because they weren’t properly restrained in the other driver’s car. That nightmare stuck with me, and I was determined to have the safest car seat on the planet. Unfortunately, it isn’t easy for ordinary consumers to learn if one seat is safer than another. All car seats pass the same tests, and then occasionally eliminate themselves by (gulp) not performing well on the road. Faced with such an overwhelming array of choices, I couldn’t make up my mind.