How in the heck do you choose a carseat?

haswelljme

I don't know why I am having so much trouble with this, but I cannot figure out which car seat to get. I was thinking of getting the Graco Travel System, but then I realized that since the baby is due in January and I live in North Dakota, the only way I could possibly use the stroller would be to put sleigh runners on there instead of the wheels...so I think the travel system is out.

 So far the Snugride seems to be the best for both reviews and price. What about a convertible car seat? This is all so confusing to me.

kmm2150

You don't think you'd take a stroller to walk around the mall, etc?  There are places besides outdoors that it comes in handy, I think. 

Seems like most people prefer the baby carrier type car seats because they fit newborns better, and because you can take the whole thing, baby and all, out of the car, and you won't have to stand outside in the North Dakota cold and snow, trying to buckle or unbuckle your baby from the car seat.  Other than that, I think the price, how heavy it is, and making sure it fits in your car are the most important things.

makinithappen

I personally wouldn't get a convertible.  You don't snap them in a base to be able to easily change vehicles and you can't carry the baby in it.  Pick whichever one you like the best; the Snugride is a good choice.

SuperCuteBenz

The Snugride is a good seat.

You can check out www.carseatblog.com. It has a list of recommended seats and reviews.

haswelljme

Very true about the mall! I think when you overthink something too much, you start to overlook things.  

I will definitely look at the website that you recommended! Thank you!

Sept1799

I love the britax brand car seats..........

MrsRich0226

I had the same confusion!  We ended up buying a Graco Snugride and a Snap & Go stroller frame for when the baby is little.  As your neighbor in MN, we still thought we'd want some kind of stroller system so we could walk around the mall, etc.  We're now in the process of researching a convertible carseat for when the baby gets bigger - we've been looking at the Gracos and Britax.

gimmietimmies

Look up your car for fit too. Likely the Snugride will fit anyway, my 35 fits in my Mini. carseatdata.org has that info. And it's okay to have more than one stroller if you think you will be using it for different things, like an inexpensive snap and go and a jog stroller (they work in the snow if you like to walk). And If you think you'll like a convertible better, there are a few that work well for infants (Britax also makes an insert -tested, yes), just ask the ladies at car-seat.org for recommendations. FWIW, I didn't use an infant seat for 3 of my dks, and didn't take the infant seat out much for the other 2. I either wore them or put them in the stroller as newborns, on the full (flat) recline (one was a bassinet attachment). Good luck, hope your head isn't spinning!

Ashley&Scott

We read the reviews online & in Baby Bargains.

We chose the Britax B-Safe infant seat, the Britax Boulevard CS 70 convertible car seat & the Britax B-Agile stroller.

The stroller & infant seat are sold as a set but can be used as a travel system if desired. We really like the B-Agile because it's light weight, easy to use & folds flat. 

ebp913

The Chicco Keyfit 30 is also highly recommended and we ended up getting that.  We were originally looking at the Orbit car seat but it was so heavy and I like how light the Chicco is. It is also compatible with many strollers.  We chose the Uppababy Vista. 

katcarls

I really like our Chicco Keyfit 30 but the Graco Snugride is good too.  Just make sure you get one that has a higher height limit so you can get more use out of it.  Don't worry about a convertible seat until your LO outgrows the infant seat.  They have an expiration date and you don't want to waste part of it's life just sitting in the box.

I would recommend a car seat cover since you live in a cold area.  Just make sure you get a shower cap style that goes over the seat rather than one that puts a layer between your baby and the seat.  We had this one and it worked really well.

I would skip the travel system.  The strollers aren't that great and there are tons of better options that are compatible with infant car seats.

drpayne

Fwiw we got the chicco keyfit 30 and a city mini with the adapter bar. Love it. Wouldn't change a thing. I spent too much time comparing the weights of the different seats. Really, with a 15 lb baby in it, it's heavy and we dont carry it around anyway. The stroller is really easy to maneuver. I would not get a travel system.

062307Bride

drpayne:

Fwiw we got the chicco keyfit 30 and a city mini with the adapter bar. Love it. Wouldn't change a thing. I spent too much time comparing the weights of the different seats. Really, with a 15 lb baby in it, it's heavy and we dont carry it around anyway. The stroller is really easy to maneuver. I would not get a travel system.

We got the same thing. Haven't gotten to use it yet, but love how lightweight the stroller is and how it's so compact when closed (super easy to close).

Coastiewife06

We got the Graco Snugride 35.

mtc2009

I did a lot of research on websites as well as the Baby Bargains book.  We ended up getting the Graco Snugride 35.  We really wanted the BOB revolution as our "heavy duty" stroller because the wheels are awesome for trails by our house and with the adapter bar, we can use the graco seat with it. I also was looking into the Britax B-safe when that came out, but found out BOB revolution is not compatible with Britax so that made our decision to stick with the graco easier.  We got a Graco snugrider (similar to the snap n go) for the "travel" stroller to use with the seat.

 As for convertible, per Baby Bargains recommendations, we'll get a Britax-- probably the Boulevard, unless something changes between now and the time our LO needs the convertible.

haswelljme

katcarls:

I would recommend a car seat cover since you live in a cold area.  Just make sure you get a shower cap style that goes over the seat rather than one that puts a layer between your baby and the seat.  We had this one and it worked really well. 

This is the brand I was looking at today! I loved all the reviews for them

 

Thank you to everyone for posting! It has been very helpful! 

j0yc3

We got the graco quattro tour stroller/car seat system as a baby shower gift. LOVE the base in the car! haven't puchased a second base for the truck just yet, but i'm sure we will in the future.

My only complaint about the snugride 32 is that when you make sure the seat is level (when the level indicator on the side is totally blue) it seems to sit quite forward for a brand new little baby! I had to stuff receiving blankets all around our LO so his head would stay up!! I felt awful the first time we got to my parents place and his head had tipped over!!! I now have a mirror on the headrest so i can see him through the rear view mirror (best investment!!!) so i know things are A.OK back there

 

Also, when they bought ours my mom didn't look at the manufacture date (its made in 2010) we'll still get a lot of life out of it, but try to make sure you buy one with as recent a manufacture date at possible to get the most life out of what you're buying!

Hulahoop1234

Ashley&Scott:

We read the reviews online & in Baby Bargains.

We chose the Britax B-Safe infant seat, the Britax Boulevard CS 70 convertible car seat & the Britax B-Agile stroller.

The stroller & infant seat are sold as a set but can be used as a travel system if desired. We really like the B-Agile because it's light weight, easy to use & folds flat. 

Do this.  The B-Agile is amazing.  Travel system type strollers suck.  They are huge, heavy, and don't maneuver well.  I have a B-Agile for my toddler now, and thinking back on him as an infant I wish this stroller had been available.  If you buy the B-Safe infant seat, it actually CLICKS into the stroller, so it is not just sitting on an adapter bar or on the snack tray part of the stroller. We had a Britax infant seat for DS and we have a Britax Convertible for him now.  Britax is far and away the safest seat made and their new line of strollers is really raising the bar for strollers in general IMO (and they are very reasonably priced).

I really recommend checking out the Baby Gizmo review videos on youtube before buying anything.  The woman that does them tells you all the pros and cons, and she will tell you about things to consider that you would probably not think of if this is your first. 

atchaleigh

While searching for our carseat/stroller I kept hearing how big and bulky travel systems are. 
On top of that, if you buy a Graco travel system, the straps have to be adjusted from the back of the carseat. It sounds like a PIA to me and the last thing I want to is sit there fussing and cursing a carseat because i cant adjust the straps easily. 

I wound up choosing the Graco snugride 35 for our infant seat with the help of the baby bargains book. I can't remember specifically what it was, but there was some reason I didn't see the need to spend the extra money on the Britax Chaperone. There was something in the baby bargains book that didn't make it seem worthwhile for me. 
The weight difference in the 30 and 35 wasn't that much. I mean, if you are already carrying a baby in it, what is an extra lb? I mainly will be using it to bring LO in the house/out to the car and in places that have shopping carts that I can put the carseat in. No, I wont be doing that when she is 30lbs, so the "heavy" weight difference was nothing to me.
We will be getting a Britax seat when LO is out of the infant seat. 

We did get the britax b-ready stroller though and the bassinet attachment to use. We could get the adapter so the snugride fits, but i'm happy with the bassinet for now. As for the new britax stroller out, what sold me on the b-ready was the capability to use different attachments and have two kids in it at once. We do plan on having another child shortly after this one and wanted to keep that in mind with all of our purchases.