Convertible Car seat

masked_rose86

So while the girls probably have a few months left in their infant seats.....the reality is they are going to get too heavy to cart around in them within a few months!   I'm feeling overwhelmed looking at all the convertible seat options.  What would you recommend?  I want to make sure it is safe first and foremost.  Easy to install might be a good thing.....but since we will install it and likely not move it unless going on a trip, probably not a deal breaker.   To my understanding all car seats have to be approved as safe before going on the market so a more expensive carseat is not necessarily more safe?  It is just all the bells and whistles and "comfort" aka padding?  Since we will be buying possibly 4 seats (at least 2 main ones for my car, and 2 simple ones for DH's) it would be great to not have to "overspend" as long as the seats are equally as safe. I'm considering getting the "bare bones" seat (Cosco scenera) which apparently has great safety ratings but is very economical for DH's car (obviously 2 of those).  And I'm debating whether I need to get a more expensive/fancier one for my car......I'm just not sure whether it is necessary or not. Anyways, long story short: recommend your convertible carseat :-)

2shihtzus

We have Britax Marathons and really love them but I can certainly understand not wanting to spend the $$$ for Britax ones.  We had to buy 4 as well and got them off of albee baby during a 25% off sale so really we got one for free.

I don't have experience with Cosco Sceneras but I have heard good things about them.

bethCT

Dd is in a britax boulevard and I love it!  She is 3 and still fits rear facing too.  When we started researching putting in 3 car seats, everyone said I would need to get her a radian because they are so thin.  I was actually really upset over that, and so happy we made it work with her boulevard - that is how much I love this seat!

GeauxTigers82

We have used the Marathons for all the kids. I love them and wouldn't get anything different. Spend the money. You will be glad you did. We did buy 4, but I would at least buy 2 for the main car. Totally worth it!

We just got the Britax Frontier 85 for DD1 (she's 4). It looks more like a booster seat, but it's still a 5 point harness, so she's safe and she thinks it's big girl seat!

All the Britax look so comfy for the babies/kids too. I wish I could ride in one!

flutepharm87

We bought 2 Radians for the van (when they were Sunshine Kids, not Diono) and 2 Cosco Sceneras for our secondary car. LOVE LOVE LOVE the Radians! They're super comfy for the boys, RF to 45lbs and FF to 80lbs. We're not thrilled with the Sceneras, but I think that's because the Radians spoiled us. We're currently planning on purchasing 2 more Radians here soon since we've been using the Sceneras so often.