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what carseat for 4.5yo

melissa816melissa816
in Parenting
What kind of carseat is your 4.5 year old in?  5pt harness or booster? And also what brand/model?  We're looking for a new one for DS in the next few months.  He's 42lbs and 42in tall.  Thanks :)
~Melissa~ married to Cris 08.13.04 mom to Tyler 01.12.07 donate to my cause
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Re: what carseat for 4.5yo

  • mylove2005mylove2005
    My DD is still in her 5 point harness but that is because she is only 31 pounds and in MA we have a 40 pounds and 40 inch rule.  My neice who is also 4.5 she is in a booster by graco becuase she meets the requirements
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  • penguingrrlpenguingrrl member

    My daughter is 3.5 and is 39 lbs/41 inches and we'll likely move her to a booster shortly after she turns 4. Her height is all in her torso and she only has about an inch of torso height left in her sunshine kids radian, which has one of the taller limits on the market. Luckily she's a mature kid so I'm confident I'll be able to trust her to go to a belt positioning booster on the earlier side.

    If I was sure that my 4-4.5 year old would sit reliably in the booster (keep the belt buckled and sit correctly 100% of the time) I would be reluctant to buy a new harnessed seat for them, but I know opinions on this differ greatly.

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  • goodheartedmommygoodheartedmommy member

    I agree with penguingrrl. A child who can use a booster correctly is perfectly safe in it (assuming they meet the age/weight requirements). I'm as carseat crazy as they come and my 4 year old moved into a booster right after his birthday. His sister will be 4 in 6 days and isn't even 30 lbs and is not anywhere near mature enough, so it won't be happening any time in the next couple of years.

    The harness-booster combos don't always make the best booster fit, so if you get one, you need to be prepared to buy a dedicated booster later--and if it does work, it's a pleasant surprise! The evenflo maestro has an 18 inch harness, so it's the same height as the graco nautilus but is half the price at $80. It's the safer bet for me because it's more likely to fit correctly as a booster and if it doesn't, you can get a booster and still save money! 

    If you're interested in a booster, I can give you recs for those, too. 

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  • melissa816melissa816
    Thanks! I'd love booster recs too :)
    ~Melissa~ married to Cris 08.13.04 mom to Tyler 01.12.07 donate to my cause
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  • AnnapolisLariAnnapolisLari member

    DS is just over 4, 44 inches tall and 42 lbs.

    He's in an Evenflo Maestro, which harnesses to 50 lbs.

     

    AKA KnittyB*tch
    DS - December 2006
    DD - December 2008

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  • goodheartedmommygoodheartedmommy member

    We have the sunshine kids monterey and love it. It's not great for skinny kids, though. 

    Recaro vivo and probooster are good. The vivo is for skinny kids and won't fit a bigger built kid very well.

    Graco turbobooster--it's the cheapest good booster you'll find. It's not my first choice, but it's fine.

    Britax parkway sg--I don't really like it any better than the graco, but a lot of people love it.

    Avoid the evenflo big kid and cosco boosters. 

    Use this site to recognize proper vs. poor booster fit. All boosters fit kids differently, so it's important to know what correct usage is.

    https://www.iihs.org/research/topics/boosters/default.html

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