How do you get a toddler and an infant out of the car?

mrs.meteowrite · August 2011

I haven't perfected this skill yet, and I've mostly been practicing at Miles' daycare, which has a very quiet parking lot this time of year. I've been carrying Noah in the carseat, which means I can get him out first and keep a closer eye on Miles once he's out of his seat. But a) Noah is huge and the carseat is heavy and wow my back is sore... and b) Noah starts to daycare soon, so he won't need to be in his seat once we get inside. So I've tried getting Miles out first, then getting Noah out of his seat. Miles is good about waiting on the sidewalk near the car, but once school starts up (their daycare shares the site of an elementary school) there'll be many more cars and people moving through the lot, so it will be harder for me to watch him while I unload Noah.

Do I just suck it up and carry Noah in his carseat until he outgrows the infant seat?

How do you ladies get two little ones out of a car safely?

mcunningham · August 2011

i'm not sure how old your kids are, but when paige was a baby i would just throw her in the ergo and then get tyler out and make him hold my hand. now he can get out of his booster by himself so i just make him wait by the side of the car while i get p out. i was pretty nervous about him running into the street but after he saw a dead squirrel on the side of the road - and i told him it was run over by a car - he has never attempted it since! good luck!

amyfelice · August 2011

I would also think the Ergo/Becco carrier would be the best way. I never even had an infant car seat because I could never carry a baby in a carseat the way everyone does. I have a bad back and the Ergo was my go-to carrier. I am guessing if I have another I will do the same with the infant and then come and get Elena. Or a double stroller when the infant gets a little older. Hugs, I am sure it's pretty tough to juggle.

Smuches4u · August 2011

I obviously am not speaking from too much experience as I've only got the one.

I was watching a friends infant one day and found myself in the same trouble. I unbuckled DC first, but asked that he stay in the back seat until I could come around to get the baby.

I went around, got the baby, and DC crawled through that side of the car to hold my hand while the babe was on a hip.

Smuches4u · August 2011

I obviously am not speaking from too much experience as I've only got the one.

I was watching a friends infant one day and found myself in the same trouble. I unbuckled DC first, but asked that he stay in the back seat until I could come around to get the baby.

I went around, got the baby, and DC crawled through that side of the car to hold my hand while the babe was on a hip.

Sometimes my hands are just full, so I ask DC to hold onto my pocket. He's really good about latching on & it's not often someone elses hand is in my pocket so it's immediately noticed when he lets go.

MrsEmm · August 2011

I would open take stroller or shopping cart over to babys side of the car, load him in, go around & grab the toddler. Or sometimes Id grab the infant seat, then pull out the toddler, hold her hand with infant seat on the other arm and grin & bear it.

the infant seat was my saving grace. It BROKE my back but was the only way for me to get stuff done, safely and fairly efficiently. My boy was(is) huge and I still lugged him around in that thing until a month ago @ 25lbs. I just tried to convince myself that I was doing an arm & lowerback workout.

SweetieP · August 2011

I always got the baby out first and then the older one. Typically put the baby in the stroller and allowed Ryan free roam of the back seat until I could get him out. When he was older, and the lot wasn't busy, I'd allow him to get out but he had to have his hand on the bumper of the car or on the stroller at all times. I never used my carrier because a lot of the time Natalie was asleep.

Mrs.K&C · August 2011

Until he could sit up on his own, I went the carrier route - put DS in the carrier, then got DD. Once he could sit, I would roll the stroller over to his side, get him in the cart, then roll it to DD's side and put her in the big part of the cart. If there is no cart involved I always tell Sabrina to keep one hand on the car and stand next to me. SHe is ridiculously defiant but for some reason that works (most of the time).

Meritage · August 2011

I have never been able to carry the infant carrier, even in the early newborn days when baby was super light. I guess I am exceptionally weak. :-) I would always (even when I just had one), get the stroller out first, snap the infant carseat into it, and then get out brother. At the grocery store, I'd pop the carseat into the cart first and then get brother out (parking by the carts).

In the early days, I'd just put the infant into the baby bjorn and then get brother out.

Good luck! It takes a while to figure out what's best/easiest for you.

danandkelly · August 2011

What worked well for us was for me to unbuckle Natalie while I was getting Addi out. Then I would let N climb out herself, she thought it was great to climb out of the car and over the seats.

soon2Bkranz · August 2011

I taught the at early ages to "hold" onto the car. So at your point I took JLK out and walked her over to JOnathans side and she held onto the car.

Mama_v2.0 · August 2011

When they were younger, I did things weird. Unbuckle the older kid/s (but don't take their arms out) then close that side and walk around and get the baby out (which I also wear in an ergo) then have the older kids crawl out the baby's side, or wait for me to come back around to their side and open the door for them. Now that the oldest is 5 she takes her brother's hand and together they walk to the sidewalk, stand and wait outside next to the door for me to walk back over and get them, or on my command only walk around to the side where I am getting the baby out.

Celyn · August 2011

The real challenge is when they're both asleep

mrs.meteowrite · August 2011

Thanks y'all. I'm going to try the "touch the car" method. Or perhaps start tucking the carrier in the car for daycare runs.

'Course, this afternoon, I realized I could also just walk to school and avoid the whole car situation entirely. But sooner or later I'll have to figure out how to wrangle them in and out of the car.

AvaLikeLava · August 2011

My daycare has a parking lot, so the walk from the car to the door is maybe about 50'

I would get G out of the car first. We worked on the "one hand on the car" technique, while I got the infant carrier out on the other side. I'd take both kids in, drop G off, carry S2 back out with me.

Once S2 joined the same daycare, clearly both stayed, me leaving the infant carrier at daycare (since I would drop off, DH would pick up, or vice-versa).

I've also gotten S2 out of the car first in the carrier, carried the carrier on the other side of the car, put it right next to my feet, but out of the way of any car to turn in/hit us, and then unbuckled G.

It sucked on days G would want me to carry him IN ADDITION to carrying an infant seat + diaper bag + bottles. Ugh!

People in our lot def. watch out for kids, and there was usually enough space that we just don't park next to each other when we see someone is loading/unloading.

jsugrin · August 2011

I'm way late on this but maybe it will still help, right now what we do is I unbuckle Andrew, shut his door, go around and unbuckle Cooper and then lead them both out of Cooper's door.

This works for us because Andrew listens better than Cooper so he just waits his turn and then comes out after Cooper. Sounds like it might work for you since it sounds like Miles is pretty calm. That way you could unbuckle Miles, leave him in the car and go around to Noah, unbuckle Noah and get him in your arms, get Miles to climb over and out and then Miles holds your hand while you walk carrying Noah,

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