travel system vs car seat?

littlekayy · July 2013

i like the idea of the travel system where it has the infant car seat and easily hooks right onto the stroller and can take the car seat where ever you go but what about the convertible car seats that are for 5-100 lbs? which is better? get one or both?? what are your experiences? recommendations?

MrsJetSet · July 2013

it is really up to your preference (and your child's). We started with a key fit 30 and dd SCREAMED every time we put her in it. At 4 mos we switched to a convertible and life was better for all of us. DD doesn't mind her convertible.

People like buckets because you can take the child out of the car while they are sleeping. However, there is research that shows that you should not leave your infant in their bucket seat for long periods of time. The angle is for appropriate protection in a crash, but not necessary a good angle for breathing. Buckets are also nice because you can buy multiple bases and have a easy in and out from multiple cars. Almost every convertible has to be totally installed and uninstalled every time you switch cars. They are also much heavier. They also can be used longer and many are very well made for use with small infants.

littlekayy · July 2013

those are the EXACT reasons i like the bucket being able to remove baby from the car without disturbing them and also if we go to a restaurant or grocery shopping its portable but the convertible lasts a long time it cuts out the need for a new car seat at 25 lbs and a booster seat but if you only have the convertible dinners and such will be more difficult right??

P.S.

your puppy is absolutely adorable!!!

lindsayanne14 · July 2013

I opted to just get a convertible seat rather than an infant carrier. My reasoning was basically that I plan on baby wearing a lot, I wouldn't want my LO spending too much time in the carrier because the position they are put in isn't supposed to be great for them and I didn't want to invest in the infant carrier only to buy a convertible in 4 to 6 months or so. I have had many people tell me that I "have" to have an infant seat, which just isn't true. All that being said, if I find the convertible seat isn't working out when the baby is small I can always buy an infant seat and save the convertible for when the baby gets bigger.

FmrAFBrat · July 2013

I couldn't have made it without the infant seat and snap n go. My older LO napped and this LO naps so well in it. I'm able to go out for dinner or do some shopping with a sleeping baby it's great. My infant seat is the Safety 1st onBoard 35 air and it starts at 4 lbs....and fits smaller babies better than a convertible.

I wouldn't get a travel system stroller...they tend to be heavy. I'd get a SnG to start and invest in a great stroller for later.

littlekayy · July 2013

are the SnGs good? ive seem them online and they seem kind of cheaply made or flimsy and uncomfortable with limited storage... thank you ladies for the advice im a first time mom and nobody in my family has had a baby in AWHILE i feel there is so much i need to do/buy know and learn terrified and overwhelmed doesnt even begin to cover it

FmrAFBrat · July 2013

littlekayy:
are the SnGs good? ive seem them online and they seem kind of cheaply made or flimsy and uncomfortable with limited storage... thank you ladies for the advice im a first time mom and nobody in my family has had a baby in AWHILE i feel there is so much i need to do/buy know and learn terrified and overwhelmed doesnt even begin to cover it

Check out the Safety 1st Clic it. I'm now using it again with my 2nd son for daycare runs everyday and it has a huge basket. I've actually loaded 2 packs of diapers in it....about 100 diapers and all if their stuff for daycare in it at the same time. The basket is huge and it has a nice parent tray with real cup holders. It also works with Chicco, Graco, and a bunch of other carseats. It's not flimsy at all...mine has been used a ton .

SunAndRain · July 2013

bethanyreese:
I couldn't have made it without the infant seat and snap n go. My older LO napped and this LO naps so well in it. I'm able to go out for dinner or do some shopping with a sleeping baby it's great. My infant seat is the Safety 1st onBoard 35 air and it starts at 4 lbs....and fits smaller babies better than a convertible.

I wouldn't get a travel system stroller...they tend to be heavy. I'd get a SnG to start and invest in a great stroller for later.

This is what we did. I'm all about convenience so we had an infant carseat with two bases, one installed in my car and the other on DH's. then we has the chicco sng for our chicco car seat. This worked brilliantly for us. Totally worth the expense.

We switched to two convertible car seats at 6 months because it became easier less weight to carry dd by herself then lug her plus the weigt of the car seat during daily daycare drop off and pick up.

SunAndRain · July 2013

Also you really don't want to consider switching a convertible car seat between cars on a frequent basis. While installing them isn't rocket science they are heavy and bulky.

happy_un-bride · July 2013

i struggled with this debate, especially since we OAD. ended up with a travel system and it really was the right choice for us. DS was born in Feb in Canada, so it was especially nice to be able to pack him in his carseat before we went out to the cold. i would have hated having to stand out in the snow trying to put our 6lbs baby in an enormous carseat. DS is almost 5 months now, we still use the infant seat, but i don't always take it out of the car.

as for a convertible, we have one of those too. its in my DHs car. we use it occasionally, but i was not overly comfortable with it at the beginning. its not bad now that ds is bit bugger.

ebp913 · July 2013

I loved our infant bucket seat (Chicco Keyfit). Not only because it's very convenient but because I didn't have to leave it in my hot car all day and then put the baby in it. It was totally worth it to me.

For a lot of people, the infant seat will last about a year. It's just that people choose to move their kids earlier so it's not like you won't get plenty of use out of the infant seat if you choose to go that route.

MrsJetSet · July 2013

I would just wear dd or throw a blanket down on the booth seat and let dd lay on the seat or take the stroller in the restaurant and let her lounge in there. Either solution is very doable. I skipped the snap and go and instead bought a stroller that I could use long term but also functioned as a snap n go. Definitely try out the model you are buying if you get one quality varies wildly. I have seen people use ones in the store that are comically small. I can't imagine my tall DH trying to push some of them. If your long term stroller already has that feature then it is an unnecessary expense.

chatita_78 · July 2013

Our infant bucket seat was compatible with the bugaboo but it was a nightmare. For the most part he cried in it in the car which was really stressful and if he was asleep I would snap it into the stroller frame. When he would wake up and I would have to wear him and push the stroller around.There was no getting him back into the cars eat stroller combo. We switched to a convertible car seat and that turned our stressful drives into peaceful. We would put him in the bassinet for the stroller and he actually liked that. For DS2 we are just going to do a convertible car seat and skipping the bucket seat. I'm a SAHM so we will use the convertible in my car and use the bucket in DH's as he will rarely need to take DS2 alone.

gimmietimmies · July 2013

You've gotten good suggestions, but two things: 1. Infant seats go in the big basket of the cart. On to is a huge hazard, and will wreck the metal clips underneath that click into the car seat base. 2. 3 in 1 car seats are almost never recommended. They are outgrown early in each mode for all but the lowest percentile kids and have poorly fitting belt guides in booster mode. One exception is the Diono Radian, but view it as a good convertible, not a 3 in 1. Booster mode is outgrown at the same time as harness, and has a 50lb minimum. It is very rare that you'd have a kid with the dimensions to fit that seat in that mode and be of an acceptable booster age. DD 3 outgrew her Radian for height at 4 years and 43 lbs, too young to booster and too light for a Diono in booster mode. We keep her harness in a Britax Frontier, she's not ready for a regular booster.

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