Help with 2 under 2...

112383 · January 2016

So I have a 9 yr old , a 9 month old and am 14 weeks pregnant. I am currently a stay at home mom and have a dodge caliber, my husband drives a 4dr vw gti with that being said I need help with some non gas guzzlers with 3rd row seating I know its a long shot not being a gas guzzler but what do you own, love & why? also I am looking into getting a safety 1st65e but from reviews they're huge, I have a Phil and ted for an infant seat but that doesn't last forever for either though my 9 month old is still comfortable in it , if god forbid we don't get a different car/suv I need to fit 2 car seats in my car, and lastly any good double strollers that have a carseat & reg seat and then will convert into a reg double stroller ?? any help on any subject will be much appreciated

msuzannah · January 2016

I'm not sure about the stroller but have you looked into crossovers? A lot of them have 3rd row seating but don't guzzle gas as much. I really like the Chevy traverse. There isn't much trunk room with the third row up but for my family that isn't too big of a deal.

112383 · January 2016

@msuzannah we just started talking about it as we also have a dog but we need a 3rd row due to my older son and 2 car seats lol if any friends want to come along I guess they'd be on the roof lol. , thanks for the help ill definitely look into it.

TattoosandLace · January 2016

We are looking at a new vehicle and since the OB confirmed there is only one bun in this oven we're going with the Chevy Equinox. Before confirmation on a single pregnancy, we debated getting a Chevy Traverse like PP suggested.

TattoosandLace · January 2016

As for strollers, there's a thread on them already with helpful input there.

LaurenAsh23 · January 2016

We have a Honda Odyssey. Has 3rd row and gets amazing gas mileage! I had a Buick Enclave before and it got okay gas mileage, but the storage room and amazing gas mileage in the odyssey make it my favorite!

MDmomma1217 · January 2016

We've done a lot of car shopping recently. My current car is 9 years old and has 170k miles, so we are definitely trading it in before this LO arrives. We looked at the Kia Sorento and Hyundai Sante Fe with the third rows. Honestly, it doesn't look very roomy in the third row, and we would probably have the seat folded down for extra cargo space. Same thing with the Toyota Highlander - I sat in the 3rd row and had no room.

We are pretty sold on the Toyota Sienna. I have to admit, I'm not super excited about driving a van, but for the features that it comes with, it's a better deal than if we were to get an equivalent SUV (like the Highlander). There aren't any 2016 models on lots in our area yet, as soon as they arrive we are hoping to get a deal on a leftover 2015.

matryoshkadoll · January 2016

I was looking at the mazda5 at one point, but we went with another car.

If you keep your current car, check out this list of seats you could fit three across (or basically for two car seats with room for your 9yo) https://www.thecarcrashdetective.com/2015/12/3-across-installations-caliber.html/

I love the city select stroller, which converts from double with car seat to double to single.

112383 · January 2016

Thanks but we're definitely not keeping my car lol I seriously couldn't ever have all my kids plus my 2 or 4 nephews along ,that's an awesome link though, and I'll have to check out the stroller as well , I might wrap the lo and keep the middle in the stroller but still not sure

juliagulia38 · January 2016

If you want a vehicle that will fit your kids and nephews, I suggest a mini van. We looked into SUVs that have a third row, but honestly they aren't that big and once you use the third row you have no cargo space. A mini van can fit 6 adults easily and comfortably. Plus they drive more like cars then SUVs and have better gas mileage than SUVs.

LilLambie · January 2016

I have the Australian version of the Chevy traverse- over here its called a Holden Captiva. I really like it. It has lots of leg room and drives really well. This is our first so I'm not sure how it goes with kids but I think it should be ok.

Edit: spelling

ladythrice · January 2016

No advice on the car, but I'll second the recommendation for the jogger city select! That's what we will be going with once LO is born.

carcrashheart · January 2016

is the safety first 65 the one that goes to 50 lbs rear facing? I forget the name of that one, but I looked at the one that goes to 50 lbs. it is pretty big. However, if we had had the room for it I would have purchased it in a heart beat because extended rear facing is extremely important to me. Ultimately, I gave our nextfit to our youngest when he was ready to switch and bought the evenflo 3 in 1 for our oldest. I hate that he will probably outgrow rear facing before he turns four (he was 37 lbs at his three year well check), but convertibles go to 40 lbs rear facing with the exception of the safety first that goes to 50 lbs. I wish that one had fit in our car but it didn't. I recommend that seat to anyone that has the room-especially those with third rows. Rear facing is so important.

I have decided not to get a new car, so I will be replacing our car seats to seat three across. It looks like the diono radian is probably the most affordable option. The foonf is just too expensive but probably the best out there since they go by European standards, which are stronger than the US. I actually need to ask car seats for the littles if there is an infant seat that will work three across, with two of those being radians.

As for stroller-I have the city select and car seat adapters. Our oldest won't need to ride anymore by the the baby is born, and I honestly don't use a stroller often. I stick to carts and baby wear when I can. Stroller comes out when I need to go in to the mall or if we go to the zoo.

mckcak23 · January 2016

I just bought a GMC acadia. the middle seats move forward and back 6 inches so that you could add extra leg room in the 3rd row for your 9 year old, I also like how easy it is to access the 3rd row. The trunk space is not huge but I always can fit my groceries in. We do not have any other kids but needed a 3rd row since we have two great danes. It definitely goes through gas, but not as bad as my pick up did if that is any consolation. I love it, but I am partial to SUV's and pick up trucks.

carcrashheart · January 2016

Trunk space will be important when you're fitting a stroller there with other things.

jenkeale · January 2016

@mckcak23 We are looking into this for our new vehicle. May I ask what year you bought? I was looking at a few older models and the 2nd row seemed close to the front, but I didn't see anything about them being able to move that much. Also, is the 2nd row bench seating or pilot seats? We think we'd like the pilot seats, but if the bench moves, we'd go for that. I think we narrowed it down to a GMC Acadia, but there are still so many options!

mckcak23 · January 2016

@jenkeale we have a 2014. I opted for the bench. The dealer thought I was nuts. But with my dogs I wanted to be able to completely separate the baby from the dogs and I felt that was easiest with a bench. I see the benefit of captains chairs, especially with older children being able to crawl into the back on their own without having to move any seats.

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