I was not intending to have both an infant and convertible car seat because I didn’t even know what a convertible car seat was before Isaiah. I knew that my brothers were a year old when they went into big forward facing seats, but I didn’t know that you could get a seat like that to use rear facing. My plan was to start with an infant car seat and an extra base for our other vehicle, but we were gifted the convertible so I thought I would share the pros and cons of an infant car seat vs. a convertible car seat.
Graco FastAction Fold Travel System Stroller with SnugRide
Infant Seat and Travel System Pros – This seat has lots of pros for this newborn stage. It is easier to keep Isaiah warm and covered, especially being born in February. He is comfortable enough to fall asleep in it in the car, so we can take him places and he can continue to sleep. My mom likes to take Isaiah places when she’s watching him, so she got an extra base for her vehicle, which makes it much more convenient than switching a convertible seat each time. The seat can also snap into the stroller, and provides a barrier between Isaiah and the random strangers who want to touch him. He seems a little less approachable when he’s in it. The rounded bottom also helps it to double as a rocker when we’re not in the car.
Infant Seat and Travel System Cons – I’m sure it would do fine outdoors, but the wheels on this stroller don’t seem very durable to me, so I use it as a mostly shopping stroller, but the seat alone is difficult to shop with. I was recently alerted that it is unsafe to put an infant car seat on top of a shopping cart, so now that it sits in the basket, I don’t have much room for groceries. The best solution for this is babywearing, but then I’d have to get him out of his seat and into the carrier outside in the cold. Clearly this will not be an issue once it warms up. And as Isaiah gets heavier, so does the seat. It was all fine when he was 7lbs, but he isn’t anymore.
Safety 1st Alpha Omega Elite Convertible Car Seat
Convertible Seat Pros – This is fairly easy to get Isaiah in and out. I’ve noticed that he sleeps better in this seat. I think it’s a more upright seat, which probably makes him feel better since he’s less likely to spit up in that position. When it is warm out, this seat is really easy to get him out of to put him in a carrier for shopping or walking around. Also, he can use this seat from birth up to 100lbs (will he really need it that long???).
Convertible Seat Cons – If we’re going into a restaurant or somewhere that I don’t have the carrier, we have to hold him as he cannot support himself yet. This seat will be very beneficial in the future, and I know we’ll get a second one for our other vehicle once he outgrows the infant seat, but it isn’t ideal for this newborn stage. When it’s cold, we have to warm the car up for an extra long time so that the seat is warm too. I don’t like the thought of carrying him outside just in a blanket in February to put him in the convertible seat.
As of right now I prefer the infant seat over the convertible, but in the next few months my opinion will probably flip flop. Which seat do you prefer for an infant?
pear / 1570 posts
We have used the convertible since birth so I don’t really know anything else! We do a lot of babywearing and before LO could sit unsupported we would just bring the stroller with us into the resturant.
blogger / nectarine / 2608 posts
We used a convertible since birth. I had an infant seat with Ellie and found that I was typically lugging both seat and baby, so this time we went with a seat that was stationary. I wore Lorelei pretty much all waking hours in the beginning, so that helped.
honeydew / 7444 posts
That smile kills me!
I am glad that i went with an infant car seat. It was so easy to tote LO around and bring her to restaurants. Also, i liked having the shade cover to protect her eyes/face from the sun when on car rides. The biggest thing though, was that i could bring her into the house while she was asleep and not disturb her!
grapefruit / 4669 posts
I like our infant seat and how easy it is to pop into a stroller, plus she has somewhere to sit when we carry it in places. But at 12 weeks old and 16 lbs, I’m already tired of lugging it into the house! (actually, 2nd floor apartment, not house) I feel like on 100+ degree summer days though, it would be better to have it inside in the air conditioning instead of smoking hot in the car.
grapefruit / 4703 posts
I have no advice or experience with car seats of any kind, haha, but yay for a pic of cutie Isaiah!
wonderful clementine / 24134 posts
Just wanted to say that I love the cute picture at the end of the post! I can’t believe how big he’s getting!
pea / 20 posts
If anyone is interested in learning about all elements of car seat safety as well as getting expert advice on choosing the right car seat for your kids, this page is super informative and is run by car seat techs: https://www.facebook.com/groups/CarSeatsForTheLittles/
nectarine / 2797 posts
I loved the bucket for ease of transport and keeping LO warm when she was little. I stretched out keeping her in there as long as possible waiting for spring to hit – and we made it! But we live a very suburban lifestyle so we were in the car a ton.
grapefruit / 4671 posts
I went with a convertible from borth because we live in NYC and don’t have a car thus rendering the conveniences of an infant seat non-existent.
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
I do think it’s a matter of how much you’ll actually be using the car. I had to have the infant bucket, but in hindsight, I should have gone straight to a convertible.
pear / 1650 posts
I don’t know much about car seats YET, but omg what a cute happy baby!
hostess / wonderful watermelon / 39513 posts
I love our Chicco infant seat. It is so easy to take her everywhere without waking her at our destination.
kiwi / 511 posts
I used an infant seat (Graco) but never used the individual stroller, when we went somewhere that required a stroller it was a double (Graco, the car seat fit in the front and my elder was in the back). This was great because they say no winter coats in car seats, well in New England that is not going to happen so it was nice for the littlest to have the car seat cover and it was always warm. He is now in a convertible (Britax Marathon like his older brother) but he is still facing backwards (due to age and weight but he was not manageable in the infant one for me, he was too heavy it became awkward for daycare pick up with both boys, and now he can sit on his own and be carried on my hip).
My DH is the car seat installer and he says the Britax is a dream to put in and take out of cars as we move it to his parents car occasionally. He said even installing it rear facing once he understood it was pretty easy, easier than the infant one.
GOLD / wonderful pea / 17697 posts
We kept E in an infant seat for around 6 months. I liked that we could pop it out and take it in restaurants and such when he was napping. Or pop it right into the stroller frame. But yeah, by about 3 months I was struggling with it. DH always carried it when he was with me.
Also, Isaiah is like the cutest thing ever.
pomegranate / 3225 posts
Can’t get enough of his smile!
coconut / 8279 posts
gosh, he is SO CUTE!
honeydew / 7687 posts
so cute!! my LO didn’t sleep in the seat until he was in a convertible at 6 months… so I lugged around that dumb anchor for nothing!
eggplant / 11408 posts
@littlebittyhouse: @Mrs. Twine: @plantains: can I ask which kind of convertible you used? We’re thinking of doing this when we get there, since we rarely use the car (live in the city). I had looked at the Maxi Cosi Pria, but I wasn’t sure which other ones were good from birth.
clementine / 943 posts
I loved our infant seat! One thing to note is that you definitely aren’t stuck with those cheapo snap n go stroller frames with an infant seat- all of the good, high end strollers have car seat adapters, which was great for going straight from car to stroller. Plus, it was great to be able to bring him in the house when he fell asleep in the car seat, which was all the time!
For those who worry about the seat being too heavy- not everyone has Incredible Hulk babies- mine didn’t hit 16 lbs until he was 6 months old, which is about when we ditched the infant seat.
blogger / nectarine / 2608 posts
@LovelyPlum; We used the Britax 70CS (there is an even newer one out that might be worth checking into) with this infant insert: http://www.britaxusa.com/accessories/infant-positioning-insert until she was about three months or so and big enough to not need it anymore. It helped make sure the straps were at the correct place on her body. She was born at 6lb 14oz.
pear / 1570 posts
@LovelyPlum: we have the maxi cosi pria 70 with the tiny fit insert. worked perfectly for our 7lb11oz newbie
GOLD / apricot / 341 posts
We’ve had a Graco infant seat that we used with a base in the car, with a snap-n-go and with our Teutonia stroller frame until our babies were around 9/10 months old. No complaints! I think an infant seat is great until around 6 months when they stop being able to just sleep through moves from car to stroller and back. Now both our kids (10 months, 2.5 years) are in Maxi Cosi Mobi rear-facing seats. Here in Sweden they recommend kids to travel rear-facing until the age of four, and the seats we have are really comfy (with 4 positions for sleep) and with lots of leg room. We really like them.
eggplant / 11408 posts
@Mrs. Twine: thanks! I’ll look in to it.
@littlebittyhouse: thank you! I’ve had my eye on the Tiny Fit, so it is nice to hear others’ experiences!
guest
We registered for a convertible car seat by Peg Perego. I’m so glad you started a discussion about this! Our baby is due in December, so I don’t anticipate taking him or her out much in the first 2-3 months. I was waffling between getting an infant seat and the convertible though.