Hello moms,
My 3 year-old son has been using the Britax Boulevard car seat since he outgrew his infant carrier. We've been happy with the carseat but he's big (almost 40 pounds and 38 inches tall). The 5-point harness and straps are getting very snug and uncomfortable. The crotch middle part bothers him as well. Usually, we have to take off his coat before putting him in the seat. The seat says we could keep him until 65 pounds but I think we should purchase a high-back booster, that will later detach into the seat booster when he's much older. Any great recommendations for a high-back booster that uses the regular car seat belt and is easier to transport? Our budget is about $150. Thanks!
Just a comment...the coat should always be off when in the carseat. Otherwise it allows too much room for play in the event of an accident (nothing thicker than a sweatshirt).
He's not really ready for a high back booster yet. He needs to be at least 4 and 40lbs. Keep in mind that is just the minimum. Each time you "upgrade" a seat you are downgrading the safety. My 46inch tall, 45 lbs 6 year old is still in a 5 point harness Britax and that's where he'll stay till he out grows the seat.
If it were me I'd take the time to save up a bit more and go with the Britax Frontier that TJ mentioned. I think it actually goes up to 120 lbs now.
Also, you should *always* remove a coat before putting a little one in a car seat.
Check to see if you have the bottom connector (at the crotch) moved to the farthest position. Usually they have 3 areas for placement.
No jacket in the car seat anyway!
Make sure the crotch buckle is in the farthest out slot, there are three on the Boulevard.
Make sure the harness is above his shoulders for forward facing so he's not squished down. A harness that falls below the shoulders for forward facing puts a child at risk for spinal compression.
He should be able to easily use the Boulevard for another year or more. At only 38" tall he's not THAT big. My duaghter is 37" tall and 29lbs and she still has plenty of room height wise to rear face in all car seats.
ANYWAY, make sure the crotch buckle is on the farthest out slot, and that the harness is above his shoulders, and that he is not wearing a jcaket in his car seat.
The Graco Nautilus is a great seat for older bigger kids. Taller and more room than a convertible, and it becomes a booster to 100lbs. And its in your budget at $150.
with harnessed car seats, growing room is best measured by *torso* height rather than overall height b/c two kids of equal height could fit the same seat quite differently if one is mostly torso and the other is mostly leg. Have your son sit cross-legged on the floor with his back against the wall and measure the distance from the floor to his shoulders to measure torso height. For most kids a Graco Nautilus would be a good choice to keep the child in a 5-point harness until he has the size and maturity to use the seat as a belt-positioning booster, but if most of his height is in his torso you might want to try and save up for a Frontier because it has the tallest top harness setting of any commonly available seat (and it works quite well as a booster after the harness is outgrown). Most harnessed seats are outgrown by height (when the child's shoulders are above the top harness slot) before weight
We have the britax frontier, it's a five point booster to 80lbs then belt positioning to 100lbs. Not that cheap but will last longer, try looking at Albeebaby.com, sometimes there's closeouts on certain colors. Or look for new in box on eBay, I've seen them under $200 there! Safest and worth it!
I think it's nice when you can keep your children in 5 point harness car seats as long as possible. I moved our kids at 3 years old to a booster from Walmart and they have lived through several accidents. I am grateful none of them were horrible. Any car seat is going to provide the booster need, the elevation required to make the seatbelt fit correctly. If the seat belt fits across the chest then that car seat is fine.
We got the generations 65 b/c it was in our $100 range. If I would have had $150 I would have gone with the nautilous.
Graco Nautilus is my favorite.
