Bye Bye Baby Seat

Today marks a milestone for my Cutie Pie. He has officially outgrown his infant carrier carseat. We brought him home from the hospital in that seat. He's gone on long car trips, run errands, sat in restaurants and gone for long walks at the park in that seat. Now at almost six months old, he's too big to fit in the seat that was supposed to last a year. It felt bittersweet to see my baby boy's chair cast aside on the garage floor to make room for the giant big boy seat that we bought to replace it.


Choosing a new car seat was quite an undertaking. I read the baby books and consulted numerous web pages. I visited baby stores. I looked at charts comparing every aspect of dozens of seats. I read that I needed a convertible car seat but I wasn't sure why. Does it have a moon roof? I felt like I was cramming for a test on a foriegn language I had never heard before!

Do you want a seat with a cow or zebra pattern? Stylish parents might prefer a special couture fabric edition. Traveling parents might want a seat with wheels at the bottom so they can cart their kid around the airport like he's riding on a dolly. (Isn't this why they make strollers?) How about a snack tray? For only $400, your baby's seat can have it's own airbags! I was surprised I didn't find one with iPod attachments.

In my research, I found that Britax seats are considered the safest on the market. When I read a review from another parent about how a Britax seat saved their child's life I knew that was the one I wanted. They might not have all the cutest patterns but if my Cutie Pie was in an accident, I wouldn't want to regret not buying him a better seat.

You would think that would be the end. My decision is made, I will buy a Britax seat. Oh no! There are six different kinds of Britax seats available for babies like my Cutie Pie. Each seat is different and none of them are really better than the others. Every seat had something I wanted that the others didn't have. The seat with the airbags sounded intriguing but very expensive. I think my Cutie Pie should be comfortable in his seat so we should probably get one with the comfort pillows. I don't have a van or an SUV so I needed one that would fit in my normal sized car. I read a bunch of reviews that said some seats don't have adjustable crotch straps and their little boys were uncomfortable because their wee wees hurt. Well that was it! The deciding factor. I don't want to have to drive all over town with a baby crying because his wee wee hurts!

I finally decided on the Britax Decathlon and found a good deal shopping around on the internet. It fits perfectly in my mom-mobile and I can hardly wait to run errands with Cutie Pie so he can sit in it. I'm going to miss the seat that carried my sweet baby boy but I'm looking forward to countless car trips with the new seat. I just better not hear any complaints about that crotch strap!