When I had my first baby...the idea of pushing him in one of those little baby car seats attached to the stroller seemed picture perfect. But he hated the car seat. I remember asking the nurse as we left the hospital...why is my baby screaming in the car seat. Is he okay? She said some babies had to get used to it...Lucky for us it only took until he was almost a year old to stop crying in the car.
But here are the reasons why we always switched to the 4ever car seat before our keiki turned 1.
1. Kalei hated the bucket seat
Okay I can't know for sure if Kalei hated the car seat but I think we first purchased the Graco 4ever car seat when he was 5 months old. I was meeting my husband in Texas to drive back his stuff from the base he was stationed at. I bought the 4ever and had it shipped to him so I didn't have to bring a car seat with me since I was traveling with Kalei on my own. He was still screaming bloody murder in the bucket seat and he always got so sweaty, I thought maybe the 4ever car seat would help keep him cooler and he could see more. I was wrong...he still hated the car seat but once he was big enough to face forward the crying stopped! YAY!
2. We have big kids
Our kids tend to run big. My kids were always in the 90th percentile or bigger for height and they just looked gigantic in that tiny bucket car seat. They weren't heavy but after a while, lugging the car seat in and out of the car just got harder and harder.
The temptation to remove the infant car seat is too great for me so I needed to get rid of it all together. The 4ever car seat is not ultra portable so it was perfect for me. It latches in and stays there!
3. Good Ratings
Are you one of those people who google and read reviews on all the baby products you plan on purchasing? Even for the third time...I still found myself checking out reviews. Isn't it funny that almost 5 years since our first purchase, we have gotten the same car seat again! And to make things better...the Graco 4Ever DLX car seat even has buckle holders built in!
I know I kept it short and sweet...I didn't give a huge review on the car seat and all it's manufacturer specs (you can read all of that on your own)...but this is by far one of our favorite car seats. Best part is that it can grow with your child! You can use it from 4-120 lbs!
Other Pros:
- Easy to clean (it wasnʻt super difficult to take off the padding to wash)
- Cup holders are nice to hold pacis, toys, cups, or snacks
- Fairly economical if you look at it across the lifetime of this car seat (bigger investment up front)
Cons:
- Bulky and heavy if taking it to the airport (get a bag with wheels)
- Takes a lot of space like other car seats (probably would not be able to fit 3 across my Honda pilot)
- Not a car seat I would move back and forth between cars
Click Here to see my favorite car seats (and strollers) here: http://a.co/237H5bk
