1. we have one in ea vehicle because they are too danged heavy for anyone....it is unreal. w/ the twins and a 5yo still too small-we now have three in ea car.

Posted at 5:41PM on Mar 26th 2008 by isisaquaria

2. I got over it, but the boys outgrew them around 4 months each anyway (length) so the weight wasn't as much of an issue for us. What killed me was the thigh banging as I went up and down the front steps, or had one in the car seat and one in my arms up the full set of stairs. UGH!

Posted at 6:07PM on Mar 26th 2008 by Ethel

3. They outgrew a carseat @4mo? The Graco Snug ride still fit my 5yo until last yr. She is now in Turbo Booster. You must be thinking the tiny infant seats-which are a TOTAL WASTE IMO because they do outgrow them quickly-but you can buy the pillows that shrink the space.

The tiny carseats are easy to tote around by comparision to the one pic'd here

Posted at 6:17PM on Mar 26th 2008 by isisaquaria

4. isisaquaria - your five year old was in a SungRide until last year? A five year old who still faces backwards and fits in a SnugRide must be a tiny tiny child since they only are recommended to like 25 lbs!

Posted at 9:11PM on Mar 26th 2008 by ikate

5. I agree with ikate... I can't imagine a 5 year old still riding rearfacing in a Snugride (which is typically only up to 22lbs and 29inches). The seat pictured above I believe is a Snugride, just sitting in the base incorrectly.

Posted at 8:15PM on Mar 26th 2008 by Nicole

6. My five yr old doesn't weigh but 30 lbs now and didn't break that until earlier this yr-she wears 3t pants and tops. She is only 30 in tall now-- she will
it was the beginning of last yr, but yes-she still fit in a similar type car seat --Babiesrus type of this model-
I looked it up- @ 5yr check-up she weighed 25 lbs.

Posted at 9:52PM on Mar 26th 2008 by isisaquaria

7. I should clarify perhaps, no infant should be in a Graco Snugride if they are over 29" long and/or 22lbs. If you read the directions that come with the carseat, as most parents I have noticed DO NOT, most kids grow out of these car seats much before their first year. Far too often I see babies too long, too tall, and way too fat stuffed into them and that is a serious risk to injury and life in the event of a car accident. At 30" your daughter isiquaria, should have been out a long time ago.

Both my boys reached 29" at or just before 4 months, so they were transferred to convertibles at that point. Please parents, read the directions that come with your car seat!

As for my boys, they are not freakishly tall. Or big. My oldest is outside the 99th percentile for height at 3 years, but not far at over 42", and my youngest is just within the 99th percentile. If perhaps they were far above the percentiles there would be an issue - of course folks keep asking me what kindergarten my oldest attends.... But they are ignorant and are not watching the obviously age appropriate behavior he exhibits.

Posted at 3:32PM on Mar 27th 2008 by Ethel

8. Ethel- speaking of reading--I wrote she is 30in NOW and to add only months shy of six and I wrote that it was the beginning of last yr (2007)-so, my mistake, she was 4, not yet five. I read the instuctions to several car seats as I wanted to move her out of it much quicker-trust me. I am offended that you assume I did not... Like I said-@ 5yr check up- she weighed 25lbs and not even tall enough @ 27 in She just now (last check Feb 2008) is hitting 30lbs and as of yesterday,(because of this article) we measured her height @31". Her weight has actually dropped to 28 lbs by my home scale. She is for lack of a better word "a shrimp" and I have the same problems you do, except in reverse--people are amazed that she can talk so well and converse with them etc for a toddler.

She has no desire to eat. She eats in a week, what most kids eat in a day. She eats solely because we make her- I do not think I have ever heard her say I am hungry. We have vitamins and all kinds of stuff. She has been tested for everything under the sun, our dr have not seen this is a 37wk (basically term child) that weighed just over 6lbs at birth. She did get very ill at 6mo due to allergy to milk and lost down to 5 lbs. And, it took forever to recover.

It is nice to a point-she doesn't outgrow clothes-she wears them out. But because of her size, she can't wear some of the stuff she wants.

Posted at 5:02PM on Mar 27th 2008 by isisaquaria

9. Maybe consider not using it? I never used one of those portable ones because they seem like such a hassle. We used a convertible seat from the beginning but you could just leave the portable one in the car. Everyone always complains about how heavy they are and then their slings and Baby Bjorns go unused which I don't get. Maybe try that for a few days and see how it works instead? Anyway, I am right-handed and can only carry a child on my left hip, too.

Posted at 6:28PM on Mar 26th 2008 by Eva

10. I am also scratching my head over a kid outgrowing a carseat at 4 mo. Either those are biiiig kids or that's a smaller carseat than what I've got.

Eva: it is even more of a pain in the butt to wrestle the baby in and out of the carseat than it is to carry it, IMO. Especially if he's sleeping! I mean, I take him out if the purpose of our drive is to go for a walk or whatever, but if I have to haul him into the pediatrician/grocery store/etc, he stays in the seat. The INCREDIBLY HEAVY SEAT. Wah.

Posted at 6:37PM on Mar 26th 2008 by Linda L.

11. My 5yo is an extremely small child, but even @4 mo none of the children in my family have weighed more than 17 lbs @ that age.

The twins most likely won't outgrow it by then either as they only weigh 9lbs total @ 5wks old--but they do eat quite abit and often.

Posted at 10:17PM on Mar 26th 2008 by isisaquaria

12. My son is especially gargantuan and grew out of his Britax infant carrier at 6 months, both in weight and length. He is pretty freaking huge, but has finally slowed progress at 18 months fitting SNUGLY in a 2T. I should up him to a 3T but I just don't want to dish out the $ yet! Belly shirts are AWESOME on toddlers!
As for lugging him around, I parked close to the cart holder things in the store parking lots, AND I have a stroller that was the companion to that car seat so I could just pop the carrier in the stroller and roll him, because those things are SO heavy! I also made my husband put him in the car whenever I could (but he works from home so I am especially lucky in that respect).

Posted at 10:54PM on Mar 26th 2008 by kim

13. Both my kids were 20# at 4 months old so they had to move into the larger car seat at that age. And that was on breast milk alone. Their weight gain slowed down quickly after that. My son was 20# 6 oz at 6 months.

It did not matter with either baby that they needed a new car seat since they both screamed the entire time they were in any car seat. I used a sling when I got them out of the car. Yes, it felt like I was pregnant still but it's easier than listening to them cry.

Posted at 10:39PM on Mar 27th 2008 by Anita

14. Yup, just big kids. I have a Snugride too, and my daughter outgrew it at 4 months- lengthwise, not from weight. I think she still technically met the height requirement but her head was almost at the top of the seat, which made me nervous. My son is two weeks older than Dylan and weighs 16 pounds- he was 10.5 lbs at birth. I don't think we have more than another few months in the snugride with him. My husband and I are both very tall, and the kids are too.

Posted at 3:35PM on Mar 27th 2008 by Laura

15. I feel your pain. I, too, am left handed and hated using those carriers. I mostly did like you do, put it in front. I was so glad when the kids out grew them.

Posted at 6:38PM on Mar 26th 2008 by Heather

16. mine outgrew at 4 months.
but i always parked right beside the shopping cart carousel and shoved it in there!!

Posted at 6:39PM on Mar 26th 2008 by dc

17. I had the same Snug Ride for my kids and it is heavy. My arm got strong and I had to be ambidextrous when going long distances with it because I had to give each arm a break often. My kids did outgrow it at 4-5 months each due to the length limitations on it. I must say that I just got a Graco Nautilus which has a 5 pt. harness for up to 65 lbs and converts all the way down to a backless booster. My daughter loves it. They say it's the last car seat you'll need to buy. That sucker is super heavy though - I wouldn't want to schlep it through an airport.

Posted at 7:16PM on Mar 26th 2008 by Corey Chernesky

18. I think you do actually improve your arm strength carting those things around; those Snugrides are pretty heavy even without a baby in them!
I have big hips and was able to somewhat rest the edge of the seat on my hip and relieve some of the pressure, but what worked even better was to simply transfer my son from the seat into his Hotsling and carry him in that. Usually he'd go right back to sleep, so it was worth a minute or two of fuss not to be lugging the heavy carseat around.

Posted at 8:22PM on Mar 26th 2008 by Heather

19. I only take the bucket out of the base when she's asleep. Otherwise, it stays in the car and I use the sling. When she's asleep and I MUST take her in, I use the stroller. I do not understand people who leave their kids in the buckets all the time. Drives me insane.

I think the confusion above is because the Snugride is a bucket, and there's another "convertible" Graco, that isn't portable, doesn't snap in and out of a base, and can be used safely from infancy to age 5.

I have the first type for my 1 year old (18 pounds) and the second type for my 2.5 year old. The 1 year old can stay in it, rear facing, until she's 25 pounds or so and some odd inches long - 29? The 2.5 year old's seat will actually go from infancy to 100 pounds, but I hope that she's driving by then. :)

Amy @ http://prettybabies.blogspot.com

Posted at 8:26PM on Mar 26th 2008 by Amy

20. I never carried that bucket unless it was to take a sleeping baby into the house. Anywhere else I used the sling. The bucket is so heavy and I have a bad back (although my arms are very strong). I can wear a baby all day long in a well-fitted carrier, but lugging that heavy bucket by its handle is a recipe for completely throwing out my lower back.

Posted at 8:47PM on Mar 26th 2008 by Karen