LO (19 mo) is starting daycare at the beginning of March. I will probably do most of the drop-offs, and DH will probably do most of the pick-ups. We have one car seat, and we each have a car seat base installed in our separate cars. The daycare is on my way to work. It would be a minor PITA to turn back around to drop the carseat at home after doing dropoffs on the days that DH is doing pickup. Is it okay (and is it typical) just to leave the car seat at daycare, or do we invest in a second car seat? I feel like such a daycare newbie! Most families must deal with this issue, but I have no idea what is the norm. Car seats are such clunky items; I don't want the daycare to be irritated with us if we leave ours there for the day and take up precious space. Thanks!!
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There are new recommendations that show that after a year a child should no longer be in a bucket seat. So you should probably think about upgrading your child anyways.
Yes, most families invest in two!
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@T.H.O.U.: this.
I'd get convertibles for both cars.
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A carseat for each car.
Re-installing a convertible seat every day, multiple times a day would be a gigantic PITA. Plus it leaves a significant chance of user error in installation.
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@T.H.O.U., @oliviaoblivia: Thank you! I knew about the rear-facing recommendations, but hadn't heard about bucket seat vs/ convertible recommendations. Looks like we need to do some shopping before March 1st...
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@kiddosc: Thanks! Good points.
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@snowbaby: and you have a couple days left of the trade in event at BRU!! Perfect timing!
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@meadow: Great tip, I had not heard about this! Thanks!
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@snowbaby: our daycare gives us the option to leave it there, but we dont because we have two different bases and car seats
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Multiple car seats, you will have them for years. This may sound silly but I have 3 car seats for one kid. 1 for the family van, 1 for the nanny's truck, and my mom bought another for when she visits from out of state.
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@T.H.O.U.: if you are referring to the consumer reports findings they have been found not accurate. They used the average one year old dummy that was in fact above the limits for many bucket seats, thus why the seats "failed". If a child is within the limits of their seat they are fine.
Now at 19 months it is very likely a child has outgrown the bucket seat. So I agree getting two convertibles would be a good idea.
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@macintosh: That makes sense! I feel like I've been living under a rock - the car seat transition wasn't even on my radar until just now.
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@catgirl: Interesting. We have the Britax B Safe 35, and LO is only 20 lbs (small for her age), so she's well under the weight limit for her particular bucket seat. She's quickly approaching the height limit, though, so I guess we'd need to consider switching from bucket to convertible anyway, regardless of whether the consumer reports that PPs mentioned were accurate.
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@snowbaby: it goes to 32" and she also needs at least 1" between her head and the shell. If she fits that is great but at her age definitely important to keep an eye on it.
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@catgirl: Thanks! She is around 30" currently, and as you know, kids shoot up like weeds overnight, so time to research convertibles...
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@snowbaby: also, since she does still fit the infant seat, one of you could keep using that and you would just need one convertible seat to start.
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@catgirl: Very logical of you! That's a great point.
I think my plan will be to get a nice convertible for my car (which DD spends the vast majority of her car time in), and continue to use the current bucket seat in DH's truck for the short daycare pickups, until LO hits that height max. The daycare is only about .5 mi from our house and the drive is basically through neighborhoods the whole time, so I am comfortable with this. We'll then probably swap the bucket for a less expensive convertible for DH's truck when the time comes.
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@snowbaby: that sounds like a great plan!
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Just one other thing to consider, that I didn't - if you're planning a second or third child, make sure the convertible and the infant seat fit ok together in the backseat in an arrangement that works for you.
I didn't realize this part and had a fabulous top of the line convertible, but when #2 came around they didn't fit together in our backseat properly! -
@wheres_c: That is a really helpful, practical tip. Thanks!
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@T.H.O.U.: @snowbaby: I believe the test they did to come up with this recommendation was pretty flawed because the dummy they used wasn't actually within the height and weight limits for the seat tested.
OP - providing your LO is still within the max limits of your infant seat then she's perfectly safe! You could always get a cheap second seat to keep in your DH's car.
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Another vote for multiple car seats. It's so worth it to pay the extra to have two seats instead of lugging them in & out of the car constantly.
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@snowbaby: I would transition your LO to a convertible seat as soon as possible.
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@snowbaby: Also just to follow up, my kids were big so the idea of a 1 year old in a bucket is foreign to me.
Make sure to check your "shell height". Even though total length wise you fit the printed limits, it really depends where their head sits on the shell for protection. My kids seemed to have really long torsos so even though they were under the height "limit", their head was too close to the top.
We did something similar with DH. It was a nice way to purchase 1 seat, try it out and see how we liked it and then decide if we wanted to purchase seomthign different. We haven't found a seat we absolutely love so we have 4 different convertible seats.
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Thanks everyone for the great tips! LO definitely still fits in her bucket because she's on the small side, so we'll go forward with the plan to buy one convertible now, for my car, and depending on how well we like it we can then decide what kind of convertible to buy for DH's truck once LO has officially grown out of the bucket. You all are awesome.
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@T.H.O.U.: I think I had the same reaction. When my six month olds have outgrown their infant seat how is it possible for a 19mo to still be in one.
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Have you talked to the daycare? Ours strongly encourages us to not leave any seats or strollers at the school. Two parents leave bike trailers, but they are outside all day (rain or shine).
It sounds like you're going to do two carseats, which I think is a really good call. Not only will it be a PAIN to install the carseat twice per day, it increases the chance of a poor install - which has safety implications.
There's a group on FB called Car Seats for the Littles. It's a little intense sometimes, but you can share a photo of your current setup and people can help you determine if you need a new seat, and even recommend great options within your price range.
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You've gotten a lot of responses on what car seat to use but to answer your original question, when my kids were in the bucket seat, we did leave it at school. They had a closet in the gym that we could all use. And our daycare is crazy strict on everything so it never concerned me.
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Our youngest is still in the bucket seat and we leave it at daycare. The convertible one does not get left at daycare, so we have one in each car.
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We had separate car seats so this was never an issue. I do see infant car seats lining the halls at our daycare though so I'd say it is common practice. But a 19 month old should not be in an infant seat past one year and should be in a convertible.
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Most parents leave bucket seats at our daycare - there is a whole "bucket seat wall" with cubbies for the seats where they can be left every day.
I'm also in the group of being surprised your LO is still in a bucket seat - my LO is small too but was long out of bucket seat at 19 months; but if yours is still under the limits, then I guess keep on keeping on!
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We leave our infant seat at daycare all day. It's a PITA to carry it in though, but my baby is small and it's cold right now so we deal. They have an entire "car seat parking lot" for any seats that need to be left.
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We aren't allowed to leave our car seat. We will be switching younger DS to a convertible in DH's car and leave the bucket seat in my car once he starts daycare.
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Our daycare has bucket seats left by parents but only in the two infant rooms. There is literally nowhere to put it in the toddler rooms.
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I've seen parents leave convertible seats at our daycare at times in the lobby, but it's definitely frowned upon because they're in the way. We ended up getting two car seats - one for each card. And now we have four car seats since we have two kids! But it's worth it that we both can easily transport the kids at any time.
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Thanks everyone. I definitely won't plan on lugging the convertible into daycare. Two seats it is!
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