Diaper Swappers

Caz · 04-17-2012, 07:47 AM

DH and I would really like to TTC#3, but the next year is not a good time to buy a new car, and we drive a '10 Subaru Forester. Not the best for car seats, I know

We can't really wrap our heads around not having another child simply because we don't want to get a new car, and if we had to get another one, I suppose we could, but it would put a big strain on us, financially.

Currently, I have DD RF in a Radian behind the passenger and DS is in a Parkway SGL behind the driver. I know there's no way to put the other Radian FF in the center between these 2 seats, I tried.

Which bucket is narrowest? I'm thinking that by the time #3 would outgrow a bucket, we'd probably be in a better position to buy a bigger car, so I'm wondering if we got a narrow bucket, if I could get that in the center btwn the Rn and Pkwy..

or maybe, put a RF Radian in the center with a FF Radian and the Parkway outboard? Is it possible? I need to get out there and try it out, but would also love to hear of other success stories

Right now, this is the only issue making DH hesitate on the TTC front, so I'd love to be able to say, "Yes, we can get away for a year or so with 3 across in the Forester!"

ETA: DS would be at least 6.5 before #3 would be born, possibly closer to 7, so I'm also wondering if a slim backless booster might work? The base of the Pkwy seems pretty wide, is there a narrower backless booster out there? (DS is pretty slim).

Caz · 04-18-2012, 05:34 AM

It's impossible, isn't it?

I played with the seats I have yesterday, and didn't see anyway that I'd be able to use the Pkwy and 2 Radians. I have a nearly expired Britax RA and that was a no-go as well. There seemed to be a slim chance that an especially narrow bucket might fit btwn a FF Rn and the Pkwy.

Any advice on which bucket would be the most narrow? My babies are usually tall and skinny, but I don't think we'd need it for an especially long time, probably a minimum of 6 mos before we'd be in a better position to upgrade to a larger vehicle.

TalkinBoutMyGirl · 04-18-2012, 06:51 AM

Chicco Keyfit is narrow and I think the Baby Trend seat is too but lots of people don't like it. Anyway you could stick the booster kid back in a harness? That will likely buy you room. And have you tried the Radian RF?

Eta: what about Pkwy, RF RA, RF Radian? Or the radian RF in the middle of that scenario?

Caz · 04-18-2012, 07:11 AM

I could put DS back in a harness, actually the only reason we moved him out of the Radian was b/c he broke his arm a few weeks ago and the sling and cast made the harness cumbersome. He wouldn't be too impressed about going back into the "baby seat", but I'm the boss and he knows it

I also hadn't thought of keeping both Radians RF, I had just sort of assumed that I'd need to turn DD ff (which I'm okay with since she'd be pretty close to 3, if not older by then).

What didn't work was:
FF Radian:RF Radian:Pkwy
FF Radian:RF RA:Pkwy
FF RA:RF Radian:Pkwy
RF Radian:FF Radian:Pkwy
RF Radian: Pkwy: FF Radian

Thanks for the suggestions! Keep 'em coming!

TalkinBoutMyGirl · 04-18-2012, 10:07 AM

I can't wrap my head around this lol. I'm on the app so hard to see all of this at the same time. What about...

FF radian, RF Roudabout, RF Radian?
FF radian, RF Roundabout, FF radian? Or any combination of those seats? Or RF radian for the baby? Just keep trying mama! But I'm gonna say you probably need to ditch the parkway.

marleysmom1207 · 04-27-2012, 11:10 PM

Subbing, we have the same car, but newb is due in October, so we're a little more pressed for time to get this figured out. No one out there has done 3 across in a Forester? I'm totally willing to buy 3 new car seats to avoid buying a new car!

TheGreenBee · 04-28-2012, 04:47 AM

2010 so I assume you have shoulder belt in the middle? Did you try Parkway center and RF radian on each side? Or parkway center, rf radian on one side and slim infant seat on the other? That would make it easier for your oldest to access the booster. The peg perego primo viaggio is quite slim.

Caz · 04-29-2012, 06:11 AM

I found a mama with an '11 Forester (which I'm pretty sure is identical to the '10), and she found success with this:

Quote:

I have the coccoro outboard behind the passenger, with the latch (wouldnt tighten up enough with the seatbelt), radian middle with the seatbelt, parkway behind driver. She cant buckle herself in the booster, but id rather deal with doing it than buy a new car. We also have a bubblebum that works but she's not quite ready to hold still in a low back booster! The seats worked in other configurations, too, but radian wouldnt tighten up rf in the middle for some reason.

I haven't tried it again in our car, but I did just this week get the angle adjuster for the RF radian and, holy cow, does it make a difference! With the angle adjuster, I think that we could put a Radian RF behind the driver, which was impossible w/o the adjuster, DH is 6'2 and I'm 5'9, so neither of us had enough leg room.

Since we already have 2 Radians, I'm going to try to get them to fit RF outboard with the Parkway in the center, but the Parkway seems so wide at the base, I don't know... That and DS would have to climb under the Radians to get in and out, plus there's not way he'll be able to buckle himself in, so that set-up might be out...

I'm feeling more encouraged, though. It seems like the Cocorro would be a good bet in place of a Radian if you need a slender convertible that also gives you more room for a driver or front seat passenger (since you can't use the angle adjuster until 1yr). I'd like to try a slender bucket in the center position, since it's easier to lean in to snap a bucket into a base than it is to try and buckle someone into a convertible or booster.

Caz · 04-29-2012, 06:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheGreenBee

2010 so I assume you have shoulder belt in the middle? Did you try Parkway center and RF radian on each side? Or parkway center, rf radian on one side and slim infant seat on the other? That would make it easier for your oldest to access the booster. The peg perego primo viaggio is quite slim.

Oops! Missed this post before my previous reply... Yes, the center seat does have a shoulder belt. One thing that's important to note, though, is that right now there is a recall from Subaru on the center seatbelt (at least in my 2010 there is), making it incompatible with a car seat install. The repair isn't available in my area yet, but I'm assuming it will be taken care of by the time my hypothetical 3rd child arrives

, but to the PP who is due in October, you should contact your local dealership if you haven't had it taken care of yet to make sure you're set before the LO arrives.

But, after looking at the dimensions of the base for the Peg Perego, it seems like it would be a good bucket to try in the center position. It's pretty narrow. And since the Radian sits so low it seems like it should puzzle well with a FF Radian...

marleysmom1207 · 04-29-2012, 09:34 PM

Yay, it sounds like it's actually possible! I'd heard so many bad things about 3 across in a Subaru, I was beginning to think there might not be a combo that worked. I like the idea of a narrow bucket in the middle, that would be ideal. But, ds will not be quite 5 when the newb arrives, so he'll still be small enough to crawl under to get to the middle, if that's what we have to do.

Yes, I got the letter about not using the center buckle for car seats, the parts aren't in yet here, either. I'm hoping we can get it fixed before October. Worst case scenario would be to trade cars with MIL until they get the parts in.

This thread has been really helpful! I guess I need to spend a kid-free morning in the BrUs parking lot.

04-17-2012, 07:47 AM	#1
Caz Registered Users Formerly: ccin*s Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: NC Posts: 913 Ratings: 23 Feedback: 100% My Mood:**	3 across in a Forester DH and I would really like to TTC#3, but the next year is not a good time to buy a new car, and we drive a '10 Subaru Forester. Not the best for car seats, I know We can't really wrap our heads around not having another child simply because we don't want to get a new car, and if we had to get another one, I suppose we could, but it would put a big strain on us, financially. Currently, I have DD RF in a Radian behind the passenger and DS is in a Parkway SGL behind the driver. I know there's no way to put the other Radian FF in the center between these 2 seats, I tried. Which bucket is narrowest? I'm thinking that by the time #3 would outgrow a bucket, we'd probably be in a better position to buy a bigger car, so I'm wondering if we got a narrow bucket, if I could get that in the center btwn the Rn and Pkwy.. or maybe, put a RF Radian in the center with a FF Radian and the Parkway outboard? Is it possible? I need to get out there and try it out, but would also love to hear of other success stories Right now, this is the only issue making DH hesitate on the TTC front, so I'd love to be able to say, "Yes, we can get away for a year or so with 3 across in the Forester!" ETA: DS would be at least 6.5 before #3 would be born, possibly closer to 7, so I'm also wondering if a slim backless booster might work? The base of the Pkwy seems pretty wide, is there a narrower backless booster out there? (DS is pretty slim). __________________ Mama to The Scientist (8/06), The Little Miss (4/10), and The Littlest Miss (2/13) Last edited by Caz; 04-17-2012 at 08:05 AM.

04-18-2012, 05:34 AM	#2
Caz Registered Users Formerly: ccin*s Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: NC Posts: 913 Ratings: 23 Feedback: 100% My Mood:**	Re: 3 across in a Forester It's impossible, isn't it? I played with the seats I have yesterday, and didn't see anyway that I'd be able to use the Pkwy and 2 Radians. I have a nearly expired Britax RA and that was a no-go as well. There seemed to be a slim chance that an especially narrow bucket might fit btwn a FF Rn and the Pkwy. Any advice on which bucket would be the most narrow? My babies are usually tall and skinny, but I don't think we'd need it for an especially long time, probably a minimum of 6 mos before we'd be in a better position to upgrade to a larger vehicle. __________________ Mama to The Scientist (8/06), The Little Miss (4/10), and The Littlest Miss (2/13)

04-18-2012, 07:11 AM	#4
Caz Registered Users Formerly: ccin*s Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: NC Posts: 913 Ratings: 23 Feedback: 100% My Mood:**	Re: 3 across in a Forester I could put DS back in a harness, actually the only reason we moved him out of the Radian was b/c he broke his arm a few weeks ago and the sling and cast made the harness cumbersome. He wouldn't be too impressed about going back into the "baby seat", but I'm the boss and he knows it I also hadn't thought of keeping both Radians RF, I had just sort of assumed that I'd need to turn DD ff (which I'm okay with since she'd be pretty close to 3, if not older by then). What didn't work was: FF Radian:RF Radian:Pkwy FF Radian:RF RA:Pkwy FF RA:RF Radian:Pkwy RF Radian:FF Radian:Pkwy RF Radian: Pkwy: FF Radian Thanks for the suggestions! Keep 'em coming! __________________ Mama to The Scientist (8/06), The Little Miss (4/10), and The Littlest Miss (2/13) Last edited by Caz; 04-18-2012 at 07:15 AM.

04-18-2012, 10:07 AM	#5
TalkinBoutMyGirl Registered Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 12,314 Ratings: 255 Feedback: 100% My Mood:	I can't wrap my head around this lol. I'm on the app so hard to see all of this at the same time. What about... FF radian, RF Roudabout, RF Radian? FF radian, RF Roundabout, FF radian? Or any combination of those seats? Or RF radian for the baby? Just keep trying mama! But I'm gonna say you probably need to ditch the parkway. __________________ Anna-Child Passenger Safety Technician, mama to H(4) and so much more. My ISO/IHA Earn easy cash back through EBATES Want FREE money? Swag with me!

04-27-2012, 11:10 PM	#6
marleysmom1207 Registered Users Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 599 Ratings: 29 Feedback: 100% My Mood:	Subbing, we have the same car, but newb is due in October, so we're a little more pressed for time to get this figured out. No one out there has done 3 across in a Forester? I'm totally willing to buy 3 new car seats to avoid buying a new car! __________________ Dawn: Mama to DS1 (12/07), DD (5/10), and DS2 (10/12)