Britax Prince Car Seat

So with Ryan getting bigger, and his car seat not – we needed to take the plunge and fork out yet more money and get him a bigger, more suitable car seat! Now we do not begrudge spending money on our Little Bubba, but seriously children should come with a sticker stating exactly how expensive they really are!

At first we were looking at ones that would do him right through until he is 12, but then we caught ourselves on – I mean Ryan is messy, seriously even the crèche workers have commented that they have not meet such a messy child, so we decided to buy him one that would do him a couple of years and then we could “upgrade!”

I think I will mention now – as I am talking about ages – that this car seat does from approximately 9 months – 4 years old! Not bad really! And I can see Ryan staying in it till he is four, as there is plenty of room for him to grow!

Off to the shops we popped

Now we tried many shops (Mothercare, Argos, those little Independent Baby Shops), but even with sales on they all seemed wild expensive. So, when our next door neighbour just happened to comment that they had bought their son a new car seat and Smyths as there was a sale on – well it seemed like luck was on our side and away we went to our local Smyths Store.

At first it was a bit daunting looking at walls of car seats, and the feeling that they were about to fall on us wouldn’t go away, but after 5 minutes of standing there looking like dummies we decided to have a closer look at this one!

Why the Britax Prince Car Seat I hear you ask!

Well first of the brand – we have heard a lot of good reviews about Britax and it is renowned for being one of the safest and best brands for children’s car seats. So I think in our heads we were always going to go for a Britax.

Next was the colour! We decided on the “Billy” fabric – black setting with a charcoal grey patterned front and side panel (circles in a lighter grey) and charcoal grey plastic base! Perfect for our Little Grubby Budgie! You can get it in red and black (which is lovely but not practical for us), and also black and charcoal grey without the circles, but we thought the circles just give it a little something extra.

Then there was the size! It was perfect, as we only have a small car, and the base was slimmer than many of the other car seats – therefore we felt it would be a better fit! (Believe me it is great in our car and we can get three people (Including Ryan in his car seat obviously) in the back seat – bonus for when we have family staying! For those of you who are wondering the dimensions are: 71cm x 45cm x 45cm. Simples!

However, the overall decision came when Ryan saw it, climbed in (by this time it was on the floor not the selves!) and smiled and made himself comfy – that was it decision made – we were getting this car seat!

Ok so it is aesthetically pleasing and a nice size but what about the features?

Well safety first and all that – and this car seat was pretty safe with Side Impact Protection with deep, softly padded side wings and 5-point safety harness with one pull adjustment we knew are little guy was going to be safe, plus there were Performance chest pads, so the straps where not digging into him and most importantly a 3-point seat belt or 2 lap belt installation, which means it was pretty versatile.

Then through into the mix that it is lightweight (6kg) which makes transferring between cars all the more easier and has a slim base, meaning it fits into smaller cars, as well as the big beasts and then the cover is not only softly padded but also removable and washable – we were onto a winner. The straw that broke the camel’s back and made our decision complete was the 3 recline positions, meaning our little dude could be comfy if he decided to fall asleep (which isn’t very often as he is too nosey (like me) but has been known to happen on longer journeys.

Decision made – off to the till!

What a lovely surprise – the price tag said it was £50 in the sale, but when we got to the till we only paid £40 – BARGIN!!!!! Who doesn’t love a bargain!!!!!!!!!!!!! Then the very helpful man asked if we needed help installing the car seat – very kind of him to ask but we really need to try and do it on our own (which we managed no problem – and got the thumbs up from our local garage who checked it for us!)

So out of the shop we walk with our new purchase – which basically just looked like a very large, awkward box to car, with a picture of the car seat on the front, and Britax written in quite big writing!

Home – time to install!

It was simple – I mean really simple! Plus the instructions where so straight forward it was unbelievable – usually they seem like they are in French or something so you have to try and figure it out on your own (not something you want to do when it comes to your child’s safety)! But yes, the instructions where straight forward and there were also handy pictures just in case!

Time for a drive

Now my partner is so much better at getting Ryan in the car than I am, but then again she does it at least twice a day (well that is how she examples the fact that she can do it in about 5 seconds, whereas 5 minutes later I am still standing there scratching my head, while my two year old is looking at me very strangely.

So as I will say – practice makes perfect with this! Basically you put the child’s arms through two straps that come from their shoulders (check the height is correct – it can be adjusted – you want your little ‘un to be safe and comfy), and then plug them into a buckle that is between their legs. Then pull a strap that is at the front to adjust, and make sure it is tight! Ryan has earned the nickname “Houdini” as he has a tendency to “escape” from the arm straps if they are not pulled tight! After all that you are ready to go!

Now I really cannot speak for Ryan, but the car seats seems comfy enough – I mean he hasn’t complained, and if he didn’t like it I am sure we would know about. He has even fallen asleep in it, so it mustn’t be all bad!

Once you are at your destination, it is really simple to release the straps. Simple press the button on the buckle and the straps are freed! Simples! Plus Ryan CANNOT release it, as it needs a little force, so another safety feature right there!

A prince for our prince

I am so glad that we bought this car seat. The colour is practical, it is easy to move between cars (we only have one car, but if my partner’s parents ever want the car seat it is easy to move and install – plus the fact they have a convertible (I know very fancy) and the back seats are slightly slimmer and it is a three door but this car seat has never caused us any problems), it is washable! AND most important of all Ryan seems comfy and secure in it!

So Stevie says – if you are thinking of a car seat for your little one – consider this – it is fit for a Prince and will make your little one feel like royalty!